5 Tips for Restful Sleep
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Getting restful sleep isn’t always easy these days. We rely so much on technology in our day-to-day. The things that seem so natural can sometimes become unnatural —like winding down before bed. Many times we look at our phones, watch activating content while scrolling social media and we forget that there should be attention put on transitioning our mental state into one of rest. If you’re having trouble with sleep it might make all the difference to consider putting into practice a few rituals and intentions before bed time in order to get better rest. Here are a few tips I give my patients on helping them get more restful sleep.
Massage your ears
There are a lot of acupuncture points in the ears that work via your nervous system. You don’t need to massage any place in particular, just take each ear between your thumb and index finger and massage while you take deep breathes.
Make your bed a place of rest
Make sure your sleep space is clean, soft and cozy. Avoid doing work or other non-peaceful activities in bed. Adorn your bed in comfortable linens and blankets.
Breath and stretch
Take time to stretch while you breath deeply. The ligaments and tendons are correlated to the liver in Chinese Medicine, while breathing is correlates to the lung. The time of the liver is between 1-3am, while the time of the lungs is between 3-5am. During these hours, it is ideal to be in deeper sleep states so that these organs can do their jobs at detoxification while your nervous system goes into its repair state. Breathing and stretching helps to soothe the lung and liver into a restful state.
Wish Yourself ‘Good Night’
Sometimes a simple affirmation or positive words can let your mind switch into its rest mode more easily than you think. Wish yourself a ‘good night’, a peaceful sleep or ‘sweet dreams’. Even telling yourself that you have permission to rest can make all the difference. Sometimes we forget to speak kindly to ourselves.
Warm foot bath
Night time is a yin time. It is a time when you should transition into a less active state. Yin likes darkness and heaviness. A warm foot bath can anchor your qi and prepare it for yin time. If you’re sensitive to cold, add ginger, mugwort or cinnamon to your foot bath. If you tend to run hot or experience night sweats add mint.
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Lack of rest can impact your brain’s ability to function properly, affecting your behavior, memory and performance (Eugene & Masiak 2015). Sleep is also the time where your body goes into a repair state which is important for your immune system.
If you’ve been struggling with sleep longer term, you should always consider having a series of acupuncture treatments to help ease your nervous system back into a better rhythm.
Written by Dr. Emily Siy, DACM 2/19/22
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Sources:
Eugene AR, Masiak J. The Neuroprotective Aspects of Sleep. MEDtube Sci. 2015 Mar;3(1):35-40. PMID: 26594659; PMCID: PMC4651462.