5 Nighttime Rituals for a Better Night’s Sleep

Turning in for the night? High-five on making it through the day! You rock.

Now onto the most important thing you’ll do today: sleep. You will achieve more in your sleep than you could ever dream of in your waking hours. In terms of our body-mind-soul resetting and regrouping, sleep really is where the magic happens. To excel in the sleep department, you need to make sure you have your nighttime rituals on lock. Here are five things you can do to get the best resetting, recharging, and revitalizing sleep of your life.

1. Lullaby Yoga

Seriously, yoga pants double as pajamas. There are some great yoga positions that will help you catch some better Z’s by getting your body into the zone for some shut eye. Find a wall and lay on your back with your bottom touching the wall and your legs stretched up against it for Viparita Karani/inverted lake pose/legs-up-the-wall pose. This nighttime position helps to regulate your blood flow and calm the body. There are a few different poses that can aid rest, relaxation, and prep you for sleep, so if you want to go beyond Viparita Karani, then Google sleep yoga poses and check out other asanas that can help you count sheep.

2. Dreamtime Teatime

Put the kettle on! One of the best lullabies for your body is herbal tea. It works as a natural relaxer, and the hot steam has aromatic properties to help all of your senses know it’s time for bed. There are lots of great bedtime blend teas available, including Yogi Bedtime Tea and Celestial Seasonsings’ Sleepytime Tea. When looking for a good bedtime tea, keep an eye out for chamomile, lavender, lemon balm, and St John’s Wort in blends. Ironically, awakening the senses can actually be just the key to not being awake, go figure!

3. Nightcap Cleanse

You dirty little… No really—during our day we are exposed to toxins, pollution, grit, and grim, so washing, cleansing, and toning the skin is really important to make sure our bodies are clean and cleansed before we rest for the next handful of hours. Night serums are great for this and have less to do with anti-aging and more to do with revitalizing the skin—repairing it from today, preparing it for tomorrow. Some trusted brands are Dr. Hauschka Night Serum, Origins Overnight Hydrating Repair Cream, or Trilogy Replenishing Night Cream. The key is to look for cleanses and serums that are organic and oil-free. You’ll face tomorrow with a repaired and rejuvenated face when you wake.

 4. Assume the Position

How you sleep can say more about you than those leopard print yoga leggings you wear. Do you sleep like a star fish, in fetal position, or straight and stiff like a solider at attention? How we sleep can influence our digestion, reflect our attitude, and even result in more wrinkles depending on if you like to smooch your face into the pillow or sleep elegantly on your back like sleeping beauty. Learn more about your sleeping position and what it says about you, the kinds of sleep you may be experiencing, and how it could be impacting how your body recharges.

5. Bedtime Affirmation

Ssssh your brain already. Ever drift off to sleep while running through a list of to-do’s, didn’t-do’s, forgot-to-do’s, wish-I-didn’t-have-to-do’s? I hear ya, but it isn’t an ideal state of mind to inhabit when trying to sign off for the day. Your body is responding to whatever you feed it before you sleep, so why not feed it some kind, positive, affirmations. High-five yourself for all the awesome stuff you have achieved. Remind yourself of something you learned from the day, or something nice you did for someone else. Daydream about something awesome you want to attract into your life. Sign off on a positive note!

Photo by Flickr user Lily Monster

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Emma Mildon is an author, columnist, and spiritualist that specializes in spiritual research that she shares to her readers through her interactive website, app, and books. Giving her readers easy access to everything from spiritual scriptures across all religions, to different types of yoga to explore, crystals, feng shui right down to how to work out your astrology and numerology. Keep an eye out for her book ‘The Soul Searchers Handbook’ out later this year with Simon & Schuster USA or visit her website, emmamildon.com. You can also find Emma on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Google+.