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By Jennifer McGregor
If you suffer from a mental health condition such as anxiety, depression, ADHD, or bipolar disorder, you may find that you’re sleeping too much, can’t sleep at all, or you feel unrested—even on the days where you do get a full night’s rest. Breathflow Wellness explains that when you’re lacking the quality sleep you need to function properly, you may experience feelings of irritability, emptiness, and sadness—on top of your existing mental health condition.
Connected Concerns
While sleep disturbances are common among individuals with depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and ADHD, poor sleep could be worsening their mental health conditions and interfering with their daily lives. By treating the sleep disturbance, individuals may be able to lessen the severity of their mental health condition while improving their sleep quality at the same time.
Adding common solutions like regular physical activity, deep breathing exercises, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can help to treat sleep disturbances while alleviating some symptoms of common mental health conditions. Finding ways to alleviate stress can also have a positive impact on sleep quality. As ZenBusiness shares, entrepreneurs and managers can find small ways to reduce stress each day, including taking breaks, going for walks, and establishing work boundaries--and perhaps most importantly, keeping a work journal to help stay on top of your business endeavors.
Chances are you’ve heard about those strategies, but we also have some surprising sleep tips to add to your toolkit.
Create a Sacred Space
To increase your chances of falling—and staying—asleep at night, you may need to make some modifications to your bedroom. For instance, any outside noises, lights, or distractions may interfere with your ability to sleep at night—especially if you live in the city. However, the following modifications may help you to drown out these distractions and sleep better throughout the night:
● Installing blackout curtains or blinds to block out light
● Diffusing sleep-promoting essential oils like lavender, valerian, and clary sage
● Purchasing a new bed and/or mattress, especially if your bed squeaks or the mattress sags
● Experimenting with a sound machine to drown out any outside noise
● Keeping televisions, tablets, and phones out of the bedroom
Moreover, Yoga Journal notes practicing yoga before climbing into bed can calm your mind, release tense muscles, and help you sleep better at night. Some great yoga poses that promote sleep include Child’s Pose, Lizard Pose, Locust Pose, and Standing Forward Bend.
Give Fido His Own Spot
Sleeping with your dog in the bedroom has its benefits, as your pup may help you to feel calmer, less anxious, and more relaxed as you sleep at night. However, letting your pup sleep in your bed could compromise the quality and quantity of sleep you receive.
There’s no harm in bringing your pooch in the bedroom while you sleep at night—but letting him or her in your bed can disrupt your sleep cycle. If your dog is a larger breed or you suffer from allergies, this could compromise your sleep quality even further.
While breaking the habit of sharing a bed with your pup can be difficult, start by purchasing a comfortable dog bed that your pooch will love. If your dog still wants to jump in your bed at night, you may choose to purchase a crate for him or her, as this will allow you to close the door before you get into bed. However, the crate should be spacious enough so your dog can comfortably lie down, stand up, and turn around without crouching.
Swap Habits for Best Results
Like any lifestyle change, Huffington Post says that modifying our negative bedtime habits takes some time, especially if we’ve been snoozing with Fido or falling asleep to the television for years. However, it’s easier to break a bad habit when we’re forming a new habit to take its place. For each issue you address, make sure you’re sliding a happy, healthy habit into its place.
While it might not seem connected, sleep and mental health go hand-in-hand. Think about how you can improve your slumber so you can be happier and healthier. Change up your daytime and nighttime routine as needed, and for every negative you remove from your life, you replace it with a positive.
R. Christian Minson of Breathflow Wellness delivers inspiration and practical real-world tools that result in lower levels of stress, greater emotional awareness, and higher levels of fulfillment and performance. Reach out today to discover more!
By Jennifer McGregor
If you suffer from a mental health condition such as anxiety, depression, ADHD, or bipolar disorder, you may find that you’re sleeping too much, can’t sleep at all, or you feel unrested—even on the days where you do get a full night’s rest. Breathflow Wellness explains that when you’re lacking the quality sleep you need to function properly, you may experience feelings of irritability, emptiness, and sadness—on top of your existing mental health condition.
Connected Concerns
While sleep disturbances are common among individuals with depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and ADHD, poor sleep could be worsening their mental health conditions and interfering with their daily lives. By treating the sleep disturbance, individuals may be able to lessen the severity of their mental health condition while improving their sleep quality at the same time.
Adding common solutions like regular physical activity, deep breathing exercises, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can help to treat sleep disturbances while alleviating some symptoms of common mental health conditions. Finding ways to alleviate stress can also have a positive impact on sleep quality. As ZenBusiness shares, entrepreneurs and managers can find small ways to reduce stress each day, including taking breaks, going for walks, and establishing work boundaries--and perhaps most importantly, keeping a work journal to help stay on top of your business endeavors.
Chances are you’ve heard about those strategies, but we also have some surprising sleep tips to add to your toolkit.
Create a Sacred Space
To increase your chances of falling—and staying—asleep at night, you may need to make some modifications to your bedroom. For instance, any outside noises, lights, or distractions may interfere with your ability to sleep at night—especially if you live in the city. However, the following modifications may help you to drown out these distractions and sleep better throughout the night:
● Installing blackout curtains or blinds to block out light
● Diffusing sleep-promoting essential oils like lavender, valerian, and clary sage
● Purchasing a new bed and/or mattress, especially if your bed squeaks or the mattress sags
● Experimenting with a sound machine to drown out any outside noise
● Keeping televisions, tablets, and phones out of the bedroom
Moreover, Yoga Journal notes practicing yoga before climbing into bed can calm your mind, release tense muscles, and help you sleep better at night. Some great yoga poses that promote sleep include Child’s Pose, Lizard Pose, Locust Pose, and Standing Forward Bend.
Give Fido His Own Spot
Sleeping with your dog in the bedroom has its benefits, as your pup may help you to feel calmer, less anxious, and more relaxed as you sleep at night. However, letting your pup sleep in your bed could compromise the quality and quantity of sleep you receive.
There’s no harm in bringing your pooch in the bedroom while you sleep at night—but letting him or her in your bed can disrupt your sleep cycle. If your dog is a larger breed or you suffer from allergies, this could compromise your sleep quality even further.
While breaking the habit of sharing a bed with your pup can be difficult, start by purchasing a comfortable dog bed that your pooch will love. If your dog still wants to jump in your bed at night, you may choose to purchase a crate for him or her, as this will allow you to close the door before you get into bed. However, the crate should be spacious enough so your dog can comfortably lie down, stand up, and turn around without crouching.
Swap Habits for Best Results
Like any lifestyle change, Huffington Post says that modifying our negative bedtime habits takes some time, especially if we’ve been snoozing with Fido or falling asleep to the television for years. However, it’s easier to break a bad habit when we’re forming a new habit to take its place. For each issue you address, make sure you’re sliding a happy, healthy habit into its place.
While it might not seem connected, sleep and mental health go hand-in-hand. Think about how you can improve your slumber so you can be happier and healthier. Change up your daytime and nighttime routine as needed, and for every negative you remove from your life, you replace it with a positive.
R. Christian Minson of Breathflow Wellness delivers inspiration and practical real-world tools that result in lower levels of stress, greater emotional awareness, and higher levels of fulfillment and performance. Reach out today to discover more!