5 Ways To Improve The Quality Of Your Sleep, Reduce Depression & Increase Focus By Joann Buchan

As an entrepreneur or business owner, sleep maybe something you sacrifice in order to do everything that needs to be done. However, sleep and rest are essential to not only be productive in your business but a lack of sleep can have a detrimental impact on your health. Studies have shown that long term sleep disruption can be linked to chronic diseases such as hypertension, cardiovascular disease, weight-related issues, type 2 diabetes as well as mental disorders, especially depression. 

In Ayurveda a 5,000-year-old medical system originating in India, known as the science of life,  sleep is listed as one of the three pillars of health.

Sleep is a time for our body to heal and repair itself and to not only digest physically but also mentally. It’s the best remedy for when you’re feeling run down, yet we still put ourselves under tremendous amounts of pressure to power through and exhaust our minds and bodies.

Despite having all the technology including apps, watches and alarm clocks that track everything from our heart rate, stress levels to our sleep cycle that wakes us up at the correct time according to our sleep phase.  Along with meditations, valuations,  relaxation and even bedtime stories for adults. Sleep still eludes us. Insomnia research professor Jason Ellis at Northumbria University reports chronic insomnia being a significant health, social and economic burden that from a financial perspective alone, up to £36 billion is lost annually from the UK’s economy due to productivity losses.

Ayurveda states adults need around 7-9 hours of sleep every night. Depending on the season, and your needs as an individual. Here are 5 ways that you can improve the quality of your sleep for clearer and accurate decision making tomorrow.

According to Ayurveda problems with sleep are associated with Pitta (fire element) and Vata (Air element) doshas, meaning these are people who are most likely to have many things to tick off their list, be ambitious, busy and on the go. Sound familiar? Follow these 5 tips for a better nights sleep by Joann Buchan;

1. Tune in with natural circadian rhythms, which means turn off screens when it’s dark. It can be tempting to just check the last email or do something quickly before bed but instead grab a book, turn on your bedside lamp or use a torch. A few days of tuning into natural sunrise and sunsets your body will also align with rhythms of nature.

2. Find stillness; with so many decisions to make as a business owner, quiet and stillness is important for you to ‘digest’ all these thoughts. Stillness can look like meditation, ending your day with legs up the wall pose or simply having a cup of tea and doing nothing else.

3. Sesame oil on hands and feet before bed, this can be as easy as a simple 30-second application or 10-minute foot rub. Massaging oil into the feet helps to ground, reduce stress, reduce foot pain, improve circulation and hence improve your sleep.

4. Eat your last meal approx 2-4 hours before bed, to give your body time to properly digest your meal.

5. Make yourself a lovely bedtime drink called Golden Milk. This is Ayurvedic warm milk with 1/4 tsp of turmeric, helps you drift off to sleep and the antibacterial and antiviral properties of turmeric help to improve immunity too, win, win!

Morning and evening are times when we can control and bookmark our day, often the rest of the day can be caught up in a plethora of tasks and to-dos. With a few tweaks to gain an essential good night sleep, you will be able to tackle your goals and dreams with enthusiasm and energy.