Bedtime blues

Definition — Sleep is the natural state of bodily rest observed in humans and other animals, regular sleep is essential for survival.
Why can’t I sleep? Why am I so tired?
Do you have trouble falling asleep, or toss and turn in the middle of the night? Awaken too early, or find yourself not feeling refreshed in the morning? If you’re like half of all adults, you may not be sleeping well and not getting the right amount of sleep.
Today’s fast paced society can make sleep seem like a luxury, not a need, but this is simply not true: you need quality sleep for good health. Sleep deprivation affects your entire body and mind. Unless you’re suffering from a serious sleep disorder, simply improving your daytime habits and creating a better sleep environment can set the stage for good sleep.
By developing a good bedtime routine and designing a plan that works with your individual needs, you can avoid common pitfalls and make simple changes that bring you consistently better sleep.
Getting good, restorative sleep is not just a matter of hitting the pillow at night and waking up in the morning, sleep is an essential time of rest and rejuvenation for your body and skin, benefits our minds and bodies in many ways.
When you continuously don’t get the amount of sleep you need, you begin to pay for it in daytime drowsiness, trouble concentrating, and irritability, increased risk of falls and accidents, and lower productivity.
How can you make sure you get the sleep you need?
A few extra hours here and there if you are sleep deprived might make you feel better for a short time. But it won’t get you the quality sleep you need for the best health.  You need to set the stage for good sleep on a daily basis, and this involves:
l improving your daytime habits
l creating a better sleep environment
l avoiding food and drink that might interfere with sleep
l developing a good bedtime routine
Your “sleep hygiene” describes your sleep habits. By improving your sleep habits, you can increase your chance of falling asleep fast, staying asleep and sleeping between seven to nine hours each night.
Stress and anxiety can easily get in the way of a good night’s sleep. Everyone has worries and lists of things to do, but it is important to teach yourself to let go of these thoughts when it’s time to sleep.
1. Only Sleep in the Bedroom
The bedroom should be used only for sleep — that means no reading in bed and no TV in bed, as these things confuse your body, making it difficult to fall asleep. Give yourself about 15 minutes to fall asleep. If you haven’t fallen asleep by then, get out of bed until you are sleepy.
Also by making your bedroom dark at night, you will be able to fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer, closing drapes and doors can help reduce the light in your bedroom.
2. Keep a Schedule
Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. This will train your body to sleep on a schedule. If you can maintain this schedule for several weeks, you will probably find yourself falling asleep faster and feeling more refreshed.
Try not to sleep in on weekends or stay up late.
3. Make a bedtime
ritual
Create a nightly ritual to signal that it is time to sleep. Start the ritual about 30 minutes before you lie down to help release stressful thoughts and be ready to sleep when you lie down. A little quiet reading (not in bed) or a warm bath can be great. Avoid watching TV, since it stimulates your brain.
The Clarins “Relax” Aroma-Phyto Beauty Care Range relaxes and soothes body and mind, promoting a sense of well being, notably the Relax Bath & Shower Concentrate contains plant extract of Valerian, which is a natural sedative, add to a bath and take in the aroma therapeutic properties.
4. Exercise daily
Daily exercise will improve your cha-nces of falling asleep quickly and sleeping deeply. Try to exercise early in the day and never within three hours of bedtime. Exercising too late in the day can make it difficult for you to fall asleep.
5. Get some sunlight
Sunlight helps regulate your circadian clock and make you feel sleepy at night by stimulating your body to produce melatonin (a hormone that regulates your sleep cycle).
You need exposure to bright light every day. Morning sunlight exposure can be especially helpful. Be sure to open the drapes every morning to let light in.
6. Avoid
caffeine in
the afternoon
Some people are caffeine sensitive and cannot drink any coffee, tea or other caffeinated beverage up to six hours before bedtime. If you are having trouble sleeping, try avoiding all afternoon and evening caffeine
7. Avoid
alcohol & don’t smoke
That small glass of wine can make it more difficult to stay asleep. After an evening drink, you might fall asleep just fine, but you will likely wake up in the middle of the night.
If you smoke, many resources are available to help you quit. The benefits of quitting include better sleep, a longer life, more energy and saving money. Smokers also may wake up early due to nicotine withdrawal.
8. See a Doctor
Finally, if these lifestyle changes don’t help, contact your doctor. You may have a sleep disorder or just may need some temporary help getting yourself in good ‘sleep shape.’
So how much sleep do you need?
A rule of thumb is to consider how you normally feel after sleep. Do you feel refreshed and alert, or groggy and exhausted? If you don’t feel refreshed, chances are you’re not sleeping enough. Sleep requirements are highly individual and depend on many factors.
Typical Sleep Needs
l Infants — About 16 hours per day of sleep
l Babies and toddlers — From 6 months to 3 years-between 10 to 14 hours per day
l Children — Ages 3 to 6: between 10 and 12 hours of sleep
l Ages 6 to 9: about 10 hours of sleep
l Ages 9 to 12: about 9 hours of sleep
l Teenagers —About 9 hours of sleep per night.
l Adults — For most adults, 7 to 8 hours a night appears to be the best amount of sleep.
l Older adults — Older adults are also thought to need 7-8 hours of sleep.
l Pregnant women — During pregnancy, women may need a few more hours of sleep per night, or find that they need small catnaps during the day.
A good night’s sleep has many health benefits, to our mood, memory and concentration, the body’s immune and nervous systems. Most importantly, you will feel great.
It is during the night when your skin regenerates, so it is essential to develop a good night time skin routine to give your skin the help it needs to successfully regenerate by giving it the nutrients and vitamins it needs.
The Clarins Range has a night cream to suit every skin type and need. It is advisable to wash off your make-up and then cleanse your skin and then use your night cream for optimum results from your products.
Whether you need to enhance your mood or shape up your skin, there are products in the Clarins Range to cater for your every desire and need.