Your Daily Sleep Well Journal

Sleep Well Journal

Many, many people have morning rituals, routines to help them get a delightful and effective start of the day.  And many have an evening routine, which helps them ease into a soothing sleep.

First, set a Evening-Ritual-reminder on your phone.  Mine reminds me to begin my Wind-Down at about 9:30. You can put your digital devices on charge and lay out your things for tomorrow. Prepare all you can now for a smooth beginning in the morning.

(If you like to use the computer or phone before bed, there is an app called FLUX, where you can set the time and no blue light will come through. Blue light makes your brain believe the sun is still up). https://justgetflux.com/

Gratitude

What in your life makes you thankful? Even if today was less than optimal, what about your life, other people, material treasures, enriching relationships lead to feelings of gratefulness?  Write down some of the successes, accomplishments and magic moments from your day. Write around the rims of the page if needed!

1)__________________________________________________________

2)__________________________________________________________

3)__________________________________________________________

4)__________________________________________________________

5)__________________________________________________________

Add to your Success List

What happened today that made you feel good or successful? What worked out well?  What people were pleasant to be around?  What made you laugh?  Did you receive appreciation from someone?

1)__________________________________________________________

2)__________________________________________________________

3)__________________________________________________________

4)__________________________________________________________

5)__________________________________________________________

How have I improved myself or learned something relevant for my life today?

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

Tomorrow Sneak-Peek

What is The One Thing, the Most Important Thing, you want to work on and/or finish tomorrow?

___________________________________________________________

Visualize yourself working on this all-important task. See yourself in your mind’s eye how you focus on the work and bring the task to its desired conclusion.

Which self-help book, article or blog are you reading at the moment? How many minutes are you planning to spend reading or listening to these tomorrow?

reading___________________________ planned reading time__________

Before Bed Stretch

Our bodies have to sit a lot of the time.  On top of that, we sit crunched over at the shoulders and head.  Now is the time for a soft stretch to ease out the kinks before sleep.

You might have your own routine or you can be guided through a seated or lying stretch using DVDs or YouTube. It would theoretically be better to do without any electrical/digital equipment during the last half hour before sleep yet, hey, it should be what’s pleasant for you.

Sleep Inducing Time

Time for reading a book or story which lets you get lost in it.  Nothing exciting here -- perhaps a bit of well-written fiction. Some people enjoy audio books at this phase or a lovely guided meditation for sleep. A study in England has found that reading for just six minutes can reduce stress levels 68%.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/5070874/Reading-can-help-reduce-stress.html

I turn on my fan, which gives a soft “white-noise” from it (I live in a noisy area). Some people listen to waves, babbling brooks or relaxation music. One more round of gentle gratitude and off you float to dreamland.

Getting ready for sleep is extremely important.  Some lucky people get into bed and fall asleep like a stone.  Others, if they don’t take careful steps to prevent it, ruminate for hours or wake up during the night worrying. 

Sleep well.  Sweet dreams…

Here is a checklist to help keep you on track:

Evening Ritual	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Begin when the reminder sounds
Prepare for tomorrow
Gratitude
Success Journaling
Happy Questions
Sneak-Peek list
dim the lights
Sneak-Peek visualization
Soft Stretching
Sleep inducing reading
zzzzzzz…

© Linda Langeheine 2017