Restful sleep is the foundation of your mental and physical health. Without it we tend to be forgetful, take longer to do tasks, lose patience with our peers, and consume more calories trying to attain more energy. That cyclical feeling of always “needing to catch up on sleep” can be avoided. Here are some simple steps.
7 Foods to Help You Sleep
The less heavy foods you eat at night, the less energy your body needs to spend digesting the food while you sleep and the more energy you will have in the morning as a result. So have a juice or soup for dinner or cook a healthy and light dinner incorporating some of these sleep aiding foods.
* Sesame Seeds- great source of Melatonin
* Broccoli- great source of magnesium to aid sleep
* Bananas- high in potassium and magnesium which are natural muscle relaxants
* Garlic - Garlic can help clear your nasal passage and reduce snoring.
* Dates- contains the essential amino-acid tryptophan (also found in turkey), which helps produce serotonin for restful sleep
Sleeping Tonic > Sleeping Pill
Leave the sleeping pills in your drawer! Instead, try our all natural insomnia remedy of Kava, Reishi, Valerian root. Kava is a stress-relieving root that is a proven sedative and muscle relaxant. Reishi is a celebrated cure-all mushroom that helps calm both the body and mind to induce restful sleep. Valerian root induces drowsiness while reducing anxiety and excitability. Buy it from our online store or at one of our locations.
Digital Curfew
Do not do work in bed! That is your sleeping sanctuary=)
Electronics stimulate the brain and keep your mind from producing melatonin, the chemical that your body produces to help relax you to a sleeping state. Try to set a digital curfew at least an hour before you wish to go to bed, and dim the lights to create a tranquil space.
Sleepytime Tea
We like herbal Chamomile tea before bed because it is yummy and also increases glycine, a chemical that relaxes the nerves and muscles in the body.
Draw Yourself a Bath
Let yourself relax in a lavender oil or epson salt bath. The warm water will relax you and help to create melatonin in the body and the epson salt will help to remove toxins from the muscles.
Light a Candle and Do An Evening Meditation
As Deepak Chopra, M.D., says, “Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet. It’s a way of entering into the quiet that is already there- buried under the 50,000 thoughts the average person thinks every day.” By taking a few minutes for yourself, you will allow for the mental chatter to slow down so you can come into the present. Focus on the sound of your breath and allow for the body to completely relax. Once your body relaxes your mind will see it can relax as well.
Unload
Unload your thoughts in a journal or read an inspirational book for a few minutes before bed to clear the palette for tomorrow.
Sleep tight!
xx