Tips For Falling Back Asleep

Sleep disruptions happen. Whether it is due to kids having nightmares, dogs howling at the moon, or general stress and anxiety waking you up during the middle of the night. It can be rather difficult trying to get back to sleep even when you feel exhausted. Which is what we are here to help you with today. We have collected our top tips for falling back asleep.

Don’t FORCE Yourself Back To Sleep:

The fastest way to stress yourself out and keep yourself awake is by feeling like you must force yourself back to sleep. Instead we suggest if you find yourself awake during the night, and trying to go back to sleep, that you allow your body and mind to rest without stimulation. Take in the peaceful night environment and know that you have no duties that cannot wait until the morning.

Even if you don’t fall back asleep, giving your body and mind some peaceful rest is helpful. You may even be surprised by finding that you fell back asleep after all. Although remember that even if you don’t fall back asleep and instead lay in bed relaxing your mind and body that is good rest as well.

Stay Off Of Your Phone:

Now that our phones often serve as our clocks we often want to check the time whenever we wake up in the middle of the night. However, we now have a seemingly limitless supply of distractions and entertainment on our phones. You may get drawn into your phone by texts from friends, emails from work, social media content, things to buy, games to play, funny videos and so much more.

With so much you could potentially get pulled into, it is bound to keep you wide awake for hours on end. (and it does for many of us.) The blue light is also disruptive to our natural sleep patterns as it is the same light as the sun. Which triggers our circadian rhythm to believe the sun is rising and it is time to wake up. So if you’re wanting to get back to sleep, we highly recommend staying off of your phone.

Learn more about the effects technology has on your sleep in our blog post: Technology and Sleep: The Blatant Hypocrisy

Take A Small Walk:

Staying put in bed and feeling like you HAVE to fall back asleep can trigger a lot of anxiety. Getting up and walking around your bedroom or living room may help to ease your mind. By allowing yourself to move you no longer feel the pressure to close your eyes and go straight to sleep.

Try to keep it short as too long of a walk may lead you to feel wide awake and ready to start your day. Small stretches can relieve any stiffness or pain and allow you to feel more comfortable as you climb back into bed.

Check the Temperature In Your Home:

One of the reasons you may be waking up during the middle of the night is that you are either too hot or cold. Check the temperature and how you feel. If you’re hot and sweaty it is going to be very difficult to sleep through that.

Adjusting the temperature in your home may be able to help you not only get back to sleep now, but also help you stay asleep tomorrow night. Finding the right mattress and bedding can also help to keep you sleeping at the right temperature throughout the night.

Too hot? Check out our post Best Cooling Sleep Products For Hot Sleepers

Use A Weighted Blanket:

Weighted blankets help to release feel good hormones that fight off stress and anxiety. No wonder they are such great tools for helping you fall back asleep and stay asleep. As you feel the weight of a weighted blanket press down on you, you are feeling something called deep pressure.

With deep pressure therapy, you can help calm nerves and encourage happy hormones to help you relax and fall asleep. Weighted blankets are also nice to use during the day for naps or even relaxing while watching a movie.

Learn more about the positive effects of weighted blankets and how they work, in our post Weighted Blanket Benefits

CBD Oil, Melatonin, and other Supplements:

Natural supplements can help with all sorts of things that might be causing you to wake up and be unable to go back to sleep. CBD Oil for example, is wonderful at easing stress and anxiety while also reducing pain and swelling.

While melatonin supplements are wonderful for helping you get to sleep at night while also helping you to remain asleep throughout the night. There are also other supplements and vitamins that help support a well rounded and healthy sleep schedule. If you are lacking in certain vitamins and minerals it can be difficult to maintain a healthy sleep schedule. Click the link below to learn more.

Blogs You May Also Enjoy: Natural Sleep Aid Guide, CBD Oil Guide: Finding Better Sleep with CBD, or A Guide To Using Melatonin

Listen to White Noise or Music:

The silence of night for many people can be daunting. The lack of stimulation somehow feels overwhelming. While all we say we want is some peace and quiet, once we actually get some it is too much to handle. Don’t worry, you’re not alone and there are a lot of easy solves for this. Try putting on some soft music or white noise machine that will allow you to drift off to sleep. Having some noise can ease your nerves and blocking out any random sound the house makes.

Noisy neighbors? White noise machines and music are also wonderful for blocking out the disruptions caused by loud neighbors. White noise machines are wonderful for neutralizing sounds so you can get back to sleep with minimal distractions.

Learn more about white noise on our blog: Pros & Cons of White Noise Machines

Relaxation Exercises:

There are many different kinds of relaxation exercises out there, and different ones will work better for different people. We suggest doing some research and finding a relaxation ritual or exercise that you love. This can also be a great practice that you do every night before you go to bed or as you lay in bed before you fall asleep.

Many relaxation exercises involve breathing techniques that have you focus on deep relaxing breaths, focus exercises, along with visualizing relaxing scenarios. Although anything that helps you to calm your mind and relax your body is a great way to help you to get back to sleep. Just try a few out and see what you like and what helps you the most.

You May Also Like: Meditation for Sleep, Anxiety & Healing

Journal Your Thoughts:

Something weighing heavily on your mind? Getting those worries out on paper might help lower their impact on your mind. This is also helpful for those who have busy exciting ideas. Keep a piece of paper and a pen on your bedside table so you can scribble them down whenever they hit.

This way you’re not worrying that you will forget all these great ideas by the time the morning comes. If there is anything keeping your mind awake, even if it is just that you’re excited about your day tomorrow, writing it down can help solidify the thought and take it off of your mind so you can fall back asleep.

Change Your Environment:

If you find yourself unable to fall asleep after a good amount of time, try changing your surroundings. Go snuggle up under your favorite blanket on the chair in the living room. Or simply stretch your legs out in the hall for a minute. Find a new place that is nice and relaxing for you.

However, if the sight of the dishes you left in the sink last night causes mores stress, then don’t hang out in the kitchen. But, sometimes hanging out in our bedroom while we can’t sleep feels claustrophobic. By allowing yourself to get up and change your environment a bit may help you to shake off the cobwebs and relax again.

Avoid Sleep Disruptions:

If you can, we suggest taking some preventative actions in order to keep yourself from having your sleep interrupted. Turn off notifications or completely silence your phone, use white noise to drown out other sounds, try not to share your bed with pets or children, treat your pain symptoms, drink less liquids right before bed. Or if it is something very specific causing you to stir in the middle of the night, try to find a way to limit whatever it is that is causing you to wake up.

Tips For Falling Back Asleep – Final Thoughts:

While preventing sleep disruptions would be  ideal, we all get woken up during the middle of the night from time to time. Which is why we hope this post helps you to get back to sleep easily and quickly. Remember that trying to force yourself back to sleep often is stressful and can do more hurt than good. So be sure to always be kind to yourself and focus on relaxing instead of forcing yourself back to sleep.