He althy sleep is one of the important conditions for the well-being of any person. It should be long enough. Then all the organs of the body will function properly. Failures in the mode can lead to serious consequences. These include the deterioration of intellectual functions, various ailments, nervous disorders. Therefore, the question of how to establish a sleep pattern is relevant.
The importance of keeping the right regimen
The daily routine is determined by several factors. These are individual needs for the duration of sleep, age category, physical characteristics, working conditions, habits. We should not forget that any violation of circadian rhythms affects well-being. Pain in the head, deterioration in performance, weakness - many people experience similar symptoms.
In connection with this situation, the question of how to establish sleep patterns is quite natural.
What are the dangers of circadian disruptionsrhythms?
Today, due to the fast pace of life and hard work, many are constantly faced with a violation of the daily routine. Lack of night rest for a long time affects the work of the body. Brokenness and deterioration of mental activity are not the only consequences of failures. Chronic violation of the regime leads to dizziness, loss of consciousness, hemicrania. Mental he alth also suffers. As a result of overwork, character changes. There is aggression, depression, symptoms of a depressive disorder, hallucinations may develop. Persons who, for one reason or another, are often deprived of a normal night's rest, have a high risk of stroke, overweight, tumors, diabetes, infections.
How to improve sleep patterns?
To answer this question, we must first understand the mechanisms of this process. These are discussed in the next section.
What makes you feel awake after sleep?
With no interruptions in circadian rhythms throughout the day, a person feels rested. What explains the surge of power? During sleep, all processes and reactions in the body slow down. Most of the brain is in a passive state. The organs of the central nervous system get rid of substances that have accumulated over the previous day. Thanks to this, their normal activity is restored. How many hours of sleep does an adult need? This question is studied by experts in the field of somnology. Studies have shown that an adult needs at least 7-8 hours of rest. Better go to bedin bed long before midnight. However, this rate varies depending on the characteristics of the person. One needs six hours of rest, the other - at least ten. For many, disruption of circadian rhythms is a problem. After all, some allow themselves to watch TV until midnight, get up late during vacations or holidays. Restoring a normal daily routine can be difficult. How to adjust the sleep schedule of an adult? First of all, a person needs to find out at what hours it is desirable to go to bed and wake up. You should not go beyond this framework both on weekdays and on weekends. But not everyone manages to follow this rule.
How to improve sleep patterns? What to do if he lost his way?
Establishing the right routine
Circadian rhythms are disturbed in many. This is facilitated by shift work, the birth of a child, business trips.
It should be remembered that the daily routine must be restored gradually. How to adjust the sleep pattern of an adult? First of all, you need to give up physical activity in the second half of the day. Mental activity is also not worth doing 2 hours before lights out. If during the day a person feels weak, he can lie down. But rest should not be long. The optimal sleep time in the first half of the day is 60 minutes. In older people, circadian rhythm disturbances are so severe that a person is forced to consult a doctor. At a young age, you can restore the regime yourself. To do this, follow simple rules.
Helpful tips
There are many tips on how to improve sleep patterns. Here are some of them:
- Follow a certain routine before going to bed. For example, listen to calm melodies, take a warm bath with fragrant oil or foam.
- Put clean and comfortable linen on the bed, put on comfortable pajamas or a spacious nightgown made of soft natural fabrics.
- Provide fresh air in the bedroom.
- Choose a quality mattress. It should not be too soft or too hard.
You can also use other relaxation techniques (such as meditation techniques).
More tips
There are also recommendations on how to improve sleep patterns with the right diet. Firstly, in the second half of the day it is not recommended to eat a lot of food. Avoid beverages containing caffeine and alcohol-containing products. In addition, pickles, smoked meats, spicy and fatty foods should be excluded in the evening. Such dishes are slowly digested, provoke a feeling of heaviness. Before going to bed, you should give preference to fish, cottage cheese, yogurt, cereals, vegetables.
Circadian rhythm disruptions can occur as a result of too high or low temperatures. Dry air, heat or cold disrupt the functioning of the organs of the body. As a result, recovery of forces does not occur. The temperature in the room should be within twenty degrees Celsius. It is also necessary to maintain optimal humidityair.
Before going to bed, you can take a bath with plant extracts (mint, chamomile, lavender), which have a relaxing effect.
There are cases when it is not possible to restore circadian rhythms even if these recommendations are followed. Then you should consult with a specialist and take drugs to combat insomnia. However, you should not abuse such means. Some of them are addictive.
Features of circadian rhythms in childhood
The routine of an infant and the daily routine of an adult are very different. In newborns, sleep has the following features:
- A child needs to rest for many hours. Babies only wake up when they need food.
- A two-month-old baby can already understand the difference between day and night.
For normal development, the child should spend a lot of time in a dream. The number of hours that you need to devote to rest depends on age.
As a result of exposure to certain factors (disturbance of the gastrointestinal tract, the appearance of the first teeth, loud noises), the circadian rhythms of the infant are disturbed. In such cases, the child often does not distinguish day from night. How to establish a sleep schedule for a newborn? This question is relevant for many new parents. After all, violation of the regime affects not only the condition of the child, but also the well-being of other family members. To normalize circadian rhythms, you need to follow these tips:
- Waking up the baby early. Don't let himrest during the daytime.
- Create conditions that are comfortable for going to bed (ventilate the room in advance, ensure a quiet environment, exclude noisy activities).
- One of the ways to improve sleep patterns in babies is to follow a certain routine (feeding, bathing, staying in the same bed with parents, moving to a baby bed).
- The unnecessary rituals that some babies get used to (sucking on a pacifier, bottle or thumb) should be abandoned. They prevent the baby from having a good rest.
How to improve the sleep pattern of a three-year-old child?
At 3 years old, boys and girls are going through a crisis period. A kid who used to be accommodating can become stubborn and capricious. And this often manifests itself in the reluctance to go to bed at the right time. Parental consent does not work. Any attempts to put a son or daughter to bed end in hysteria. Therefore, many mothers are interested in the question of how to establish a sleep schedule for a child at 3 years old. First of all, the baby should be taught to rest in his bed. You can put a soft toy in the bed.
The mode of rest and wakefulness should be the same both on weekdays and on weekends. In addition, it is necessary to exclude active classes in the evening.
