I still don’t know the way the Sleepcast episode “Enchanted Moonlight Library” ends. And that, I suppose, is the purpose. A Sleepcast is strictly what it seems like: a podcast designed to show you how to go to sleep. Or perhaps I heard “the ending” and never knew it; Headspacethe mental health app with the audio content, barely remixes his bedtime stories every night, so anxious sleepers like me cannot keep track of time by memorizing the narrative. (Sneaky but effective, I can attest.)
I began Headspace’s 18-part course Find Your Best Sleep in April to search out strategies to calm my worry-prone mind and go to sleep faster. The lessons, which include short videos and guided meditations, are divided into three modules: Understand Your Sleep; Try Something New; and Practice, Practice, Practice.
For nearly three weeks, I spent about 10 minutes an evening watching all the program’s materials—even optional bonus videos that had nothing to do with me, including videos on “Comfortable Sleep During Pregnancy” and “Mastering Shift Work.” This additional perspective helped me evaluate my sleep habits and work out what I wanted to enhance.
The 45-minute Sleepcasts aren’t a part of the course, but are included within the membership, together with other sleep aid tools similar to:
- Night SOS: I’ve used this feature just a few times once I woke up in the midst of the night and couldn’t get back to sleep. The guided practice track “Racing Mind SOS” got here in handy.
- Sleep music and radio: The tracks “Cave Winds” and “Rain Radio Station” have a very relaxing effect.
- Soundscapes: “Indoor Fireplace” and “Cabin Downpour” are a few of my favorite cozy background sounds.
- White noise and sleep sounds: The superb frequency of green noise works each time.
- Relaxation: For me, “Deep Rest” is the track after a stressful day.
Headspace costs $12.99/month with a one-week free trial, or $5.83/month or $69.99/12 months with a two-week free trial. Postgraduate students can join for 83 cents/month, billed as $9.99/12 months.
Not every tool in Finding Your Best Sleep worked for me. For example, the “worry time”—the practice of limiting your worries to a certain quantity of time every day—only made me more anxious. The goal of the course was to search out the very best sleep hygiene for me, and it worked. Here are five of my favorite sleep strategies I learned from Headspace.
Protect your sleep
The program encouraged me to place into practice something I even have long known to be true: once I sleep higher, life is healthier.
Adults aged 18 to 60 need no less than seven hours of sleep per night, in response to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). If I get lower than eight hours of sleep, the following day is like wading through mud. With adequate rest, I’m a greater daughter, sister, friend, and coworker. Not only am I more productive at home and at work, but I’m also kinder and happier.
So why is it so difficult to realize this significant element of wellbeing? The course has taught me to not prioritise sleep, but to guard it – to respect it, protect it and design the remainder of my life to accommodate it, not the opposite way around.
Sleep is a straightforward sacrifice when it looks like there aren’t enough hours within the day to get what must be done. Sometimes, though, I even have to force myself to place aside a task that may’t wait with the intention to put sleep first. And like magic, a great night’s sleep gives me time back in the shape of more energy and productivity the following day.
The bedroom is sacred – even the bed
I knew that a chilled bedroom environment was crucial for a restful sleep. Sleeping in a cool, dark, quiet and cozy An ideal place, says the CDC. Televisions within the bedroom are frowned upon and screen time must be turned off no less than half-hour before bedtime, especially if blue light is involved.
However, Headspace stresses that the bed itself must be off-limits for just about anything apart from sleeping. That means no eating, working, or doomscrolling in bed. That way, your brain associates the bed with sleep—not meals, emails, or social media.
We’ve all been there, but your bed should not be a spot where you toss and switch, ruminating on yesterday’s mistakes and tomorrow’s to-do list. If your mind is racing as you go to sleep and you are still awake after 20 minutes or so, Finding Your Best Sleep recommends getting up and doing a soothing activity in one other room until you are drained.
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Good sleep starts within the morning
Taking time each night to arrange for the following morning was already second nature to me. Getting my workout gear ready and packing a lunch makes the day less hectic. But before Headspace, I hadn’t thought of methods to prepare through the day for a great night’s sleep.
Because the time you get up keeps your circadian rhythm or internal clock in check, Waking up at a set time every morning – yes, even on weekends – prepares you to go to sleep at your selected bedtime. Solar radiation within the morning also helps.
I do not normally drink coffee within the afternoon, but by consciously limiting my latte to the morning, I can wind down earlier within the evening. I also eat dinner earlier now so I even have more time for digestion before bed. I’m more diligent about making my bed within the morning now, so turning it down within the evening has change into a type of ritual. I’ve even began laying out my pajamas within the morning, and I’m looking forward to finding other ways to make my nights more comfortable through the day.
Make yourself comfortable with a story
Thank you, Mom, for all the time reading me to sleep. I’ve all the time found storytelling to be a comforting experience. Yet once I read in bed on my Kindle or iPad, even in dark or warm light mode, I’m still observing a screen and am just a faucet away from distractions. When I’m reading a print book, my bedside lamp stays on, and when I’m listening to an audiobook in the dead of night, I even have to strain my ears to stay up and listen.
This is where Headspace’s Sleepcasts come to the rescue. I still enjoy reading within the evenings, but once I’m in bed, it is time for a deliberate sleep-inducing story that is nice enough to distract me, but bland enough that I do not mind falling asleep in the midst of it. What I like best is that every Sleepcast starts with a rest meditation to calm the body before luring the mind into the story.
Work hard, sleep hard
I’m not saying you have got to exhaust yourself to deserve decent sleep – although I invariably sleep higher the night after a workout. Rather, Headspace has taught me to work hard at getting good sleep. Sleep is each a significant bodily function and a fragile goal to realize.
It doesn’t take much to throw my sleep routine out of whack, and I’d be lying if I said I’d seamlessly and consistently incorporated the tricks I’ve learned over the past few months into my sleep hygiene. However, the nights I’ve managed to drag it off have been followed by higher days, which jogs my memory it is time to pick tonight’s pajamas.
For more information on constructing healthy sleep habits:
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