We’ve all experienced those days when we wake up exhausted, almost as if we hadn’t even slept. To make matters worse, the brain fog that sets in doesn’t go away as we carry on with our daily tasks. So we pretty much sleepwalk our way through the day, unable to focus on anything but the thought of going back to bed and getting some sleep we so desperately need.
If this only happens occasionally, a good night’s sleep will usually take care of it. Meanwhile, you just have to find a way to remain productive despite feeling tired. But if it goes on for days or weeks, it can seriously hamper your results at work or at school.
Some changes to your lifestyle are thus in order if you want to start waking up well-rested again. To make them, you will first need to determine what’s causing your problem.
Why Do We Wake Up Tired?
As a rule, poor-quality sleep is the main reason why people wake up tired. This can be the result of a number of different factors.
For starters, you might not be getting enough sleep. As you know, eight hours of sleep should be the gold standard for adults, whereas children often need at least an hour more. But if you get eight hours of sleep each night and still feel tired, perhaps you need to find a schedule that’s more in tune with your body. Researchers thus suggest sleeping for about six hours at night and then taking a 90-minute siesta in the afternoon, like people in some other cultures do.
If the temperature in your bedroom is too high, you’ll also have trouble falling asleep. The same is true if the light in the room is too bright because it’s sending your body the message to stay awake. If you share your bed with your pet, like many of us do, their tossing and turning and the noises they make at night could also be disrupting your sleep schedule.
In rare cases, your lack of sleep could also be the result of a medical condition known as sleep apnea. People who suffer from it have trouble breathing while they sleep, which keeps them awake throughout the night. If that’s the case, your doctor should take a look at your symptoms and devise a treatment plan.
Steps to Waking Up Well-Rested
If environmental or lifestyle factors are causing your lack of quality sleep, it’s time to make some changes. Here are some things you can do to sort out your sleeping pattern and start waking up refreshed again.
We know that we need about eight hours of sleep each night. Yet many of us decide to cut down on sleep to try and squeeze more activities into a single day. Needless to say, this is the wrong approach that’s only setting us up for a failure the next day.
If you have to be up by 7 am, you should be showered and in bed by 11 pm at the latest. You might not fall asleep right away, but you can ease your body into sleep mode by reading a good book or reflecting on the events of the day. Don’t take your phone or gadgets to the bed, as they will keep your brain alert and thus disrupt your sleep cycle.
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Do you find yourself turning your pillow over to the “cold side” at night? That’s because the pillow warms up in contact with your skin and even the slightest oscillation in temperature affects the quality of your sleep.
When you go to sleep, your brain will decrease the body temperature to help you fall asleep faster. The temperature of your bedroom needs to be lower, too. Experts suggest setting to between 60 and 67 degrees. Anything above or below this will cause discomfort and may, in fact, keep you awake at night.
If you tend to close the blinds before going to bed to prevent the sunlight from waking you up in the morning, you should stop doing that. While a dark environment stimulates your brain to fall asleep in the evening, the lack of light will keep you in sleep mode when it’s time to wake up and get out of bed.
With the blinds closed, your body can’t tell night from day. As such, the exposure to natural light in the morning allows your body to wake up and become alert. This will make it much easier to get up and work up the energy to start your day right.
- Don’t Hit That Snooze Button
You know the story: the alarm goes off, but you decide to hit the snooze button and give yourself five or ten more minutes of sleep. Before you know it, it’s an hour later, and you’re already running late for work. And even if you’ve slept like a baby before the alarm went off, you’ll still feel like you’ve had a rough night.
That’s because your body has its own rhythm that it sticks to. But if you stay in bed after the alarm goes off for the first time, you’re effectively telling your brain that it’s not yet time to wake up. So, the moment you hear the alarm, it’s not enough to just wake up – you need to get out of bed.
- Watch What You Eat and Drink
Are you getting all the important nutrients from your food? In some cases, a lack of sleep isn’t the result of your bedtime rituals, but rather your poor dietary habits. This includes the consumption of alcohol and sugar, as well as eating shortly before going to bed.
To maintain a proper daily routine, your brain and your body need access to certain important natural ingredients. They will help you achieve focus, be more alert, and deal with everyday stress in a more efficient way. As a result, your brain will function better, thus also allowing you to fall asleep more easily.
So, to start your day right, have a fresh cup of coffee or green tea in the morning. Better yet, a good choice of nootropic will provide your brain with all the active ingredients it needs to function well at all times.
See: Optimize your caffeine schedule
Hi! We’re Team Neuro, aficionados of all things brain-related, from creativity to working out. With backgrounds in art, science, and athletics, we love delving into all the potentials of the human body.
We also created the world's first sugar-free nootropic caffeine gum that utilizes the effects of caffeine and L-theanine, made to help you optimize your mind — anywhere, anytime. Find out more here.
