It is essential to focus on both the quality and quantity of your sleep.
This Brain Fitness Checklist provides some suggestions to get you started and have been chosen because they have shown the biggest impact on improving a particular lifestyle factor. Identify one or two tips from the list to get started. Then slowly try new ones, as you work toward building brain healthy lifestyle habits.
Here are few ways to to help get your best night’s Sleep…
Start here:
Calculate when to wake up at the same time each day.
Determine your chronotype to figure out your sleep rhythm.
Keep a notepad by your bed and write down any lingering thoughts and then let them go.
Turn off the screen 1 hour prior to bed.
Practice relaxation before bed for a week. Try this 30 second calming breath activity to start.
Challenge yourself more:
Commit to getting a good night’s sleep, a full 8 hours each night for a week.
Limit alcohol 3 hours before bed.
Stop caffeine before 2pm for a week.
Exercise daily, but limit 4 hours before bed.
Get a comfortable mattress.
Keep your bedroom a place for sleeping.
Keep your sleep space cool and dark.
Learn more about sleep and brain health; take the 1 hour course and get access to your personal sleep toolkit. (Log into your Brain Health Vital Signs dashboard to access this course).
Tips for getting started
Brain health challenges in the “start here” section are designed to be implemented by anyone, and will be a great starting point, especially if you scored in the Could Improve or Need to Improve categories in a specific lifestyle factor. Other challenges might be a little harder to do. In fact, you might feel resistance about adopting them at first because you may know they will be difficult to maintain for a long time.
Once you have tried 2 or 3 successfully from the “start here” section, challenge yourself with the additional challenges below. Learn more about sleep and brain health; take the 1 hour course and get access to your personal toolkit.
