3 Reasons You Are Not Sleeping Well and What You Can Do About It

If you are waking every day fatigued, irritable and unable to focus on the day’s tasks, then probably you are doing these 3 things. 

Feeling powerless to fall asleep at night even after being tired? Relax, you are not the only one. Do you know the worst part of not getting a good night’s sleep? You tend to feel like a zombie during the day and the feeling is less than ideal. 

Even though most of us are spending all our time indoors, good quality sleep seems to be evading us – and it has hardly got to do anything with how we’re sleeping. Yes, the lockdown is the reason partially, but the remaining 50 % of the reasons, is on us.

So, if you are hitting the bed overnight only to have irregular phases of shallow sleep, then probably you are doing these 3 things.

You Are Always on The Phone or Computer 

We have talked about the importance of night routines earlier and one of it consists of unplugging from any screen time at night. And there’s a good reason why we recommend that you keep your phone away, especially if you are grappling to fall and remain asleep: your circadian rhythm is off. Circadian rhythm is your body’s internal clock which tells you when it is time to do things and the blue light emitted from your screen, completely messes it up. What does that mean? You can’t fall asleep or stay asleep. 

Solution : Make a vow of ‘no-screen time’ after 9 pm.

You Follow Zero Routine 

While excessive exposure of blue light from the computer and phone screen is a confirmed way to disturb your sleep patterns, it also cripples your overall lifestyle rhythm. And there’s a valid reason behind it: while being in the lockdown, maybe you are constantly worried about your employment, finances, relationship with your partner or your child, keeping a disciplined lifestyle is the last thing on your mind. So, what do you do instead? Spend hours on the phone or computer on top of your work from home responsibilities. You stay up late, skip meals and work out and are just ‘floating through the day’. Not surprisingly, because your schedule is off-balance, it is pushing your body clock out of sync, too.

Solution : Your body thrives on a routine. Do not sleep longer than you used to before the lockdown. Instead, maintain strict timelines for working, eating and exercising so that your brain and body stays aligned. 

 Your Mental Diet Is Full of Junk 

The world is chaotic right now but that doesn’t mean that your mind has to follow suit. If you are mindlessly viewing YouTube videos all day or scrolling through your Instagram feed just because you are bored, your mind is saturated with useless information which is affecting not just your sleep but also your mental health. That’s why if you wish to stay anxiety-free and productive during the lockdown, carefully select the information you are feeding your mind and soul. Choose content which is uplifting, educative and cheerful and give news channels a break. Trust me, if there’s a piece of life-altering breaking news, you will find out sooner than you think. 

Solution : Keep the phone away and pick up a book instead. Give YouTube a break and listen to a podcast. Cultivate a hobby and practice every day. 

 So, what now?  sleep

Your inability to fall asleep or to get a good night’s rest is a cry for help from your mind and body and its time that you pay attention to. No, you do not have to opt for alternative methods such as melatonin for sleep but instead, ditch the above practices starting today. And most importantly, start to practise Yoga, which is simple and the benefits you will reap will be transformative for your whole mind and body. You will sleep sound, your mental strength will be high and overall, you will feel a deep sense of balance and peace.  Just remember that sleep and recovery are very intricately connected, so, begin your practice from today.

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