[Vlog #20] 5 Tips To Enhance Your Sleep!

In today’s VLOG I am excited to share with you 5 Tips To Enhance Your Sleep. Click to watch the VLOG above or feel free to read the transcript below instead! 

Transcript:

Note: The following is the output of transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors. It is posted as an aid, but should not be treated as an authoritative record.

Hey Beauties,

Today we’re going to be talking about sleep which is such an important part of wellness. I talk about it a lot because it is absolutely key — it’s not just about what we’re eating or how we take care of our skin with products that determines our energy, beauty and wellness.

Sleep is a really vital component of how we feel with our health, our wellness, and how we look. Today I want to give you tips on how to really optimize your sleep each and every day so that you feel your best and you get the most amazing sleep possible (which again will benefit all areas of your life).

The first one has to do with light. When I say light it’s not just important the light that happens at night when you’re about to get to bed, but also making sure that you’re getting some natural light during the day, especially before noon. This could mean going outside, having some exposure to sunlight on the way to work.

Some researches show that if you get some exposure to natural light before noon it helps with your circadian rhythms and natural cycle of your whole life so that you sleep better in the evening.

When evening time rolls around and you’re in your sleep mode and you’re getting closer to going to bed, I would highly recommend dimming the lights or using the little lamp next to your bed instead of the really intense fluorescent overhead lights.

You can purchase a salt lamp for under 30 dollars, which I am obsessed with right now. I have them in my own bedroom on both sides of the bed. It’s a nice, soft red light, and I don’t use my overhead lights. Having the morning sun and at night a little bit softer light is going to go a long way.

Number two, sipping something really soothing in the evening. We know that what we eat and what we drink has a really profound effect on our moods and this also includes with sleep. I have a couple sleep elixir recipes on mysolluna.com that you can check out. The milky drinks are really great, especially based in hemp milk (which has different amino acids), helping to promote better serotonin for sleep.

There’s also some herbal teas, including ones that are based in tulsi, which are really great for helping to relax the mind and anxiety. We all know when our mind is racing it’s really difficult to sleep. Having that ritual of sipping either something milky, hemp milk based or soothing tulsi (or other type of herbal tea), can be really helpful.

Number three is something I talk about in Radical Beauty, my last book with Deepak Chopra. It’s this idea of Abhyanga, which is basically a self-oil massage. It’s the idea of working with the skin (the largest organ), to help soothe our system and help relax the nervous system, which really helps with sleep. It also brings us into the here and now, is  great for the mind, and for reducing anxiety.

You can use sesame oil or coconut oil and just give yourself a little bit of a massage before you get in the shower in the evening. It feels really nice, it’s really soothing, and it’s also going to help with your sleep. Nice, self-care at the end of the evening.

Then fourthly, I want to say that music can be a really powerful tool for helping to relax your mind. Toni and I just did a segment on the vibration of music. There is more and more research coming out about everything is vibration, everything is energy.

In the evening I do this as well when I’m reading my book. I put on some relaxing music, like yoga music or classical music (something without words), that is very soothing. It starts to put myself, my body, and my mind in the framework of starting to relax.

Fifth and lastly, to honor that sacred hour. The hour before we go to bed has a huge impact on our sleep the rest of the night. Here’s where we start to get off our devices more and get into night mode. Meaning, a mode where your settings on your smart phone starts to switch the tones more from blue to red, which is less stimulating.

Making sure that we’re reading actual hard books, not eReaders — starting to really taper off. This is not the time to answer those stressful work emails — save them for the morning when you’re more rejuvenated.

Getting out of TV mode ideally, especially these shows which are really stimulating and violent. Just chilling. This is the time to take your shower, read your book, sip your tea, get in bed, have a little bit of lounge time, which will really help to prepare for sleep as well.

I hope these five tips helped. Sending you lots of love, Beauty. See you back here real soon!

Lots of love,
Kimberly