I still don’t know how this Sleepcast episode of “The Magical Moonlight Library” ends. Maybe that’s the point: Sleepcast is exactly what it sounds like: a podcast that helps you fall asleep. Or maybe I heard “the end” and didn’t notice. Headspace, the mental health app that houses audio content, slightly remixes its nightly bedtime stories so anxious sleepers like me can’t memorize the stories and keep track of time. (It’s clever, but it sure is effective.)
I started Headspace’s 18-session “Find Your Best Sleep” course in April in search of strategies to calm my anxious mind and get to sleep faster. The lessons, which include short videos and guided meditations, are divided into three modules: “Understanding Sleep,” “Try Something New,” and “Practice, Practice, Practice.”
For almost three weeks, I spent about 10 minutes each night utilizing all of the materials provided in the program, even watching optional bonus videos that were not relevant to me, such as how to sleep well during pregnancy and how to survive shift work. This new perspective helped me to triage my sleep habits and what I wanted to improve.
Although not part of the course, the 45-minute Sleepcast is included in your membership along with other bedtime tools such as:
- Nighttime SOS: I’ve used this feature a few times when I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn’t get back to sleep. The guided exercise track “Racing Mind SOS” helped me a lot.
- Sleep Music and Radio: The “Cave Winds” track and the Rain Radio station are especially relaxing.
- Soundscape: “Indoor Fireplace” and “Cabin Downpour” are two of my favorite soothing background noise tracks.
- White Noise and Sleep Sounds: The subtle frequencies of green noise are always effective.
- Flow to end: “Deep Rest” is the perfect song for me after a stressful day.
Headspace costs $12.99 per month with a one-week free trial, or $5.83 per month with a two-week free trial (billed as $69.99 per year). Post-secondary students can join for 83 cents per month (billed as $9.99 per year).
By design, not all of the tools presented in Finding Your Best Sleep worked for me. For example, worry time, the habit of confining my worries to set times each day, only made me more restless. The goal of the course was to find my optimal sleep hygiene, and it did. Here are five of my favorite sleep strategies I learned at Headspace.
Protect your sleep
This program has inspired me to practice something I’ve known to be true for years: better sleep equals better life.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), adults ages 18-60 should get at least seven hours of sleep each night. Getting less than eight hours of sleep can make the next day like wading through mud. Proper rest makes me a better daughter, sister, friend, and employee. Not only am I more productive at home and at work, but I’m also kinder and happier.
So why is this key component of health so hard to achieve? The course encouraged us to protect our sleep rather than prioritise it – respecting it, protecting it and organising the rest of our life around it, rather than the other way around.
When there seem to be too few hours in the day, sleep is an easy sacrifice. Sometimes we have to put aside tasks that we can’t wait to do in order to prioritize sleep. And then, almost like magic, after a night’s good sleep, we have more energy, more efficiency the next day, and more time back.
The sleeping space is sacred, and the bed is one of them.
We knew that a calm bedroom environment is essential for restful sleep. Ideally, you want a cool, dark, quiet, and comfortable place to sleep, according to the CDC. TVs should not be placed in the bedroom, and you should stop looking at screens at least 30 minutes before bedtime, especially where blue light is concerned.
But Headspace stresses that the bed itself should be off-limits for pretty much everything except sleep — that means no eating, no working, no doomscrolling in bed, so your brain associates the bed with sleep, and not with food, email, or social media.
We’ve all been there: your bed shouldn’t be the place where you toss and turn in mental distress, dwelling on yesterday’s failures and tomorrow’s to-dos. If your mind races when you try to sleep and you still wake up after 20 minutes or so, Finding Your Best Sleep suggests getting out of bed, going to another room and doing a relaxing activity until you feel sleepy.
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Good sleep starts in the morning
Taking the time each night to get ready for the next morning was already second nature to me — having my gym clothes ready and my lunch packed made for a less hectic start to the day — but before Headspace, I’d never really thought about how to set myself up for good night’s sleep throughout the day.
Your wake time governs your circadian rhythm, or body clock, so simply waking up at the same time every morning (even on weekends) will ensure you’re ready to fall asleep at your desired bedtime. Getting some sunlight in the morning can also help.
I’m not normally a coffee drinker in the afternoon, but intentionally limiting my lattes to before noon helps me wind down early in the evening. I also eat dinner earlier so I have more time to digest before bed. I’ve become more diligent about making my bed in the morning, so getting ready for bed in the evening has become a ritual. I’ve started putting out my pajamas in the morning, and I’m looking forward to finding other ways to ease into the evening during the day.
Immerse yourself in the story
Thanks, Mom, for always reading me a book before bed. I love keeping the comfort of a story close at hand. But when I read in bed on my Kindle or iPad, even in low-light or warm-light mode, I’m staring at a distracting screen that’s just a tap away. When I read a paper book, I leave the bedside lamp on, and when I listen to an audiobook in the dark, I strain my ears to stay awake and keep listening.
This is where Headspace’s Sleepcasts come in. I still enjoy reading at night, but once I’m in bed, I listen to a story that purposely puts me to sleep: a story that’s entertaining enough to keep me distracted, but light enough that I won’t mind falling asleep halfway through. My favorite part is that each Sleepcast starts with a relaxing meditation to calm my body before letting my mind wander to the story.
Work hard, sleep hard
I’m not saying you have to be exhausted to get decent sleep — although I definitely sleep better the night after exercising — but Headspace has taught me to make an effort to get better sleep, which is both a vital bodily function and a delicate goal to achieve.
It doesn’t take long for my sleep habits to go haywire—I’d be lying if I said I’d been able to seamlessly and consistently incorporate the habits I’ve learned into my sleep hygiene over the past few months—but the nights I’ve managed to make it work have been followed by brighter days. Which reminds me, it’s time to go pick out my pajamas for the night.
For more information on how to develop healthy sleep habits, see:
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