The Importance of a Good Night’s Sleep & How To Get One | AD

When it comes to dealing with anxiety and depression on a day-to-day basis, you’ll hear the phrase ‘self-care’ being passed around. We’re told that we need to find time to prioritise ourselves and work on ourselves, however, realistically when you’re working a full-time job, trying to balance everything you need to do to simply keep your head above water, the thought of having something else to do (even if it is for yourself) can be seriously overwhelming.

Sleep is one of the most important things when it comes to looking after ourselves. A good night’s sleep can lead to a productive and stress-free day and a bad night’s sleep can lead to feeling stressed, anxious and for me personally, very emotional (raise your hand if you’ve ever stress cried in the middle of the day from a bad nights sleep). Sleep isn’t something you should be missing out on, it’s time for when our bodies and minds can recharge and unwind so we can wake up feeling refreshed and alert.

Admittedly this is the reason why it’s so easy for your mental health to begin to slip. Personally, when I’m feeling anxious and under stress, the last thing I’m thinking about is washing my hair or doing anything for myself. That’s why I’ve teamed up with Boots to get myself into the self-care swing of things and begin to put in some time for myself at the end of each day to rebalance and rest my body and mind, just like how it deserves.

In my attempt to get me into a better evening routine for both my mind and my body and wanted to share some of my favourite tips and tricks to getting a good night’s sleep with Boots.

Set The Scene (and the scent) 

Setting the ambience and making my sleep space completely dreamy is the one thing that I think I’ve got locked down. I’m the type of person that takes pride in their living space, so when we redecorated our bedroom last year, I made sure that having a relaxing space was essential. You can however set the scene outside of your decor and treat yourself to an oil defuser. These things are seriously a game-changer when it comes to creating an environment to sleep in. They offer a warm glow and all you need to do is an Essential Oil or Aromatherapy Oil of your choice and your scene for the perfect night’s sleep is set.  I personally love anything lavender scented it’s great for relaxing you after a stressful day in the office, or just after a long day in general. 

I also have this wonderful Lavender & Eucalyptus Sleep Candle that sets the scene for a good night’s sleep. Usually, when I’m doing my skincare before bed, I’ll pop the candle on for 45 minutes and allow it to fill the room with the scent for when I’m ready to sleep 

Put Your Phone Away 

This has to be the most obvious method to getting a better night’s sleep. It’s something that we all know we need to do more, but never actually do it. Blue light can affect your sleeping. It surpasses the bodies melatonin and stops us from getting that sleepy feeling, which will usually result in us staying up and scrolling until the early hours until we realise that we should probably get some sleep. (don’t worry, we’ve all been there) this leads me to my next point…

Journaling 

In my attempt to get me off of my phone for a bit, without having to stare into the abyss or get too obsessed over a book right before I intend on sleeping. I journal. Whether you write about your day, reflect upon your achievements or simply just write about something that you’re grateful for, journaling is a great way to self-reflect and allow your mind to have a bit of a break from a screen. It’s time that’s purely for yourself. I also find that journaling allows me to see the good in the bad days and take note of any little moments that have made me happy that day.

Get a Sleep Light 

Calming your body and mind can be the first step to drifting off into a restful sleep, and lighting has its part to play in this and recently I’ve fallen completely head over heels with my Lumie Sunrise Alarm.  I’ve always struggled to keep a sleep schedule and stick to it, but this little (quite literally) ray of sunshine has really helped me out over the past couple of weeks. The alarm wakes you up and puts you to sleep my mimicking a sunrise and sunset, allowing you to wake up and fall asleep naturally. The sunset is the perfect feature to ease you into sleep and allow your body and mind to unwind. It takes around 30-minutes for the sunset, which allows me to fill in my journal and get cosy whilst the alarm mimics the sunset. Usually when going to sleep, I’d feel wide awake, and my mind would be so active. However, since using the alarm, I’ve felt sleepy and fallen asleep before the 30-minutes. The sunrise feature is also ideal for dark mornings and just making you feel refreshed when you wake up, rather than being shocked awake by an annoying alarm. 

So, there you have it! My dreamy little evening routine with Boots! Although I’m not perfect and sometimes I do let my habits slip, since being strict with myself and allowing sometime at the end of day really allows me to get the rest that I need in order to start my day refreshed and ready.