Waking up and being able to start your day with energy depends on how you slept the previous night. It’s believed that one’s habits during the day, especially before bedtime, have a major impact on sleep. Experts say these habits can either promote healthy sleep or affect it. According to Dr Charles Mudenge, a physiotherapist, when it comes to daily routines, what one consumes, the medications you take, how you schedule your days can all significantly impact the quality of sleep at the end of the day. For this reason, he recommends making slight adjustments before bedtime as it can help get you sound sleep. What you should do Since most people are now hooked to devices, such as their phones, Dr Mudenge suggests keeping them away when one goes to bed. He explains that the light from the devices tends to interfere with sleep as it suppresses melatonin, an essential hormone for sleep. “In other words, it means that for a healthy night’s sleep, it’s important that one keeps such gadgets out of their bedrooms,” he says. In fact, from studies, he says, it’s recommended that one turns off their devices at least one hour before bed. Two hours before is even better. Agnes Murerwa, a certified health and wellness expert, says before bedtime one should have at least 20 minutes to prep for bedtime. This, she says, can range from having warm bath, listening to soothing music, reading a book and et cetera. “All these habits are especially good because they tend to calm you and prepare the body for better sleep,” she says. Also, she notes, ensure that you complete any exercise two to three hours prior to bedtime. Jean Bosco Mukasa, a Kigali-based physiotherapist, says adopting a soothing routine can also help boost your sleep. He says that it’s also vital to always have a fixed wake-up time, regardless of whether it’s a weekday or weekend. “Waking up at the same time is recommended as having irregular time can keep one from getting into a rhythm of consistent sleep,” he says. Emmanuella Mahoro, a psychologist, says it’s also important to prioritise sleep, however much it might be tempting to skip sleep in order to work or study. She notes that it’s necessary to treat sleep as a priority, and one should ensure this by coming up with a bedtime schedule depending on their fixed wake-up time. Aside from this, it’s also important to embrace meditation. The American Psychological Association notes that meditation and mindfulness have proven to be almost an immediate stress reliever. It states that when you practice meditation or engage in mindfulness, new perspectives can be gained and negative emotions can be released. According to experts, a good night’s sleep is just as important as regular exercise and a healthy diet. From research, it has been proven that poor sleep has immediate negative effects on your hormones, exercise performance, and brain function. For this reason, it’s observed that obtaining healthy sleep is important for both physical and mental health, as well as improving productivity and overall quality of life.
