night-time routine
In the United States, we have developed what’s known as a ‘hustle culture’. People pride themselves on always working and never taking a break from ‘that grind’. But the truth is our bodies (and minds) weren’t made to work that way. Rest is important because it allows us to regenerate and heal and be able to come back renewed the following day. You can only go so long without resting before our bodies just shut down. In order for our bodies to work efficiently, we have to make time to rest. I love having a night-time routine, I find that this routine helps me fall asleep faster and sleep better at night and also helps me to wake up feeling refreshed the next morning. If I ever skip my evening routine, I find that I didn’t sleep as well and that I’ll wake up feeling sluggish (and that I probably hit the snooze a few times). A morning routine is great, but in reality the routine starts the night before.
"The truth is our bodies (and minds) weren’t made to work that way. Rest is important
because it allows us to regenerate and heal and be able to come back renewed the following day."
Without further-ado, here are 8 things that I like to incorporate into my evening routines.
I set a strict distinction between work and rest, that means that I don’t do work in the bedroom, or on the couch, and I always make sure to get dressed while I work (yes even when I’m working from home), and to never work while wearing pajamas or my comfy clothes. These little cues help my brain to realize when it’s time to work, and when it’s time to rest.
In the same line as my previous point, I like to light candles when it’s time for me to start winding down. I’m a person who is highly sensitive to smells, so when I roll lavender oil onto my wrists or neck, or when I light a calming, home-y candle, these scents help me feel calmer and slow down my brain from its previous state of being in work mode.
I’m a person who likes rewards, I was always very motivated by stickers as a child, and I remain motivated by completing tasks. I’m also quite hard on myself when I don’t complete everything I set out to do that day (which is something I’m working on), but at the end of the day, instead of beating myself up and pondering what I didn’t do, I reward myself for what I did do that day. This realignment of thinking always helps put me in a better mood, as letting my thoughts linger on what wasn’t, doesn’t help me in any way, shape or form. I will often reward myself with an episode of a TV show that I want to watch, a few chapters of a book that I’m reading, or by playing a game (my current obsession with Sudoku has earned me the title of “grandma” in my friend group). These rewards should be realistic however depending on your situation, 5 minutes of work should not be rewarded with 2 hours of TV time, but if all you could manage to do that day was get out of bed, eat three meals, and call some loved ones, you shouldnt base your reward off what others comparatively accomplished that day.
Another reward I like to give myself is a nice cup of tea. Everyone knows how important drinking water is, but I’ve never been one who wants to chug a glass of water right before bed. Instead, I like to sip on some tea in the 30 minutes leading up to sleeping. This not only hydrates me before I fast for 8 hours, but the warm tea helps to slow down my thoughts and movements as I slowly sip on it for a few minutes.
I also like to use the time while drinking tea to list what I’m grateful for that day, what awesome / fun thing happened, or just journal how I’m feeling to get it all out before laying down to sleep. This helps put me in a positive mood before lying down, so that I’m not still wrestling with any thoughts when my head hits the pillow.
I cannot overstate how important this one is, even though it's a pretty common one that we all know about but like to ignore: limit screen time. Yeah yeah we all know that the blue light that’s emitted from screens simulates sunlight in our minds and makes us stay awake, and feel awake for longer, but we all still go for that nightly instagram scroll in bed. Putting your phone on Do Not Disturb mode while sleeping is a great way to make sure your sleep cycle isn’t thrown off by tech, but utilizing “Downtime” if you have an iPhone helps take this to another level. Basically you set hours that you want your apps to lock and for your notifications to not pop up. I have mine set from 9 PM to 9 AM but it’s totally customizable.
Stretching before getting into bed, or while in bed is great. It helps relax your muscles, slow down your breathing, and prep your body to lie down for several hours. This is a MUST for me, even if I’m not sleepy when bedtime comes around, just taking five minutes to stretch helps me relax right into my mattress and fall asleep quickly.
Another thing I like to do right before bed is set sleep and wakeful intentions. Recently, I’ve been having a harder time going to sleep. I’m usually someone who can pass out within five minutes, and I’ve never had insomnia, but recently it has been taking me upwards of 20 minutes to go to bed. I find that setting the intention of falling asleep quickly, getting a restful sleep, and waking up energized in the morning actually helps those things to happen. Really, your intention can be worded anyway you want it to be depending on what you want, but I always recommend to let go of the day, state that your sleep with be peaceful and restful, and that you will wake up the next morning refreshed, energized, and in a great head space to start your day.