1. Have a regular bedtime. Don't go to sleep with the lights on or watching TV.
2. Gentle exercise from 3 to 6 hours before bedtime will help you sleep; closer to bedtime can make it harder to sleep.
3. Warming your body with a hot bath or shower two hours before bed can help induce sleep, as long as there's time to cool off afterwards. Body temperature plays an important role in regulating
circadian rhythms and heating your body up actually helps it to cool down more quickly, preparing you for sleep.
4. Avoid coffee, tea, cola (and nicotine if you still smoke) and heavy meals just before bedtime.
5. You can read for up to 30 minutes after getting into bed, but no longer. If you don't drop off within half an hour (on going to bed or after waking in the night) go into another room and read a book or watch TV until you feel sleepy.
6. Try muscle relaxation exercises or deep focused breathing. Practise daily for 10 minutes before trying out in bed.
7. Decide how many hours you want to sleep (e.g. 7 hours) and then concentrate on 7 things you can see, 7 things you can feel and 7 sounds. Now close your eyes and recall them. This blocks intrusive thoughts for the rest of the night.
8. Get up at the same time every day (even after a bad night) - if necessary use an alarm clock.
9. As soon as you get up, go outside for 10 minutes. Sunlight tells your body its time to wake up and will set your body clock to tell you to go to sleep around 16 hours later.
10. The more sunlight you are exposed to during the day, the higher the output of the hormone melatonin at night. Melatonin enhances sleep and we produce less as we get older - which is why adults have more sleep problems than children.
11. You can take a nap in the day, but it must be before 3pm and for no longer than 45 minutes.
12. Not everyone can sleep well with the same duvet all year round. The tog rating tells you how warm it will be on a scale from 1 to 15. Typically 13.5 tog is designed for winter and 4.5 tog for summer. Some duvets can be attached/detached to give different tog ratings. If you and your partner can't agree on one rating, consider a split tog duvet.
13. Over time, duvet fillings lose their springiness and ability to trap air to help you maintain a comfortable body temperature. The Sleep Council recommends a change of duvets every five years, depending on quality.
14. Duvets need washing every few months; at least twice a year. This is especially important for people who suffer from asthma or other respiratory ailments in order to keep dust mites at bay.
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