Tips and Tricks for Sleeping Soundly

I know I'm not the only one who suffers from poor sleep habits.

After a month of terribly restless nights and on my wits end, I decided I needed to take some steps to ensure that can actually get a decent amount of sleep. And I'm so happy to report that these tips have worked like a charm! I now only wake up to feed the baby once in the night. When we're done, I have no trouble falling right back to sleep.

Whether or not you have issues falling asleep, staying asleep, sleep quality, or perhaps you feel as though you have no issues at all - I'd suggest trying a few of these just to see if you feel better the next morning!

Here's what worked wonders for me:

1) Lavender linen spray: I bought a small spray bottle at Target, and filled it with water. Then I add about ten drops of lavender essential oil. Fifteen minutes prior to bedtime, I give a few sprays to my pillow. This way it will dry before I climb into bed, and I'll have a fresh burst of calming lavender to sooth me off to la-la land.

2) Shut down electronics at least 30 minutes before bed time: This is hard. Formerly, I put myself to sleep checking out Pinterest from my phone. But the light of the phone/laptop/TV has been proven, time and again, to awaken and rouse the brain. Have trouble "shutting your mind off" at night? Turn off your electronics. I now enjoy about 30 minutes of reading (remember books?!) before I turn off the light, and have had no problems falling asleep within ten minutes of lights-out.

Make your bedroom a no cell phone zone at night! Also, check out this flip-phone. Takin' it back to 2002!

3) Develop a consistent routine: If you go to bed at different times each night, you're body can't get into a pattern. If some nights you stay up later depending who is on Jimmy Falon, cut it out and program your DVR. Whether it's 9pm or 11:30pm, try to always go to bed at a consistent time to right-set your sleeping clock, and get yourself on a solid routine.

4) White noise: Some people love it, others hate it. But they sell baby noisemakers for a reason - it's the way things were in the womb! I personally HAVE to have a fan running at night for that constant hmmmmmmmmm sound. My son prefers the heartbeat sound on his sound maker. That's a little "horror film-esque" for me, but to each their own! If you haven't tried it before, get a fan and try it for a week. The circulating air helps, too.

Nothing like the constant white noise of a fan. Zzzzz...

I hope you find these tips as helpful as I have in developing a better night's rest! Do you have any other tips or tricks to share? What helps you fall and stay asleep at night?