3 Things to do During The Day To Help Sleep At Night

1. Natural Bright Light: Ensure you get some during the day – keep your circadian rhythm healthy
2. Exercise: A few hours before bed to tire your body out ready for some solid slumber
3. Outside Time: Spend time outdoors everyday. Get some fresh air and naturally tire your body out 

7 Things to Avoid to Get Good Sleep

1. Lie-ins: Avoid them, they can disrupt sleep patterns and make you less tired in the evening
2. Blue Light: Light that is emitted from devices such as phones and tablets (blue light) does not allow our body clock to switch off at night. Try turning them off about an hour before bed and pick up a book instead
3. Long Naps: They make us less tired in the evening and can make it hard to fall asleep at bedtime
4. Alcohol: May make us fall asleep easily however it disrupts sleep patterns
5. Caffeine and Other Stimulants: Avoid caffeine and other stimulants later on in the day, they will still be in your bloodstream when you’re ready for sleep and keep you from falling asleep
6. Drinking Too Much Liquid: We’ve all been there, just nodding off and need to run to the toilet and then… wide awake.  Try and avoid drinking too much before bed
7. Large Meals: They can affect our body’s natural rhythm, keep us awake while the body is digesting the food and make sleep uncomfortable

20 Sleeping Tips

1. Aim for at least 6 hours and up to 9 hours per night (adults between 18 – 64). Kids and older people vary – see additional media below
2. Stick to a regular sleep pattern
3. Try heading to bed early a couple of nights per week to catch upif needed
4. Try a warm bath or shower before bed
5. Ensure that your mattress and bed are comfortable
6. Try some meditation (click here) or relaxation
7. Use breathing techniques (try here)
8. Clear your mind of distractions before you go to sleep – write them down if you need to
9. If you have nothing to listen or prefer silence, try the old counting sheep method. Close your eyes, breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth, try to clear your mind and count slowly upward
10. Use a sleep aid such as sleep mask or spray lavender on your pillow 
11. Try melatonin supplements (the chemical naturally released to help us relax and get ready to sleep)
12. Manage other illnesses. It can be difficult to sleep with a headache or suffering with a cold. Dose up as needed to help you get off
13. Check that you don’t have any underlying sleep conditions such as sleep apnea. If you’ve struggled with sleep for a long time, get it checked by a doctor
14. Stop trying to force yourself to sleep. If you really can’t, get up and read a book or do a suitably boring / mundane task
15. Keep a sleep diary to keep track of what does and doesn’t work well for you
16. Go to bed when you’re actually tired
17. Unclench your jaw. You can tell when you are tense, your jaw will be clenched tightly together. Unclench and relax your jaw to get some good rest
18. Make sure your bedroom is your sleep sanctuary. Make it dark, cool and quiet. Don’t do anything in it aside from sleep, get dressed and other bedroom related things…
19. …sex makes us sleepy…
20. …as do other related activities
21. Consider getting help from a trained therapist if you are having real issues. There are many experts in the field of sleep who will be able to help

There are a wealth of tips and help in the further exploration articles below.