Sleep Hygiene
Q. What is the role of sleep?
Sleep plays a vital role in good health and well-being throughout our life. Getting enough
quality sleep at right time can help in protecting our mental and physical health.
Q. What problems can occur due to poor sleep?
Poor sleep is associated with difficulty in concentration, poor daytime functioning and
reduced cognitive functioning as well as increased risk of medical conditions (e.g.,
diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity) and psychiatric disorders.
Q. What is the meaning of Insomnia?
Insomnia is a sleep disorder in which you have trouble falling and/or staying asleep.
Q. What is Sleep Hygiene?
Sleep hygiene is a set of good sleeping habits and behaviors that promote healthy and
quality sleep. For sleep problems, sleep hygiene should be considered first and foremost
approach and must be included in comprehensive management plan.
Q. What is included in sleep hygiene?
Following are the practices which included in sleep hygiene: -
Practices Description and relevance
Avoid daytime Better not to sleep in day time. Though brief naps (15-30 minutes)
nap may help in refreshing, but longer naps and late afternoon naps
can make it harder to fall asleep at night
Avoid Clock Staring or repeatedly watching of a clock can actually increases
watching the stress and making it harder to fall asleep
Avoid alcohol or Although alcohol may help in initiating the sleep but it leads to
other substances frequent awakenings and poor quality of sleep. Avoid using
use caffeine (tea/coffee) and nicotine (zarda, bidi, cigarette etc.)
specially in late evening and before bed time as they may activate
the nervous system which leads to difficulty in onset of sleep
Avoid Spicy food Heavy meals, high calorie, spicy, fried food and carbonated drinks
can trigger indigestion that disrupts sleep. Maintain 2 hours gap
between night meals and sleep if possible
Avoid any tasks Don’t engage in any mental tasks during bed time, as it may
during bed time disturb the sleep
Relax before bed Before sleep, one must do relaxation exercise e.g. deep breathing,
meditation and progressive muscular relaxation or any relaxation
activities. You may try listening light instrumental music if you
find it useful. Avoid heavy exercise in night hours.
Exposure to Exposure to sunlight during the day, as well as dim light or
natural light darkness at night, helps to maintain a healthy sleep-wake cycle
Soothing sleep This could include taking warm shower or bath or light stretches
routine before going to bed. Avoid emotionally upsetting conversations
and stressful activities before sleep, as these activities may
increase the alertness and impair the sleep
Good sleeping Keep your bed and bedroom quiet and comfortable for sleeping.
environment Get rid of anything in your bedroom that might distract you from
sleep, such as noises, bright lights, bad smell, uncleaned
room/mattresses or warm temperatures. A TV and computer in the
bedroom can be a distraction and deprive you of needed sleep
Be consistent in Go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time
timings of sleep each morning, including on the weekends. It will be helpful for
setting up of your biological clock
Sleep when sleepy Struggling to fall sleep just leads to frustration so it would be
better to sleep when you feel sleepy
Stay calm If you’re not asleep after 20 minutes, get out of bed, go to another
room, and do some relaxing and calming activity or reading until
you are tired enough to sleep
Balance Fluid Drink enough fluid at night to keep from waking up thirsty but not
Intake so much and so close to bedtime that you will be awakened for
toilet
Bed is exclusively Reading book or newspaper, talking on the phone, eating food and
for sleep doing any kind of work should not be done in bed
Limit mobile/ Blue light from electronic devices may impair sleep onset, so
screen use avoid using phone or other gadgets (TV, Laptop, iPad etc.) at least
one hour before bed time. Keep mobile and other gadgets away
from bed as it helps to decrease the temptation to pick them up or
check. In case of need better to use separate alarm watch, instead
of mobile alarm.
Sleep Diary In case of sleep problems, you can maintain sleep diary to observe
your sleep pattern
If you have difficulty in sleep after practicing these habits properly and regularly then
should consult to your Psychiatrist for help.
