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Sleep Hygiene Tips
Sleep Hygiene Tips – Research & Treatments
Getting good sleep is important in maintaining health. There are several things that you can do
to promote good sleep and sleep hygiene, and ultimately Get Better Sleep.
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Sleep hygiene is defined as behaviors that one can do to help promote good sleep using
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Sleep hygiene tips:
Maintain a regular sleep routine
Long Sleeping
Go to bed at the same time. Wake up at the same time. Ideally, your schedule will remain
The Most Common Sleep Disorders
Insomnia
Sleep Apnea
the same (+/- 20 minutes) every night of the week.
Avoid naps if possible
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Sleep Disorders Summary
Naps decrease the ‘Sleep Debt’ that is so necessary for easy sleep onset.
Each of us needs a certain amount of sleep per 24-hour period. We need that amount, and
we don’t need more than that.
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When we take naps, it decreases the amount of sleep that we need the next night – which
may cause sleep fragmentation and difficulty initiating sleep, and may lead to insomnia.
Don’t stay in bed awake for more than 5-10 minutes.
If you find your mind racing, or worrying about not being able to sleep during the middle of
the night, get out of bed, and sit in a chair in the dark. Do your mind racing in the chair until
you are sleepy, then return to bed. No TV or internet during these periods! That will just
stimulate you more than desired.
If this happens several times during the night, that is OK. Just maintain your regular wake
time, and try to avoid naps.
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Don’t watch TV or read in bed.
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When you watch TV or read in bed, you associate the bed with wakefulness.
Insomnia overview - causes, symptoms,
The bed is reserved for two things – sleep and hanky panky.
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Sleep Hygiene Tips
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Drink caffeinated drinks with caution
Ask the Sleep Doctor
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Periodic Leg Movements During Sleep - PLMS
Parasomnias
Children and Sleep
The effects of caffeine may last for several hours after ingestion. Caffeine can fragment
sleep, and cause difficulty initiating sleep. If you drink caffeine, use it only before noon.
Remember that soda and tea contain caffeine as well.
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Adjustment Insomnia
Advanced Sleep Phase Syndrome
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Avoid inappropriate substances that interfere with
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sleep
Catathrenia
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Syndrome
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Cigarettes, alcohol, and over-the-counter
medications may cause fragmented sleep.
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Exercise regularly
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Sleep Hygiene Tips - Research & Treatments | American Sleep Assoc
Hypoventilation
Idiopathic Insomnia
Inadequate Sleep Hygiene
Irregular Sleep Wake Rhythm
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Exercise before 2 pm every day. Exercise promotes continuous sleep.
Avoid rigorous exercise before bedtime. Rigorous exercise circulates endorphins into the
body which may cause difficulty initiating sleep.
Jet Lag
Long Sleeping
Nightmares - What are they and how do you
Have a quiet, comfortable bedroom
treat them
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Periodic Limb Movement Syndrome /
Disorder
REM Behaviour Disorder
Restless Legs Syndrome
Shift Work Disorder
Sleep Myoclonus
Sleep Terrors
Sleep Eating
Set your bedroom thermostat at a comfortable temperature.
Generally, a little cooler is better than a little warmer.
Turn off the TV and other extraneous noise that may disrupt sleep.
exercise and sleep
Background ‘white noise’ like a fan is OK.
If your pets awaken you, keep them outside the bedroom.
Your bedroom should be dark. Turn off bright lights.
Have a comfortable mattress.
Sleep Walking: Facts, Causes, Symptoms &
Treatment
Letter from Dr. C. Everett Koop
If you are a ‘clock watcher’ at night, hide the clock.
Sleep Paralysis
Support Groups and Resources
Have a comfortable pre-bedtime routine
A warm bath, shower
Meditation, or quiet time
Some who are struggling with sleep regularly find it helpful to print out these recommendations
and read them regularly. If you accidentally miss some of recommendations, or have a bad night,
do not fret. By following these sleep hygiene recommendations, you will help yourself to get
into a routine that promotes good sleep opportunities.
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15 Replies to “Sleep Hygiene Tips”
Sandra
November 12, 2016 at 11:50 am
Reply
Helpful tips! I’m used to suffer from insomnia before I came up with this post. One more note is that not all
tea contain caffeine such as green tea. It actually helps you sleep better.
Jackie
March 2, 2017 at 12:55 am
Reply
Actually, green tea does have caffeine, just less than black tea. Herbal tea, as a rule, does not.
T S Hodnett
2 of 5
March 5, 2017 at 1:05 am
Reply
12/25/17, 9:52 PM
Sleep Hygiene Tips - Research & Treatments | American Sleep Assoc
https://www.sleepassociation.org/patients-general-public/insomnia/s...
They sell decaf green tea, but you have to look for it as the most common green teas have caffeine. I
have to tell you tho, that hot herbal tea at bedtime just ensures that I will have to get up 2 hours
later for a bathroom visit. Several teas are natural diuretics so keep that in mind!
Shawn Stopper
December 10, 2016 at 11:45 am
Reply
I sleep at night about from 5 until 2am. I am trying to get myself to sleep a whole night kind of like 9 to 5am
and I do not klnow how!!
THANK YOU.
