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Sleep Hygiene Tip 3: Relaxing Before Bed

Updated: Jan 18

It’s another Wisdom Wednesday, where we share evidenced tips, insights, and more. Today, we are introducing our third tip for better sleep hygiene: Relaxing Before Bed. What you do in the hour before bed can make or break your sleep quality! Try creating a simple wind-down routine — reading a book, stretching, or drinking herbal tea — to help your body shift out of “stress mode” and prepare for rest.


Why It Matters

The Effort Recovery Model: After periods of high strain (e.g. work), you need to sufficiently recover to avoid burnout and restore resources. Without recovery, you may experience negative effects such as exhaustion, illness, stress, and diminished performance.


Signaling Sleep

Zeitgebers are external or environmental cues (like light or darkness) that regulate your circadian rhythm. They tell your brain it’s time to release melatonin (sleep hormone) and/or cortisol (wake hormone). Your routine before bed (such as dimming the lights) can act as a zeitgeber, signaling your brain to release melatonin.


Tips for Winding Down

Before bed, try reading a book, listening to calm music, drinking chamomile or herbal tea, or doing light stretching or deep breathing.


Things to Avoid Before Bed

In contrast, try to avoid scrolling on your phone, doing work, reading or responding to emails, drinking caffeine, eating heavy meals, and having stressful conversations before bed.


Want more sleep hygiene tips? Follow along on LinkedIn or explore the rest of the series within our blog.


References


Originally shared on LinkedIn

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