A Sleep Guide for Moms
You’re totally into all this wellness stuff, but it’s a little discouraging as a new mom, isn’t it?
Have a peaceful morning routine with lemon water and meditation.
How about flying oatmeal and crying?
Take the time to practice mindful eating.
Getting through a meal where everyone is seated and happy at the table for more than 5 minutes is a dream.
Get a restful 8 hours of sleep.
Um, I wish.
When I really got serious about my health coaching business, I had a 22 month old and a 2 month old. I was constantly hearing about the importance of a good night’s sleep, and I would just get so frustrated. This does not apply to me, I would think. But what if a full night’s sleep isn’t anywhere in my near future? I would wonder to myself.
I’m here to tell you that I get it and I’ve been there. Sleep (a good, solid chunk of uninterrupted night time sleep) is hard to come by with young children. It is pretty unbelievable how much kids take over our lives. But even though chaos and sleepless nights are unavoidable, it doesn’t mean you need to forego all aspects of a healthy life. Here are some simple tips to make the most out of the sleep you do get.
- Beware of couch inertia! You know the feeling, it’s the end of the night and the kids are finally in bed and you just want to lay on the couch and get some quality time with your significant other and some TV shows. Just one show tonight, you think, I want to get to bed early. But, once the show ends, the effort it takes to get up and get ready for bed feels like so much less than the effort it takes to continue watching TV or just scroll through Facebook. Before you know it, it’s almost midnight and now the baby is up wanting to eat!
Now, you have a choice. You can be aware of this “couch inertia” and promise yourself that this won’t happen, just once. Once you do it once night, you’ll probably feel pretty good about your choice, and do it again, then again, and again. Just do it one day at a time and it will be your new routine.
OR, you can chose to do something else. Start an easy bedtime yoga practice, read a book in bed, take a hot shower or bath. Find something enjoyable and relaxing that doesn’t involve screens right before bed. You may not feel like doing yoga at the end of the night, but I promise you, the hardest part is making the decision and turning on that yoga video. Once it’s on, you’re golden.
- Speaking of bedtime yoga. Find a calming, simple bedtime routine that works for you. I hear so much about the wonders of a morning routine – waking up before the kids for some me time. But, in certain stages of life, the extra sleep in the AM is more important. That’s when a great bedtime routine can help. Pick a few calming things that you enjoy before bed and make it into a routine you look forward to. For me, it’s usually a shower, some stretching, a minute of journaling (Q&A a day for moms and a gratitude journal), then reading until lights out. Find what works for you. Do this by experimenting and learning how to listen to your intuition.
- Meditate. If you’ve never tried meditation before, I urge you to give it a try. I also promise you that you do have time to meditate. Having a regular meditation practice has so many benefits, but one great thing it does is help train your brain to go into a clear, relaxed state quickly. So, even with middle-of-the-night wake-ups, you are more easily able to get right back to bed and fall asleep. How often do you get woken up in the middle of the night and then just can’t fall back asleep because there is too much running through your brain? How wonderful would it feel to have a brain that can easily slip into that relaxed state, making it easy for you to fall back to sleep quickly?
Bonus tip #4, find a magnesium supplement that you love! It may be just what you need!
I take 480mg of magnesium glycinate each day, but when I was at my most sick, I slowly worked my way up to “bowel tolerance” (yup, you’ll understand if you take magnesium!) and was taking 1000 mg a day for a short period. Listen to your body. Topical magnesium is also great, and easily absorbed, but sometimes we need an extra boost from supplements.
