Habits That Ruin Your Good Night’s Sleep!

When I woke up in the middle of the night for the 8th night in a row last night--or, early this morning, this article from Yahoo! was the first one I saw when I gave up counting sheep and went online. A sign, perhaps? It did keep my attention. All the bad habits that keep us from sleeping well. Maybe I'll figure out my problem......

1. Going from night owl to early bird. They say you should try to keep a consistent schedule.  I've been doing morning radio for a long time, so I can't use this excuse. I even wake up early on the weekends!

2. Reading before bed. I thought that would relax you, but experts say no! It's usually television before bed for me, and I never have trouble getting to sleep, it's just staying asleep that escapes me.

3. Facebooking into the wee hours. I only hop on facebook AFTER I realize I'm never getting back to sleep.

4. Skimping on a good bed. My Sleep Number is 45. Obviously that's not what is keeping me up.

5. Setting a bright alarm clock. I don't do that, but the light on the DVR is ridiculously bright! I've considered covering it.

6. Staying in bed and counting sheep. They say at some point you should get out of bed and watch tv or do something different. I've seen every infomercial out there.

7. Exercising late at night. I have a hard enough time getting to the gym during the day. I hardly think a 2 a.m. work-out is in the cards for me.

My trainer suggested Melatonin. It's a natural sleep-aid and I've heard it really works! They (whoever "they" are) also say that the scent of lavender, cooler temps in the bedroom, and kicking the pets off the bed are all good ideas when trying to sleep through the night. I can handle the lavender and cooler temps, but come on over to our house and try telling our dog Neena she won't be snuggling tonight. Good luck.