Some Tips to Help You Sleep

For what it's worth, here are some tips I read to help you sleep better:

01) Stick to a sleep schedule [since your brain (and body) benefits more from sleep before midnight, some researchers recommend that you try to sleep from 10pm where possible and aim to rise between 5 and 6am];

02) Exercise is great but not too late in the day;

03) Avoid caffeine and nicotine;

04) Avoid alcoholic drinks before bed [better still, try to eliminate all alcoholic drinks out of your liquid intake completely as it is a poison with no healthy properties and each drink is loaded with unwelcome calories];

05) Avoid large meals and beverages late at night [remember the 'golden rule': breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and supper like a pauper];

06) Avoid medicines that delay or disrupt your sleep, if possible;

07) Don't take naps after 3pm;

08) Relax before retiring to bed;

09) Take a hot bath before bed;

10) Create a good sleeping environment [if possible, leave windows slightly open to allow air to circulate];

11) Have the right sunlight exposure: Daylight is key to regulating daily sleep patterns. Get outside in natural sunlight for at least 30 minutes daily;

12) Don't lie in bed awake: If you're still awake for more than 20 minutes, get up and do some relaxing activity until you feel sleepy. The anxiety of not being able to sleep can make it harder to fall asleep;

13) See a doctor if you continue to have trouble sleeping.

IRISH WORDS OF WISDOM

Before you act, consider the end.

Being nice doesn't cost anything.

Say "Hello" to others.

Live beneath your means.

The only way to avoid disappointment is to expect nothing.

When you go to bed, don't worry about problems.

Straighten up your room (and your life!) first - then the world.

Truth keeps the hand cleaner than any soap.

A healthy person is a successful person.

Question your prejudices.

Time cools, time clarifies.

Walking benefits both physical and mental health.

To be interesting, be interested (in others).

Be decided in what you will not do and you will be able to act on what you ought to do.

Have the strength to forgive all offences willingly. (Tough one, this.)

Be careful with whom you compare yourself to.

When all else fails, read the instructions. (This 'saying' is a bit better than 'When all else fails, pray'.)

Don't kill a fly with a hatchet.

There is no accounting for taste.

It isn't the mountain that wears you out, its the grain in your shoe.

Don't count on luck.

You can't make someone love you. (Don't I know it!)

Reach for the high apples first, you can get the low ones anytime.



(Taken from 'Ireland's Eye', February 11, 2011 (11/2/11) issue (No 5,273), page 42.)