I Wake Up in the Middle of the Night: Sleep Issues Part 2

We covered in Part 1 options to help those of you who can’t fall asleep. Now we’ll cover the scenario of I can’t stay asleep and ways to sleep better.

Sleep Scenario #2: I can’t stay asleep – it’s the middle of the night and suddenly your eyes open as they are every night.

Here are some options to help you stay asleep / get a good night’s sleep:

Keep a sleep diary for two weeks – Track what time you went to bed, how long it took you to fall asleep, how many times you woke up in the middle of the night, what you ate in the evening…
Don’t drink caffeine after 2 pm – That doesn’t only mean coffee, it means tea and soda. Caffeine is a stimulant that stays in your system for about eight hours. Remember that when you’re craving your afternoon latte.
Don’t drink late – Alcohol is known to disrupt sleep patterns. It takes about one hour to metabolize a drink so if you have two glasses of wine with dinner, have your last sip at least two hours before going to bed. The nightcap might help you doze off but will most likely wake you up after it wears off.
Enjoy a bedtime story or relaxing music – pick a story that you know well so it distracts you, not engages you until you snooze off.
Sleep in a dark room – light delays the release of melatonin making it harder to fall asleep and sleep soundly. The darker the room the more likely you will stay asleep.
Breathe deeply – Inhale for 5 seconds, pause for 3, then exhale to a count of 5. Start with 8 reps and work your way up to 15. Breathe in through your belly not your chest.
Stay in bed – Unless it stresses you out to remain in bed if you wake up in the middle of the night, stay in bed and concentrate on your breathing or meditate.

If you’re serious about it and you want to stay asleep – do these exercises and do this for a week or more. Sleep issues don’t arise in a day, so to increase your chances to sleep through the night, it may take more than a few days to train yourself.

Note: If you’ve tried all these things and still not getting a good night’s sleep, diet could have something to do with it. I will soon be blogging about a new modality my nutritionist friend Ani introduced me to that is fascinating. It transformed my husband’s health in a week.

Shallow sleep? Read the next article: Sleep Issues Part 3 – Deep Sleep vs. Anything and Everything Wakes Me Up. Nighty night!