If you often feel anxious and tired, you’re likely looking forward to getting into bed at the end of your every day. However, what you probably didn’t realize is that some bedtime habits that you think are harmless could be the reason why you feel so crappy and sloppy the entire day.
From the quality of sleep to the food you eat, here are five bedtime practices that could be sabotaging your life.
- Trying so hard to resolve conflicts with your partner
The famous saying “never go to bed angry” could not be so good after all. Staying up late trying to resolve an issue will not only cut your sleep time, but also make you feel too hyped up to doze off. Instead of trying to solve an argument, agree to disagree for the meantime and get yourselves some rest for a refreshed feeling in the morning. When you wake up and the frustration doesn’t go away (though in most cases, it does), try talking once again. At least, you’re a lot calmer now and you’ve had enough sleep.
- Relying on wine to wind down
While alcohol can make you feel drowsy, it negatively affects your quality of sleep. Specifically, alcohol affects the cycle of your sleep, causing you to wake up more often and experience less deep sleep. Rather than drinking alcohol before bedtime, go for warm milk or green tea to relax.
- Eating late night snacks
Snacking on something sweet or salty before going to bed means more calories will be stored as fat. That’s a recipe for unwanted weight gain and disrupted sleep. When your body is working to digest food, it won’t be able to rest properly. Late night snacking will not only affect your quality of sleep, but also a problematic digestion the next day.
- Lighting up a cigarette close to bedtime
We can’t stress enough how smoking is bad for the health. But if you insist on doing it, try to avoid lighting up a stick close to your bedtime. Remember that nicotine is a form of stimulant. Therefore, smoking before bedtime can make it difficult for you to fall asleep, which means irritable and groggy the next day. Give yourself at least two hours cigar-free before hitting the sack.
- Using your phone, period
The blue light from your phone’s screen contributes to keeping you awake. And if you need more compelling reason to keep your phone away from bed, know that it can also hamper your intimacy with your partner. When you have the habit of answering emails when on bed, you are setting up the vibe that your bed is a place for work and not for resting and lovemaking with your significant other.
We’ve all experienced the consequences of lack of sleep. Since we don’t want to endure these awful situations at work and in school, make sure to keep your sleep at all time high by avoiding the aforementioned habits.