sleep hygiene
What is Sleep Hygiene?
‘Sleep hygiene’ is the term used to describe good sleep habits.
Considerable research has gone into developing a set ofguidelines and tips which are designed to enhance good
sleeping, and there is much evidence to suggest that thesestrategies can provide long-term solutions to sleep difficulties.
There are many medications which are used to treat insomnia,
but these tend to be only effective in the short-term. Ongoinguse of sleeping pills may lead to dependence and interferewith developing good sleep habits independent of medication,
thereby prolonging sleep difficulties. Talk to your healthprofessional about what is right for you, but we recommend
good sleep hygiene as an important part of treating insomnia,
either with other strategies such as medication or cognitive
therapy or alone.

Sleep Hygiene Tips
1) Get regular. One of the best ways to train your body tosleep well is to go to bed and get up at more or less thesame time every day, even on weekends and days off! This
regular rhythm will make you feel better and will give yourbody something to work from.
2) Sleep when sleepy. Only try to sleep when you actually
feel tired or sleepy, rather than spending too much timeawake in bed.
3) Get up & try again. If you haven’t been able to get tosleep after about 20 minutes or more, get up and dosomething calming or boring until you feel sleepy, thenreturn to bed and try again. Sit quietly on the couch withthe lights off (bright light will tell your brain that it is time
to wake up), or read something boring like the phone
book. Avoid doing anything that is too stimulating orinteresting, as this will wake you up even more.

7) No naps. It is best to avoid taking naps
during the day, to make sure that you
are tired at bedtime. If you can’t make itthrough the day without a nap, makesure it is for less than an hour andbefore 3pm.

8) Sleep rituals. You can develop your own rituals of things toremind your body that it is time to sleep - some people findit useful to do relaxing stretches or breathing exercises for
15 minutes before bed each night, or sit calmly with a cup of
caffeine-free tea.
9) Bathtime. Having a hot bath 1-2 hours before bedtime canbe useful, as it will raise your body temperature, causing you
to feel sleepy as your body temperature drops again.
Research shows that sleepiness is associated with a drop inbody temperature.
10) No clock-watching. Many people who struggle with sleep
tend to watch the clock too much. Frequently checking theclock during the night can wake you up (especially if you turnon the light to read the time) and reinforces negative
thoughts such as “Oh no, look how late it is, I’ll never get tosleep” or “it’s so early, I have only slept for 5 hours, this isterrible.”11) Use a sleep diary. This worksheet can be a useful way ofmaking sure you have the right facts about your sleep, rather
than making assumptions. Because a diary involves watching
the clock (see point 10) it is a good idea to only use it for
two weeks to get an idea of what is going and thenperhaps two months down the track to see how you
are progressing.
12) Exercise. Regular exercise is a good idea tohelp with good sleep, but try not to do strenuous
exercise in the 4 hours before bedtime. Morningwalks are a great way to start the day feeling refreshed!

4) Avoid caffeine & nicotine. It is best to avoid consuming
any caffeine (in coffee, tea, cola drinks, chocolate, andsome medications) or nicotine (cigarettes) for at least 4-6hours before going to bed. These substances act asstimulants and interfere with the ability to fall asleep13) Eat right. A healthy, balanced diet will help you to sleep
well, but timing is important. Some people find that a very
empty stomach at bedtime is distracting, so it can be useful
to have a light snack, but a heavy meal soon before bed canalso interrupt sleep. Some people recommend a warm glassof milk, which contains tryptophan, which acts as a natural
sleep inducer.

5) Avoid alcohol. It is also best to avoid
alcohol for at least 4-6 hours before going tobed. Many people believe that alcohol isrelaxing and helps them to get to sleep atfirst, but it actually interrupts the quality ofsleep.

14) The right space. It is very important that your bed andbedroom are quiet and comfortable for sleeping. A cooler
room with enough blankets to stay warm is best, and makesure you have curtains or an eyemask to block out earlymorning light and earplugs if there is noise outside yourroom.

6) Bed is for sleeping. Try not to use your bed
for anything other than sleeping and sex, so that your bodycomes to associate bed with sleep. If you use bed as aplace to watch TV, eat, read, work on your laptop, paybills, and other things, your body will not learn thisconnection.

15) Keep daytime routine the same. Even if you have a badnight sleep and are tired it is important that you try to keep
your daytime activities the same as you had planned. That is,
don’t avoid activities because you feel tired. This canreinforce the insomnia.

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http://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au regarding the information from this website before making use of such information.

See website www.cci.health.wa.gov.au for more handouts and resources.

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