Sleep hygiene is the term we use to describe good sleep practices. These are things that help and don't hinder us getting a good night's sleep.

People with chronic sleeping problems are unlikely to find solutions in good sleep hygiene alone. However, research tells us that in order to have any chance at having a good night's sleep, we need to create an environment around us and modify our behaviour to ensure that we are giving ourselves the best chance of this.

See our Sleep Better Strategies page for more information on strategies to improve sleep

 Clock Watching

This is what it says on the tin! This is the tendency to worry about the time when we are trying to get to sleep. This could include thoughts such as worrying about how many hours of sleep you'll be able to get or being too focused on the clock if you wake up in the middle of the night.

Clock watching at bedtime leads to more pre-sleep worry and can mean that it takes us longer to initially fall asleep or to get back to sleep.

How can we stop clock watching?

• Do not have a visible clock next to your bed that is easy to look at during the night. Looking at the time is almost guaranteed to make you stay awake longer because it causes us to worry about the amount of sleep we are getting. 

• If you wake up during the night, do not check the time.

• Set multiple alarms. This will help your body to relax because it knows that there is less risk of your alarm clock failing because there are ‘back ups’. This means that you do not have to worry about what time it is. 

 Environment

Light

• Your bedroom should be as dark as possible.

• This is especially important for people who find getting to sleep at night difficult.

• Very low levels of light are ok for people who may fall in the night if they have to get out of bed.

Comfort

This includes things such as temperature levels and sleep surfaces.

• The ideal temperature to sleep in, according to research, is 18 degrees. But as long as you achieve a room temperature that is comfortable for you, that is all that matters.

• Your sleep surface should be comfortable too. Again, this is personal preference.

Feeling Safe

A safe environment is particularly important for:

• People who live alone

• People who have had a previous bad experience at night

 Screen Use

Technology (phones, TVs, iPads etc) all emit a wavelength of light that our eyes are particularly sensitive to: blue light. 

Blue light suppresses a hormone called melatonin.

When our eyes perceive blue light, this sends signals to our brain to tell our body to stop producing melatonin.

Melatonin's role in sleeping is to make us feel sleepy and ready for bed.

When this process is disrupted, sleeping problems can occur.

How can I prevent this from happening?

• Don't use technology too close to bedtime. However, it is worth noting that TVs are less disruptive than mobile phones due to TVs not being as close to your face/eyes.

• If you do have to use a mobile phone, make sure that you are turn on a 'night shift mode' which filters out the blue light, turning it to a more sleep-friendly yellow colour.

 Exercise

We need to sleep in order to recover from exercise. This is because our bodies repair themselves while we sleep.

Exercise can be both disruptive and beneficial to our sleep.

Benefits

• Exercise helps to burn off excess energy which means that sleeping should be easier at night.

• Exercising outside in the morning light can help to break up any sleep hormone left over from the night which well help you to feel more awake.

Potential Problems?

Timing: Exercise should be scheduled to end 4 hours before sleep

• Exercise close to bedtime may have a negative impact on sleep

  • It is activating meaning that it makes us feel more awake.

  • It raises core body temperature → this may interfere with the drop in temperature before bedtime that supports sleep.

Gentle stretching exercises before bedtime are OK

• May be relaxing and therefore, supportive of sleep

 Eating

It is generally not a good idea to eat heavy foods too close to bedtime (within 4 hours) or to eat anything at all if you wake up in the middle of the night.

The digestive system slows down during sleep and foods that have not been completely digested can cause digestive discomfort that disturbs sleep.

However, because feeling hungry may also interfere with sleep, a light snack is OK before you go to sleep.