By Dianna Whitley
What if a great night’s sleep starts in the morning?
Most people don’t realize that sleep isn’t just about what happens at night—it’s built on habits you practice all day long.
Not sleeping well doesn’t just make you groggy—it makes you hungrier, moodier and speeds up aging. Poor sleep affects every system in your body, from hormones to digestion, and can take a heavy toll, including depression, brain fog and reduced sex drive.
It also raises your risk of type 2 diabetes and makes it harder to manage weight. Why? Because poor sleep increases two hormones that drive hunger and stress—ghrelin and cortisol. That double-whammy makes you crave more food and tells your body to hold onto every calorie.
And of course, it affects your brain, robs you of energy, and can make you really irritable. The Sleep Health Foundation says about 1 in 3 people have sleep challenges, so you’re not alone.
Here are 5 simple ways to put the odds in your favor:
1. Get morning sunlight
As soon as possible after waking, get light into your eyes. This resets your circadian rhythm so your body knows when it’s time to be alert—and when it’s time to wind down at night.
2. Do a ‘mental dump’ before bed
Write down anything that could keep you awake—deadlines, bills, errands—and give yourself permission to let it go until tomorrow.
3. Practice intentional breathing
Box Breathing and 7/11 Breathing are two excellent ways to calm your nervous system and signal your body that it’s safe to rest. (Want the directions? Just text me.)
4. Keep a regular sleep schedule
Go to bed and get up at the same time every day. Most importantly, wake within an hour of your usual time. This programs the brain and your internal body clock.
5. Listen to a relaxing hypnosis audio
This can ease you into deep, restorative sleep, and a 20-minute hypnosis audio can be as restful as more than an hour of regular sleep. Sleep.org says hypnosis can allow “the body and mind to relax and let go of the anxiety that not falling asleep can create.”
Good sleep is essential to being healthy and happy.
If you’d like more tips on optimum sleep—or a complimentary consultation to see how hypnosis can help you in other areas—just text SLEEP to (714) 331-6699.