SLEEP TIPS

If you are consistently not getting a good night’s sleep, or if you are waking up at night, you could try the following techniques. —

Try to get up around the same time each morning and expose yourself to bright light in the morning to encourage wakefulness

The most valuable sleep is between the hours of 10pm to 2am, so aim to be in bed by 9.30pm and up around 6am

Napping within 8 hours of your bedtime will affect your ability to reach deep sleep, so have a smallerportioned meal at night and avoid nodding off in the armchair after dinner

Exercise, particularly outdoors under the sun, increases the drive to sleep well —aim for at least 20 minutes of physical activity each day

Caffeine reduces our sleep drive, so avoiding after noon is worthwhile Switch off electric blankets and other powered devices at the wall and avoid sleeping with a phone near your body

Check what is on the other side of the wall to your head; i.e. fridges and meter boxes emit radiation, which can affect sleep quality

Have a relaxing herbal tea in the evening while sitting in dim lighting. Herbs such as lavender, passionflower, chamomile and valerian are useful

Magnesium is a useful mineral to take before bed to encourage relaxation

Avoid all food and alcohol for 34 hours before bedtime. Saliva secretions are lower at night so it is unable to effectively neutralise stomach acid when you snack in the evenings, which can trigger acid reflux

Limit bedroom activities to only sleep and sex; no TV

Lying on a shakti mat (for acupressure) for 10 minutes before getting into bed can improve sleep onset

Turn down the temperature in the bedroom — around 16degC is an ideal temperature

Take a hot shower or bath just before going to bed