Who doesn’t like to sleep? I have never met someone that doesn’t like to close their eyes during the night and drift away for a couple hours, have all those amazing and interesting thoughts and dreams. Because we all like and need to sleep, I know that everybody has gone through and understands how annoying it is to have those nights where you just can’t seem to fall asleep. You are tossing and turning and your mind takes you a thousand different places over that time where you just can’t seem to be able to fall asleep. Although I think it’s not necessarily a bad thing sometimes for your brain to let you know about some of the things you’re worried about and address it in the morning, but you could argue that there are better opportunities for your brain to do that. I know, doing that during the time you’re trying to sleep after a long day isn’t a great idea so let’s figure out a plan for you that will help you get rid of that problem. Having said that, I honestly can’t remember the night I couldn’t fall asleep because of this problem (pretend like I am knocking on wood here). I am writing this at 5:30 in the morning after falling asleep within 5 minutes last night and I feel great. I don’t get to or let myself sleep in so for me it’s super important that I am able to fall asleep quickly so I can get as much of it as I can. So here is me trying to help you.

My 5 steps to falling asleep quicker Alright now Let’s start of by discussing the things you do during the day that lead up to you falling asleep. Are you living an active lifestyle? Are you drinking alcohol that day? how much time did you spend outside? You should ask yourself these questions and more (depending on your life) because this will help you build a fundamental base for you falling asleep and an understanding of why you aren’t falling asleep as quickly. I am living a pretty active lifestyle and I always have, I have never worked a job where I am not standing on my feet and besides that I train for about 2/2,5 hours a day so it might be a bit easier for me than someone who works behind a desk all day. I could definitely be better in the alcohol department but I know beforehand that it’s not going to effect me falling asleep because I know how it affects me. As to spending time outside, I have had jobs where I work outside all day and now I am walking back and forth between home and work for about an hour and half a day. All of these things help me fall asleep a lot quicker but I think there’s a more important piece to the puzzle when it comes to me falling asleep quickly every night. I understand that everybody lives their life differently this is why I think a pre/ bed time routine is the key, everybody can do it at their own pace.

The most important thing to me when it comes to sleep is a nighttime routine, I can not tell you how much I am looking forward to my routine every day because I know it’s a time for me to just be by myself and shut my brain off bit by bit. I am not talking about a routine where you just turn off your phone 15 minutes before going to bed and just try to sleep (been there, done that). I am talking about a routine that lasts from up to 2 hours (or more) before going to bed. So my personal nighttime routine is very simple, takes about an hour and everything I do during that time has a reason behind it. The first thing I do is making sure I don’t have to do anything anymore that night, yes there are always things to be done, but can it wait until the morning? If the answer to that question is a no for me I am going to try my best to finish that thing well but as fast as I can. This usually doesn’t happen because of my morning routine, where I make a list of everything I have to get done that day, but sometimes I plan out my day wrong or forget about things. If the answer to that question is yes however that’s when my routine can start and it starts off by me simply brushing my teeth about an hour before I go to bed. Step 2 starts when I get back to my room and I check my phone one last time, set my alarm and turn it upside down so I know not to look at it anymore, sometimes I turn my phone off hours before I start my routine. I have the blue light filter on all day long so I am not worried about that. This is where step 3 starts for me, I stretch for about 30 to 40 minutes every night while doing this I am not listening to or watching anything. I used to listen to podcasts or watch a tv show while doing this but I listen to many of podcasts throughout the week and stare at my laptop screen enough throughout the day so there’s no need to add on to that before bed time. Besides that I love this time where I just get to think, reflect and look forward to the future. I get that not everybody likes to stretch and especially right before going to bed but you can find something else that relaxes your mind and body a little bit (whatever works for you). Step 4 starts as soon as step 3 is done, I put on the dimmest lights in my room, hop into bed and start reading for at least 10 minutes but sometimes 20-30 minutes. This helps me clear my head even more and I dive into a book so much that I am not thinking about anything else. This step is probably the most important and favorite part to me personally because I like it and it helps me drift away bit by bit before I even attempt to fall asleep. Step 5 is something I think everybody knows about and that’s making sure my room is blacked out as much as I can after I put that book away and turn off those dim lights. After these 5 steps there’s only one thing left to do and that’s board the train to dreamland and it’s leaving in less than 10 minutes.

Remember your routine doesn’t end with falling asleep, when you wake up don’t hit that snooze button because I know you set that alarm for a reason.

Just to summarize everything really quick, it takes me about an hour and a total of 5 small steps to fall asleep very quickly every night. Those 5 small steps make a huge different when it comes to me falling asleep every night. To me it’s all about relaxing the body and mind as much as you can while thinking about the things in life that are not going to stress you out. Everybody will have their own activities and such that they enjoy more and as long as it helps that’s great.

I hope all of this helps you out and sleep well tonight. Goodnight!