“Today is the day I’ll go to bed early,” you tell yourself. “I’ll get a good night’s sleep and feel better tomorrow.”
However, there’s that good show that you’ve wanted to watch, you will chat with friends on social networks, you might watch some funny videos, read a few articles or watch more and more parts of the series. Suddenly you look at the clock, discover that it’s almost midnight, and you know that you have to get up early in the morning. You already know that it’s not going to be an excellent way to start your day. This might not be so bad once in a while, but it happens again and again. When you don’t prioritize sleep in this way, it will affect you and your health. What’s known as “procrastination of sleep” is a problem that needs to be addressed.
You rob yourself
Sleep is pleasant and useful. Why rob yourself of it unnecessarily and thus hurt yourself and your health? Fatigue will show on you. And you might think you’re at least doing something meaningful, but most of the time, you’re not. You read, watch TV, look at your phone or sit and do nothing. Each time you promise that it will never happen again, that you will make up for it the next day, you will do it right, but too often we don’t. When will you go to sleep? How can you stop procrastinating and go to sleep so that you do not get tired in the morning?
Realize what you are doing
Think about it. What do you do when you’re robbing yourself of sleep? Are these things important? Do you clean, cook, or catch up on work? Perhaps you could start cleaning earlier, or ask for help from a partner. If this scenario is happening too often, maybe you are putting too much on yourself.
Be lazy some other time
Are you staying up to relax or watch TV? Is this the only time you have in the day to sit down or just relax and take care of yourself? Reorganize your day just a bit and plan your lounging for a different time. For example, while the children are being looked after by your partner or their grandmother, enjoy the peace without remorse so you can sleep well.
Set a time to go to bed
This doesn’t have to mean that at precisely ten o’clock in the evening you must drop what you’re doing and go to bed at that exact moment. Set a window, for example from ten to half-past ten in the evening. You can gradually shorten the range as your body (and habits) get adjusted to this new bedtime.
Beware of technology
Do you leave the TV turned on until the last minute? Are you looking at a laptop, tablet, reader, or mobile phone? Switch off these devices earlier. It may sound drastic, but it is needed. You will sleep better. You will feel that it is time to sleep, and you will go to sleep when your body is ready. These kinds of technology emit light that can subconsciously “fool” your body into not wanting to sleep yet.
Take care of your bedtime routine earlier
Before going to bed, you might take a shower and then brush your teeth like everyone else. Try completing these pre-sleeping activities earlier. It often happens that you want to go to sleep, but first you need to take a shower and brush your teeth, but by the time it’s all over you’re not sleepy anymore so you watch TV for another hour. If you have completed these things earlier, you’ll be ready to crawl into bed as soon as your body tells you to.
Be consistent
Planning to go to bed at a certain time will lead you to plan your time effectively. No putting off things until the evening. Finish the work you have, so there will be no reason to work late into the evening or at night.
Don’t blame yourself
Sometimes, you may not go to sleep when you should. Things come up, new ideas pop into our heads, or you just don’t finish everything as planned. The main thing is – don’t blame yourself! This will not improve your mood and help your sleep. Don’t focus on how few hours of sleep you might get; just go to bed and enjoy what you can. Use whatever methods help you relax and remind yourself, “All sleep is good sleep.”
