We all know that it is extremely important to relax and unwind before turning in for the night. Doing so helps to put us in the right mindset for getting cozy in bed and can even help us have a better night’s sleep. Unfortunately, many of us can find it hard to relax before bed, especially if we experience anxiety or have stressful jobs. So, how can you relax before bed?
Have a warm drink
Few things are better in life than sipping on your favorite hot drink while you watch an episode of your favorite TV show. This is a great way to unwind at the end of the day because not only will the episode take your mind off of the day’s events, but the warm drink should help ease your facial muscles and calm you. Coffee is not the best hot drink for the evenings, but fruit teas or hot chocolate would be a good alternative to help you relax. Warm drinks are also good for your health, as they help to rejuvenate and nourish skin cells.
Start a skincare routine
One of the best ways to help yourself feel ready to sleep is to incorporate a skincare routine into your nighttime routine. Having a skincare routine where you remove all of your makeup and cleanse your skin can leave you feeling refreshed and at ease, as you do not need to worry about your makeup clogging up your pores during the night or leaving a mess on your pillowcase. Knowing that you have taken care of your skin and body allows your mind to stop fretting over your skin at night.
Set the ambiance in your bedroom
It can be difficult to try and sleep when all of the lights in your room are on and there’s a lot of noise. Therefore, you should make some small changes to your bedroom in the evening in order to help you sleep. Firstly, you could burn some essential oils such as lavender or tea tree oil to fill your room with nice smells. Then, you could hang up a dreamcatcher – a dreamcatcher’s purpose is to catch all of your bad dreams at night so that you only experience blissful ones. You should also dim your lights, or only turn on a lamp, rather than a full-beam ceiling light. These small changes will make a massive difference to your quality of sleep, as you will go to bed in dim lighting that makes it easier to feel sleepy and the essential oils will fill your room with relaxing scents that are nice to drift off to.
Limit your screen time
It is a good idea to drastically limit your screen time before you go to bed. When we use our phones or laptops, our eyes have to focus on the screen for a prolonged period of time. Not only does this make our eyes tired but it forces our brains to work hard and the blue light can be distracting. Therefore, you should try to put your phone and laptop off an entire hour before you go to bed, as this gives your eyes and mind time to adjust before you eventually try to get some sleep.
Do something you enjoy
Often we can feel as though we never have any time to do the things we love, so a good time to do many hobbies such as reading or coloring in is right before your bedtime! Even hobbies such as knitting or sewing are a good way to unwind at the end of a long day, and these hobbies can even be done in bed, so when you are finished you can just pop your hobby to the side and head straight to sleep. Obviously, this cannot apply to hobbies such as dog walking or jogging, but these can be done earlier in the evening at the start of your relax and rewind process.
Take a warm bath
A warm bath can be the perfect way to destress your entire body before bed. If you really want to use your time in the bath to unwind, then you could invest in some nice bath bombs or soaps. Making sure that you feel clean and fresh can be really relaxing for many people and the hot water from the bath will even relieve symptoms of a cold or flu if you are currently experiencing either of those. If you are tight for some though, you could incorporate some of our other relaxing suggestions into your bathtime. For example, you could take a book into the bath with you to read or you could burn some essential oils while you are in the bath.
To conclude
It is critical that you take some time out at the end of the day to prepare for going to bed. Doing so helps you get into a calmer frame of mind and allows you to mentally prepare for ending your day on a positive and calming note.
