WEEK 4: BETTER MANAGE MENTAL STRESS

Welcome to your final week of the Sleep30® Challenge by Sleep Number. Weeks 3 and 4 can be mixed and matched. Week 3 covers how food and exercise affect your sleep. Week 4 covers mental stress and how to reduce its impact on your sleep. Below, you’ll find a simple 4-7-8 breathing technique to help you unwind, tips to help you get back to sleep, and how to feel calmer with a gratitude journal.

KEEP CALM AND SLEEP ON

SleepIQ® sleepers who reported having a low stress level tend to have the lowest average heartrate and lowest average breathing rate.*

TRY 4-7-8 BREATHING TO HELP YOU FALL ASLEEP FASTER

4.7.8. 4.7.8. 4.7.8.

After you’ve done your pre-bedtime routine and climbed into bed, try this technique to reduce any remaining stress.

Either sitting upright or lying down, place the tip of your tongue against your upper front teeth and keep it there throughout the exercise. Exhale through your mouth around your tongue. If this seems awkward, try pursing your lips slightly.

HOW TO DO THE 4-7-8 BREATHING TECHNIQUE

  • Close your mouth

 

  • Inhale through your nose for the count of four

 

  • Hold your breath for a count of seven

 

  • Exhale forcefully through your mouth (tongue against teeth) for a count of eight

 

  • Repeat


It’s a little weird at first, but then it gets easy: 4. 7. 8. 4. 7. 8. 4. 7. 8. Repeat the cycle three more times, if you can. You might fall asleep in the middle of . . .

WHAT TO DO IF YOU WAKE UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

Often when people wake up in the middle of the night they lie in bed and worry about falling back asleep. Sometimes getting up can be the best thing for getting back to sleep, if you do it right. Here are some ideas to try the next time your sleep is interrupted.

TAKE YOUR TIME

Try some of these wind-down techniques from week 2, knowing it may take time to get sleepy again.

MEDITATE, REFLECT OR JUST BREATHE

Try a short meditation, do the 4-7-8 breathing technique above, or reflect on the day’s entry in your gratitude journal — whatever brings your mind peace and takes your mind off the fact that you’re awake.

IF YOU’RE STRESSED, WRITE DOWN YOUR WORRIES

Writing down what’s on your mind ensures you won’t forget, which automatically helps calm you so you can stop worrying and fall back asleep. Just don’t turn on any bright lights.

AFTER 20 MINUTES, GET UP

If you haven’t fallen back to sleep after 20 minutes, then it’s okay to get out of bed. You’ll either want to turn on dim lights or use a nightlight.

The reason it can be helpful to get out of bed is so you don’t associate sleeplessness with “learned insomnia.”

  • Go to another part of your house that’s quiet, dark and cool.

 

  • Read a book or a magazine for fun (nothing for work).

 

  • Have a light snack, like those shared in Week 3.

 

  • Hold (don’t drink) a hot beverage to trigger the drop in body temperature you’d get from taking a warm shower.

 

  • If your mind is still racing, write down your thoughts in a journal to clear your head.

 

  • Do not turn on bright lights or blue lights from your cell phone as they’ll cause you to stay awake longer. Read Week 2 for more about the right & wrong kinds of light exposure.

 

TRY AGAIN IN 20

Then, after about 20 minutes, go back to bed and give sleep another try.

The Sleep30® Challenge won’t fix everything in 30 days, but will you put on a path toward better quality sleep. We hope these tips help you as they’ve helped other challenge participants.

“Sleep30 helped me remember ways to get better sleep and how important sleep is.” – Miriam E., Odessa, TX

TRY A GRATITUDE JOURNAL TO KEEP CALM AND SLEEP ON

“Helps (re)teach yourself to fall asleep naturally.” — Karen P., Columbus, OH

A study in the journal Applied Psychology found people who practice gratitude can quiet their minds and sleep better than those who don’t.

Try keeping a gratitude journal. This is simply a notebook or ledger where you write down daily things you are grateful or thankful for.

What you write in your gratitude journal is up to you. Gratitude is a transformative emotion that empowers you to cope with challenging life circumstances.

The quickest way to start is to jot down a few things you’re grateful for in your journal. Then take a few minutes to explore why you’re grateful.

Each day, write down a few new things to be grateful for. It could be as simple as a kindness shown to you, something funny your child said, or a random moment you might have otherwise overlooked. You’ll also find yourself in a more peaceful place come bedtime.

WANT MORE?

Read these 4 WAYS TO INCREASE MENTAL RESILIENCE FOR BETTER SLEEP

 

 


*Based on SleepIQ® data from 1/2/21 to 1/1/22 and self-reported responses of sleepers using SleepIQ® technology from 5/12/19 – 1/13/22

†Participant received InnerCircleSM loyalty points for doing challenge.

“MY MIND IS ABLE TO RELAX FASTER CAUSING ME TO FALL ASLEEP FASTER.”
Shelby R., Joplin, MO*