What to do when you run out of sheep to count.

I have never really experienced any problems with sleep, but last night was just awful!

I just could not fall asleep, even though I was exhausted. I lay in bed wide awake for hours. My thoughts then drifted to the fact that I have a very busy day today and so I started worrying that if I didn't fall asleep soon, I wouldn't be able to function properly. Thinking about how I wasn't falling asleep only kept me awake for longer and Mr Sand Man just refused to make an appearance.And so here I sit - completely exhausted, in the hopes that I'll be able to get through the rest of the day without nodding off.

I'm not sure if any of you experience what I went through last night, but I researched some tips on how to get a better night's sleep and I'm hoping to try some of them out tonight. I just thought I'd share them with you in case you ever needed a couple of tips on how to get the beauty sleep you want!

What you do during your day, your habits and your lifestyle choices has a lot to do with whether you get a good night's sleep or not. Most people need about 8 hours of sleep a night, however this varies from person to person.

• Set a regular bed time. Try and stick to this bed time every night. (Make sure this time is round about when you are feeling tired in order to avoid what happened to me last night - lying awake for hours, tossing and turning and stressing about not falling asleep).
• Wake up at the same time everyday. What normal person doesn't enjoy sleeping in? I know that if I have a late morning lecture, there's no way that I'll be up before 8am! Waking up at the same time everyday, along with going to bed at the same time everyday, establishes a sense of regularity, which your body so desperately needs. If you are; getting enough sleep, are falling asleep and waking up at regular times, your internal body clock will wake you up (although I don't have faith enough in my internal body clock and I set my alarm religiously!).
• Get exposed to natural sun light. Sit out in the sun for a while, make sure your curtains are open during the day, buy a light therapy box if you have to (excuse me??) - just get exposed to some natural light. Why? Well because there's this glorious little natural hormone called Melatonin that you get from natural light. Melatonin controls your sleep/wake cycle and causes you to be sleepy at the right times and all that jazz. Making sure your room is dark at night also helps in producing Melatonin at night.
• Make your room cool, your bed comfortable and your room quiet. The obvious ones. Need I say more or why? I don't think so.
• Avoid big meals right before bed. Also try and avoid fatty meals - your stomach works extra hard to digest this, which may keep you up at night.
• Reserve your bed for sleeping. If you're working, work at your desk. Whatever you're doing, unless it's sleeping, try and avoid doing it on/in your bed. This will help your body recognize that your bed is for sleeping, that way, when you climb into it, your body will have an easier time entering sleep mode.

I hope these little tips helped - I'll try them out tonight and let you know if they work or not. Do you ever have any problems falling/staying asleep or any tips you might want to share? Drop me a comment below - I'd love to hear from you!