You may eventually get into a rhythm where sleep comes more easily. Being comfortable will help your body give in to sleep. Make sure your bedroom is cool, dark, and quiet. You may want to darken the room using curtains.
Earplugs or a white-noise machine can help drown out distractions. Try to limit the number of pets or children sleeping in your bed, and avoid falling asleep with the television on, even if the sound is off.
And consider switching your pillow or mattress if they are uncomfortable. Computer and phone screens emit what is called blue light. Power down your devices and limit your exposure to blue light in the two to three hours before bed. Taking care of yourself during waking hours will help your sleep.
Think about the things you consume. Caffeine may wind you up if consumed too close to bedtime. Alcohol can make you sleepy, but it actually makes your quality of sleep worse. Herbal tea or warm milk are better substitutes. Exercise is good for your body, but doing it right before you go to bed may disrupt your sleep. If you have concerns about your sleep, write about them. Include anything and everything about your usual habits and routine so you can show your doctor.
Be sure to jot down how long you sleep each night, how long it takes to fall asleep, if you nap during the day, and anything else related to your rest you think may be important. Learn more: Tips to sleep better ». Making up a sleep debt can seem impossible, but it's not.
If you aren't too far behind on your sleep, you may be able to do it in a weekend. A more…. Deep sleep occurs in the final stage of non-REM sleep. During this stage, your breathing is the slowest it is during sleep, and you're unlikely to be….
It's crucial for our mental and physical health, quality of life, and overall safety, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Proper sleep not only leaves you feeling refreshed and ready to take on the day, it improves learning, helps the heart and blood vessels repair themselves, promotes a healthy balance of hunger hormones, and aids the immune system.
For most people, seven to nine hours of sleep each night is sufficient, though your age, activity level, and health can shift that target in either direction, according to the Sleep Foundation. And while sleep deprivation is a widespread problem considering all the aforementioned health functions of sleep , sleeping too much can be cause for concern as well.
The Sleep Foundation defines oversleeping as sleeping more than nine hours in a hour period. In those cases, oversleeping is normal, says Safia Khan, MD , a specialist in sleep disorders and an assistant professor in the department of family and community medicine and the department of neurology at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. Khan says. Oversleeping typically indicates something else is going on, such as an underlying sleep disorder or another medical condition.
According to the Sleep Foundation and Johns Hopkins Medicine , oversleeping most often occurs with the following underlying health conditions:. A study published in December in the European Heart Journal , for example, found that sleeping more than six to eight hours per day including naps was linked to higher risk of death from heart disease, according to survey data from more than , adults from 21 countries.
A medical professional can help you determine if your excessive sleeping is caused by a sleep disorder or your sleep habits. So how much is too much sleep? Well, it depends. Your sleep needs will vary over your lifetime, your sleep chronotype , age, activity level, general health, and lifestyle. T he AASM recommends the following sleep amounts based on age that you can use as a general baseline:.
Instead, look for sudden changes in your sleep schedule. Were you normally getting 7 hours of sleep and feeling fine, but now you need closer to 10 and feel terrible?
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