What would it take for you to have a good quality restorative sleep?

If I ask you the question “What would it take for you to have a good quality restorative sleep?”, what would you answer?

That is a big question and most of us don’t know how to answer that.

Our current lifestyle doesn’t always give us enough time to sleep.  And some of us choose to cut back on sleep in order to get one more thing done in our busy hectic schedule.  We believe by doing more we can reduce the stress we feel because we will have one less thing on our to do list for tomorrow.  But instead, by cutting back on sleep, we are actually creating more stress in our lives by being tired and unable to think clearly because of exhaustion. 

We do this without realizing how important sleep is.  We NEED quality sleep in order to function at our best.  Our body needs it.  Our brain needs it. You could even say that the people around you need it since we will be in a better mood :).

But what if I can’t sleep?  No matter what I do, sleep just doesn’t happen? 

I’ve been there and I understand how frustrating and complicated it can be to try to find sleep again.   

But if you ask yourself the question, “What would it take for me to have good quality restorative sleep?” What would your answer be?

I want you to think of this question and answer it by looking at two things. 

1. What can I change in my physical environment to help me sleep?
2. What can I change in my emotional environment to help me sleep?

The answer will be different for everyone since we all have our unique challenges.

But the questions that I always come back to is “What would it take for me to have good quality restorative sleep?”  Because I know that without sleep, my life is miserable.  I can’t think clearly, I can’t function.  The negative side of me comes out by complaining about my lack of sleep.  I play the victim of my life instead of living my best life.  And the reason for my negative moods is usually all because I didn’t sleep well.  For those of you who can’t get a good night sleep, you know what I mean.

So what would it take for YOU to sleep soundly so it can be restorative and refreshing.  What would it take for you to commit to doing whatever it takes to figure out what is getting in the way of your sleep.  Once you reclaim your sleep, you’ll be able to reclaim the life you are meant to live.  Full of energy, joy and fun.

When I ask myself that question, these are my answers:

On the material/physical side:

• No coffee after lunch time since I am sensitive to caffeine.  Did you know that 50% of that caffeine is still floating in your brain 7 to 8 hours after you finished that cup of coffee? 
• I am consistent with my bedtime and wake up time.
• I add movement in my day.  I ensure I do a minimum of 30 minutes of movement every day.  On the days I don’t move, I don’t sleep as well and it’s a reminder to move the next day.

On the emotional/mindset side:

• I CHOOSE to make sleep a priority.  We all have that choice but it’s not always easy if our mindset believes we don’t.
• I keep my stress and overwhelm under control.  I have an overactive brain and my brain loves to think all the time.  Being organized and not taking on too many projects at one time helps control the stress and overwhelm.
• I do a check in with myself before bed and I will ask myself “Am I ready for sleep?  Is anything going to pop up in my mind during the night I didn’t deal with?”.  If it’s something I don’t want to forget, I write it down (I always have pen and paper by my bed).  If it’s emotions, I use EFT tapping on those emotions before bed so I can clear them.

I’ll ask the question one last time.  What would it take for you to have a good quality restorative sleep?

If you want to find out how to use EFT/Tapping to help improve the quality of your sleep, please read my blog “How to use EFT/Tapping with the intention to improve your sleep“.