How to Reduce Stress and Sleep Better

As part of World Mental Health Awareness Week (18th-24th May), the impact of sleep on mental health is being discussed more openly. The Mental Health foundation have stated how important sleep is in supporting our mental health.

Kalms are aiming to raise awareness of the stress-sleep cycle in their #KeepKalms and Carry On Campaign. They kindly asked me if I wanted to share this information on my blog, this post is not sponsored.

What is the Stress-Sleep Cycle?

Stress can be a major contributing factor to lack of sleep. Stress is how our body reacts when we are faced with certain situations. Stress can be beneficial in small bursts but if it persists, it can be harmful to us. Stress can negatively impact our physical and mental health, as well as our sleeping patterns.

Over time lack of sleep can reduce concentration and result in drops in mood and productivity. This can all worsen stress and anxiety.

Feeling stressed also makes it difficult to have a restful sleep because the body is too active. The Stress-Sleep Cycle is therefore when stress stops you from sleeping properly or when we worry about not having enough sleep. This all makes it harder to stop the cycle.

How can you break the stress-sleep cycle?

There are some simple changes that you can make to break the cycle so that you can sleep more, or, increase the quality of your sleep. 

1.  Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day
2. Turn off electrical devices an hour before you go to bed as bright lights can stimulate the brain making it more difficult to sleep. Try this for 2 weeks and see if it helps!
3. Consider trying a herbal remedy such as Kalms Night One-A-Night. Kalms Night contains Valerian Root and it can be used temporarily to help with sleep. There is also Kalms Day and Kalms Lavender which can be used during the day. Kalms Day can be used for the temporary relief of stress symptoms and Kalms Lavender can be used for the temporary relief of symptoms associated with mild anxiety.
4. Relax before bed by doing activities such as deep breathing or meditation to reduce anxiety and stress levels before bed.
5. Exercise regularly but not before bed. Exercise releases chemicals which can reduce stress and improve sleep.

I hope that some of these tips help you to break the cycle and sleep better! If you liked this post you may want to check out my post on how to fight anxiety and improve your well-being during lockdown.