Shawn Stopper
blargh
January 11, 2017 at 10:23 am
Reply
Shawn, you sleep from 5 pm to 2 am? Have you tried just slowly shifting your bedtime? Like from 5 pm
to 5.30 pm? Or if that’s too much, try from 5 pm to 5.15? Keep that for 2-3 days, then shift your bedtime
again by the same amount? Eventually you’ll move your bedtime over to when you want it to be and
hopefully you’ll sleep until 6 am. Since you’re moving your bedtme by 4 hours, you’d want to move your
wake time by 4 hours too which would mean 6 am.
jaredh4
January 17, 2017 at 9:20 am
Reply
I find that a nice hot shower at night time is a valuable part of my pre bedtime sleep hygiene ritual. I make
sure that my phone is in the bathroom and not in the bedroom. Temperature on thermostat is set for 71
degrees. All lights are turned off and clock is not visible. This helps me to sleep better.
SLP
February 10, 2017 at 2:57 am
Reply
nice warm cup of organic almond milk before laying down, eases the stomach and reduces inflamation for
those of you that are late night workers, grabbing something on thee way home. sleepy time warm teas
relaxes you but keep in tea mind if you dont mind getting up for the bathroom. almond milk is the best. Just
40 calories!
Eric
March 6, 2017 at 5:34 am
Reply
Tonight is a failed night. Knew some of this stuff, but not all. Trying to kick long term benzo use makes it
extra fun
Going to write tonight off as a failure and start implementing missing bits tomorrow. Three questions, I have
ADHD so the ten minute thing isn’t all that possible for me typically – it can take twice that long just to calm
my brain down. Should I change anything about that?
Plus for white noise, can instrumental music work?
And last question, caffiene works differently on me due to my ADHD – it actually puts me to sleep (have
used it a fair few times as a sleep aid before I fell down the benzo rabbithole, and before I knew caffiene had
this effect, I have passed right out even mid day from high caffiene drinks, once even having to fight against
passing out from an energy drink). Since it has a proven history with sedating me, can I use it short term to
deak with my rebound insomnia from the benzos? Or should I just treat it as a “perk” that lets me get away
with caffiene later and not intentionally use it to prevent dependance? Sorry if I seem like I’m overexplaining
the caffiene stuff, I have found a fair few people don’t believe the caffiene thing due to its whole
counterintuitiveness
Alysha Miller
November 21, 2017 at 12:55 am
Reply
I wanted to let you know that I also have severe ADHD and my kids as well, and you are not alone with
the sugar and caffeine issue. Its makes us tired as well, where regular food would make us hyper and
excited. You are not alone.
Don
March 11, 2017 at 3:44 pm
Reply
Sorry to hear about your rough night Eric. Thats interesting about the caffeine though. I don’t think I’ve
heard of that before. Caffeine doesn’t really affect me one way or the other, but if it does anything, it keeps
my mind racing. But since caffeine has a half life of 8 hours…i try to make noon my caffeine cutoff time
anyway.
Instrumental music? Absolutely. Music is can be so key to calming our minds. Turn off the TV or other
screens…lower the lights and turn on the music softly. I do that, and its lights out. Give it a shot.
I really think thats the key for many of us that have trouble falling asleep…getting the mind to quiet down.
Music definitely has that affect for lots of people I know.
As mentioned above…the warm bath is great and so is turning down the temp in your room. I say go even
cooler, maybe around 66-68 or so.
I threw together my own sleep hygiene list. Check it out if you want. Its just a list of things that have worked
for me in the past.
Good luck to you.
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Sleep Hygiene Tips - Research & Treatments | American Sleep Assoc
Ashley Pence
https://www.sleepassociation.org/patients-general-public/insomnia/s...
April 11, 2017 at 11:54 am
Reply
So people who work full time should what? Quit their jobs to exercise instead of work?
Emilie
July 25, 2017 at 8:34 pm
Reply
I exercise before work. You could also go for a walk at lunch time.
Evelyn Nieves
November 11, 2017 at 3:32 pm
Reply
I’m 66 and have been taking sleeping pills every night since the age of 18 that’s 48 Years. My insomnia began
when I started working nights and could not sleep during the day. Took over the counter drugs, Formula 44
cough medicine, prescription drugs such as restoril, ambien, halcion, dalmane and throughout most of my
life I’ve combined the pills with Benadryl 50 g. I still have trouble sleeping and the little I get is fragmented,
have trouble falling asleep and waking up numerous times. I have heard of sleep hygiene but have not done
entirely. I stay in bed awake cause I’m tired both at night and in the morning. I’ve had no success trying to
lower the dosage on the pills, cause I get anxiety attacks, raising my heart. I wish I could find a clinic or
medical trial where I can go for a couple of weeks to help me. I worked 35 horrible years with this chronic
insomnia and I thought when I retired at 55 I would get better because I didn’t have the stress of waking up
early but to no avail. I wll try the sleep hygiene. Thank you. Any advice will be appreciated.
Mary
December 5, 2017 at 9:34 am
Reply
Evelyn,
There is help for you. Medical doctors in the Houston Med Center in Texas refer patients to Dr Marcia
Lindsey, in Bellaire Texas – a clinical psychologist who specializes in sleep disorders using Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy. I am sure she would be able to refer you to someone in your local area. You will
need to be monitored by an MD to wean from your current medications. With this assistance, you will
succeed – and you’ll be so very happy that you did!!
Happy Retirement!
m
Deborah
December 16, 2017 at 11:40 am
Reply
m
I’m from Adelaide in Australia I will contact Dr Marcia Lindsey in the hope that she could recommend
someone over here that specializes in sleep disorders. I am 61 and years ago was diagnosed with ADHD
along with my son.
We have both always had trouble sleeping but this site has given us food for thought. It seems that I am
doing everything to make the situation worse. Drinking tea and alcohol, smoking and not exercising nearly
enough. At the moment it is 3 am and here I am sitting in front of the computer, wrong again. I have quite a
bit of work to do on my sleep hygiene but I’m sure it will help.
Deborah
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