5 Top Tips For Staying Asleep Throughout The Night

Getting to sleep is half the hurdle, the other half staying asleep throughout the night. Waking up once or twice throughout the night is totally normal and can be a result of many things, commonly cited research points to lifestyle changes, increased consumption of alcohol, caffeine and a lack of exercise, all of which act as stimulants on our brains making it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep. However, it’s when you’re consistently struggling to stay asleep, not only is it incredibly frustrating it can seriously impact both your mental and physical health. In the UK, Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals studied how the lockdown has affected sleep, they found that over 30% of people reported disruption to their sleep. Another study carried out by the global sleep experts at Sleep School found that more than half of the participants were unsatisfied with their sleep, with a further 53 per cent at a loss over what to do to improve it. 

On average an adult needs around 7-9 hours of sleep per night to maintain their health and well-being. Waking up several times during the night eats away at that total. Research studies have shown over and over the importance of sleep, and made a pressing case to invest in your sleep hygiene for a better night’ sleep. There are several ways to promote a good night sleep (link to previous blog post) but also to help you stay asleep. At Dreem Distillery, we've devised the ultimate tips to help you get the best out of your sleep routine for the greatest night's sleep ever.

1. Exercise during the day

Exercising, the gift that keeps on giving, research has found that exercising during the day can help promote a good night’s sleep. A survey carried out by the National Sleep Foundations, surveyed adults between the ages of 55 and 84, found that individuals, who reported engaging in less exercise were more likely to sleep less than six hours per night, experience fair or poor sleep quality, struggle with falling and staying asleep, and receiving a diagnosis for a sleep disorder such as insomnia, and sleep apnea. Not only does exercise promote better sleep, a good night's sleep will improve your exercise performance, and thus creating a cycle of good sleep and exercise.

2. Taking a warm bath

Warming your body with a hot bath, an hour or two before bed as part of your sleeping routine, can aid a better night’s sleep. The warming of the body and then the drop of temperature as you get out of the bath, triggers your sleep cycle. This process is important for falling and staying asleep, as it is during this time that the sleep hormone, melatonin, circulates in higher concentration. A warm bath can also be a relaxing way to transition into your sleep routine. Especially with the addition of a soothing and sleep inducing bath oil, like the Dreem Distillery, Into The Deep. Formulated with deeply relaxing organic essential oils, potent broad-spectrum CBD and soothing arnica, for a good night sleep.(link to bath blog post)

3. Avoiding caffeine later in the day

Caffeine can significantly reduce your body’s ability to fall asleep. It can last in your body for up to 8-10 hours after consumption. Caffeine is a stimulant, and it works to promote alertness. It acts as an ‘adenosine receptor antagonist’, adenosine is a substance in your body that promotes sleepiness. Caffeine blocks the adenosine receptor and in turn prevents you from feeling sleepy. It’s best practice to stop drinking caffeinated drinks at least 5 to 6 hours before your bedtime. In this time, your body is able to develop enough melatonin without the disruptive effects of caffeine.

4. Sleep supplement

Even the most relaxed individuals can benefit from the aid of supplements for sleep sometimes. Opt for supplements, which help relax the body and aid overall health, the Dreem Distillery Night Drops is CBD oil created with high quality broad-spectrum CBD enhanced with the Dreem Distillery super terpene blend to increase it’s sleep inducing properties, as well as it’s benefits for anxiety (link to blog post). The formula works to bring about a soothed, relaxed and sleepy state within 30 minutes after consumption and delivers hours of uninterrupted sleep so you won't have to hit snooze on loop come morning. 

5. Keep It Cool

The optimal room temperature can be crucial to getting to sleep as well as helping you to stay as asleep. Figuring out the perfect temperature for sleep can be a little tricky, there's core temperature, skin temperature, and room temperature to consider. Sleep scientists recommend keeping your bedroom cool, a lower temperature helps the body’s core temperature drop, signalling to the brain that it’s bedtime.

6. It’s all about the bedding 

Sleep can be a complex process, while it can be as simple as incorporating one of these tips or as difficult as trying a combination of tips to figure what your body responds best to, there are things you have the power to control, but remember the key to a good night’s sleep is feeling relaxed and calm.