Who doesn’t love getting away for a break? While you’re counting down the days, your excitement bubbles a bit more the closer you get. However, all this excitement can be harmful for your sleep – especially on the night before you go on holiday, when stress and nerves are thrown into the mix, too.
When you’re stressed or excited, your body produces more cortisol and adrenaline, which raises your heart rate. This means that you may find falling asleep – and staying asleep – a challenge. This can be particularly frustrating if you’ve got an early flight and need some quality shut eye. Heading off on a holiday should be fun but, if you’re tired, it won’t be. However, you don’t have to struggle to get some sleep. We’ve gathered some tips for you to get a good sleep before going on holiday.
7 Tips for A Good Sleep Before Your Holiday
- Don’t Go to Bed Late - If you don’t have an early flight and don’t have to get up too early, go to bed at your normal time. Don’t go to bed late, as this could disrupt your sleeping pattern and keep you from getting quality sleep. Plus, you’ll end up not getting enough sleep to feel refreshed and ready for your flight when you get up. If you do need to get up early, try to get to sleep a bit earlier – especially if you’re driving to the airport. A warm glass of milk can help you feel sleepy, or you could try a sleeping aid. A pillow spray with a soothing blend of Lavender, Vetivert, and Camomile can help to calm your mind and body to help you to drift off.
- Plan Ahead - Plan ahead and make sure that everything is ready for the following day. If you’re going to bed with a to-do list running around your head, you’ll have trouble falling into a restful sleep. Avoid this by getting all the housework done before you go to bed – don’t leave any cleaning for the day you’re leaving! Have all suitcases packed and make sure that tickets, currency, or anything else you need handy are in your bag. Writing out a checklist of things you need to do can help you get everything done. When it’s all done, you can relax and enjoy a quiet night before going on holiday.
- Have Some “Me Time” - If you’re stressed out or just too excited, try to relax by giving yourself some “me time”. This is easier said than done, especially if you’ve got excited children, but even treating yourself to some quiet time after they go to bed will work, too. Have a warm bath or shower, listen to some quiet music, read a book, or even try some meditation. Mindfulness is a form of meditation that encourages you to focus on the moment, quietening any anxious thoughts you may be having.
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Have A Healthy Sleeping Environment - Having the best sleeping environment will help you have the best sleep. Make sure your bedroom is dark, cool, and quiet.
- Leave Electronic Devices Alone - Switch off your phone, laptop, tablet, and even your TV for about an hour before you go to sleep. If you’re using your phone as an alarm, put it on silent mode so that notifications won’t disturb your sleep. The blue light that’s emitted from these screens can disrupt your body’s production of melatonin, the sleep hormone. This will keep you awake when you want to be asleep. Instead, fill this hour with quiet, relaxing activities – read a book, have a bath, or listen to soothing music.
- Avoid Alcohol - As tempting as it might be, don’t have too many glasses of your favourite booze. While alcohol can make you feel sleepy, it’ll disrupt your sleep as you’ll wake up needing to go to the bathroom. You may struggle to get back to sleep – especially if you start thinking of your holiday and get excited. Plus, drinking too much alcohol before going to bed will keep you from getting the deep, restorative sleep that you need to wake up feeling refreshed.
- Don’t Stay in Bed If You Can’t Sleep - If you’re struggling to get to sleep, don’t be hard on yourself. If you’re still awake for about twenty minutes after getting into bed, don’t stay in bed. Staying in bed when you can’t sleep will make your brain come to associate your bed with restlessness – this will make it even harder to get to sleep! Get up and go to a different room. Have a glass of milk, read a book, or listen to quiet music – anything that’s relaxing and doesn’t involve looking at a screen. Only go back to bed when you feel sleepy.
Read more: Jet Lag and Sleep
