How is your sleep? 5 tips for better beauty sleep

We can be quick to blame our skin on not eating ‘well’, but sleep is one of the major pillars of skin health!!

As an organ that needs continuous regeneration, good quality sleep is as important as self care, good nutrition and good skincare.

A few bad nights here and there won’t hurt, but a long term pattern of sleep disturbances will have profound effects on your skin and health!

I often recommend ‘Sleep Smarter’ by Shawn Stevenson to my clients who struggle with sleep. His book has 21 strategies for getting better QUALITY (not just quantity) of sleep. If you feel like you sleep well, get around 8hrs a night but still feel tired throughout the day? Then this book may give you some insight into why.

Here are a few tips:

1. Get 30min sunlight on your skin between 6am-8.30am (can you drink your morning tea or coffee outdoors or go for a short walk?) - this helps set up your cortisol rhythm for the day, ensuring your cortisol levels drop later in the evening when you are preparing for rest. I still protect my face and neck with sunscreen, but let my legs (in summer) and arms (in winter) go unprotected till after this morning dose.

2. Avoid screens (or use a blue-light blocker if you must use a screen) at least 90min before bed (yep, I rarely do this one )

3. Try to get to bed by 10pm... you get the most beneficial hormonal secretions and recovery by sleeping during the hours of 10pm-2pm. Plus staying up past 10pm, you may get your ‘second wind’ - this seems to be due to a rise in internal metabolic energy that happens to aid your body in repairing, strengthening and rejuvenating (including your skin!) - if you are awake when this happens it can be hard to fall asleep again with this upswing in body activity.

4. If your laying awake in bed trying to fall asleep... try listening to a guided Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) - lots of free ones around (try Insight App). This technique involves consciously tensing then relaxing different muscle groups, and can help reduce stress and tension to help you drift off. Great to do anytime of the day!

5. Magnesium supplements - and Magnesium Chloride baths or creams before bed can help you reach a deeper level of sleep.

This is just the tip of the iceberg in this book... personally I mostly implemented these late last year and my sleep improved dramatically!! I’m re-reading it again as a refresher but you are welcome to borrow it from me anytime. Or check with your local library to see if they have a copy available.

Good night y’all, sleep well x