5+ Best items for a better nights sleep (2022)
All you hear is “YOU NEED MORE SLEEP”. Yup, got it, thanks. I”m kind of a difficult sleeper. It’s the first thing to go when I’m stressed. Honestly it can feel like a real challenge sometimes, but we know that getting sufficient sleep is essential to hormone health (not to mention mental health, emotional health, affects eating, etc.). Basically sleeping is like a key that unlocks a whole host of healthier lifestyles.
These days I’ve been so busy that I’ve had to decide between working out and sleeping, between making dinner and sleeping. It’s a horrible feeling, but we all hit those points in our lives where we can’t luxuriate and sleep for those desire 8 hours a night. I am for 6-7 during the weekdays and try to do more if I can on the weekends (note I have a Whoop Fitness Tracker so it tracks my literal hours asleep, not time in bed).
Whatever stage of life you’re in, if your’e trying to manage your sleep and hormone health it’s time to start focusing on ways to get better sleep.
The CDC, Harvard, I mean the list goes on talks about “Sleep Hygiene”. What is it? It’s a few different things that help you get in the right frame of mind to have a great night’s sleep.
Generally speaking, Sleep Hygiene includes:
A consistent bedtime routine (trying to keep the same hours for going to bed and waking up)
Avoiding screens before bedtime (I”m particularly bad at this, but in a perfect world would be following this carefully)
Avoiding alcohol and caffeine before bedtime. Alcohol interrupts your “Sleep Architecture” according to a NYTimes article. Essentially disrupting and fragmenting your night’s sleep.
But this is pretty common knowledge at this point. So out of these things what are items that help you sleep? Again, I’m such a delicate sleeper that I have created a list of sleep items that I rely on heavily to make sure I get as much restful sleep as I can.
Earplugs.
These are a game changer. It can take some trial and error to find the right ones (wax, silicone, foam). I’ve now found some CVS brand smaller ear foam ones that have been working extremely well for me.
White Noise Machine. These days I have a decently loud air purifier that I use instead. It may seem like overkill, but if you have loud neighbors, partner, children (whatever you get the picture), and you’re sensitive to sound like me, trust me having the earplugs and the white noise is a game changer.
Melatonin. Melatonin is great if you have trouble getting yourself to the “I’m tired” point of going to bed. I take 3mg a night and as it turns out it also is helpful with testosterone levels in PCOS. According to a clinical study in Frontiers in Endocrinology, women who took melatonin for 12 weeks showed a reduction in those difficult PCOS issues like too much testosterone and hirsutism. Sounds like a win in my book.
Hand lotion/chapstick. Sounds silly I know, but I like to go to bed without worrying about chapped lips or dry hands. I find it’s a restful part of my routine and I really value it. I actually just use Vaseline (which has an Environmental Working Group rating of 1, aka the highest you can get without being verified). I also try to look for hand lotion that doesn’t have fragrance.
Silk pillowcase. This is a new one for me. With the hair struggles I’ve been having, I decided to change my hair ties and my pillow case to just try to eliminate breakage and be more kind to my hair/scalp. I found an organic one on Amazon for around $30.00 that I’m enjoying.
This is all to say, find what works for you! Sleep is critical to your happiness and health so make it a priority. Rest is essential for you and your hormones.
