If we’re being honest with ourselves, there’s a good chance our mad dash to take care of the house each evening and getting everything back in order is taking a toll on our sleep.
Taking the time to clear the table, clean, take care of school lunches, tidy the living areas and essentially making the house look less like a bomb site might have you anxious and stressed right before bed, making quality sleep difficult to find.
Guide To Quality Sleep
For many of us, we’d love to fall asleep at 9pm or even 8:30pm, but that’s almost entirely impossible depending on how hectic your day-to-day is, and so we have some great tips for you below. Not only should you focus on the number of hours in your sleep schedule, but the quality of those hours.
Some studies have even revealed that those who sleep for a quality six to seven hours wake more refreshed than those who sleep poorly for nine hours.
Start in the Bedroom
Before we dive into changing routines and asking your family to help out during the day, we have one point that we must go over first – and that’s transforming the bedroom into a sleep sanctuary.
If you’re finding it hard to get quality sleep at night, then it’s a good idea to look to the room that you’re sleeping within and work to turn it into a space you find most relaxing. This means working on removing distractions, clutter and essentially doing everything you can to make this a stress-free zone.
From blackout curtains, softer duvets, a white noise machine and even a CPAP machine to assist with sleep apnea issues, there are a range of products that will help you get that great night’s sleep without fighting for it.
Rearrange Daily Routines
One area we all overlook when it comes to a good night’s sleep is the daily routine and to-do list.
As a busy mom, you’re likely doing a lot more than you need to throughout the day, and arguably looking to do it all without a whole lot of help — we’ve all been there. Though we wear this as a badge of honour, doing everything around the home can really take a toll on our sleep, and with that, delegating certain tasks to the kids, our hubby or even employing a cleaner or nanny every so often is a great consideration.
Think of these delegations as a way to better focus on the household chores or career choices that really matter, rather than working on cleaning up the kitchen or a child’s bedroom, you could be prepping for an important meeting at work.
A few tips here is making cleaning and housework somewhat of a ‘game’ for the littles, and this will mean that getting the playroom or the living room nice and tidy will be a breeze. If you’re not able to do this, or your children aren’t as forthcoming, working on setting up a gamified to-do list on the fridge on a points-based system is also a good place to start.
Sleep When Everyone Else Is
Another tip for getting some quality sleep is getting some shut eye when the kids are already sleeping.
If you’re a new mother, this is a great perk. When your little one falls to sleep, getting some shut eye while they’re sleeping is a must, even if it’s only for a few minutes. It’s good to keep in mind that even small micro-sleeps are better than none at all, and when we have a newborn in the house, a few moments of sleep here and there might be all we get.
For the older children or toddlers, if you can get these little ones to sleep at a decent hour, then wrapping up your own chores and to-do list and hitting the sheets the moment they do is also a good idea. An earlier wake, as opposed to a late night to finish household chores, is going to do more good when it comes to developing a sleep routine.
The Nightly Unwind
Our final tip is one that so many busy moms forget, and that is the integral switch off before bedtime.
No matter how busy your day, you must carve out at least one hour before bed in the evening where screen time, chores, cleaning, planning and anything else takes a backseat. This hour is entirely relaxation focused and time for you to read a book, relax and do anything that helps you recoup after a long day.
The lower your stress level before bed, the better the chances are you’re going to fall asleep quickly, as opposed to tossing and turning.
What kinds of rituals or bedtime habits do you have that help or hinder your sleep? Leave a comment below! We read them!
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