Are you trying to figure out how to sleep through the night? If yes, you should check out our list of tips by clicking here.
As an ex-pat in China, city life can be one of the most exciting things about your travels. But life in the big city can come with its challenges.
One of those is the ability to sleep well amidst the lights and sounds of the bustling nightlife. If you’ve got a job that keeps you working at odd hours, this could be another complicating factor. When you want to make the most of your experience in China’s beautiful cities, you’ll need to make sure your mind and body are in great shape.
So, if you’re wondering how to sleep through the night, we’re here for you. Here are our top tips to getting a dreamy night of rest and waking up refreshed:
1. Block the Light
Having a dark room at night comes in levels. It’s one thing to turn off the lights before bed. But if you really want to increase your chances of sleeping peacefully, you can use some light-blocking curtains or even an eye mask.
Not everyone has the same sensitivity to light at night, but you might find that these extra measures pay off for your body.
2. Watch Out for Liquids Before Bed
Try not to drink a lot of water or other liquids right before you go to sleep. You want to prevent the need for bathroom breaks as much as possible so you can have an uninterrupted night of sweet, sweet dreams.
This includes liquids in foods! You don’t have to be too conscious of the moisture content in everything you eat but avoiding fruit before bed could be a good idea. Not trying to knock fruit – just save it for the daytime hours if you can.
3. Prevent Blue Light Exposure
You might’ve heard people warn you about blue light and wondered whether that’s a real thing. Well, opinions are split on this.
Some experts say excessive blue light exposure from electronics can lead to pain and even retinal damage later on, while others say that’s not the case (and the sunlight is a major source of blue light anyway). But pretty much everyone agrees that since blue light helps us stay alert and awake, it can also mess with your sleep if you’re exposed to it too much at night.
Does this mean you need to take electronics off your list of things to do before bed? Nope. You can use blue light filters, glasses, and browser extensions to maintain the brightness while filtering out blue light.
4. Up Your Sleep Comfort Game
Sometimes what’s holding you back from a good night’s rest is your level of comfort. When you’re tossing, turning, and aching throughout the night, you put yourself at a higher risk of waking up.
Try investing in a high-quality mattress if you can. Or if you want to go for a more low-stakes route, to begin with, you can use neck pillows to better support your head and spine.
If your pillow situation isn’t fully supporting your head, the top part of your backbone could be at an odd angle. So, for those people out there waking up with shoulder pain or upper backaches, your pillow could be the problem.
5. Keep It Consistent
Waking up and getting to bed at a consistent time every day can help you sleep better and fall asleep faster.
This also extends to naps. Some people say you should avoid naps so you’ll have a better time falling asleep at night, but you can also try to choose consistent napping over irregular naps.
If your lifestyle has you tired out in the middle of the day, or you just aren’t able to catch all your winks in the nighttime, naps can be a good thing. Scheduling a regular nap at a certain time each day could help your body adjust to its presence in your daily rhythm.
6. Be Aware of How Substances Can Affect You
The obvious substance to talk about here is caffeine. People love it for its alertness-boosting abilities, which means too much of it at the wrong time can keep you awake when you’re trying to doze off.
What you might not realize, though, is that caffeine can affect you long after you drink it. It takes about 20 minutes to kick in, so even if you’re feeling okay after a few sips, that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to sleep in the next few hours.
Another substance to be aware of is alcohol.
You might find that alcohol makes you sleepy and that you don’t have a problem falling asleep after drinking it. But alcohol can actually decrease your quality of sleep, which could make you feel less refreshed when you wake up.
7. How to Sleep Through the Night with Supplements
If you want some external help, you can try some medication like melatonin. And if you want to keep it more natural, you have options.
Hit up your local herbal Chinese medicine shop for some natural remedies. Our favorite Chinese traditional supplements are Suanzaoren, Fuling, and Gancio. These are herbs that are known to help with insomnia and promote healthy sleep.
8. Try Some White Noise
Adding white noise to your sleep preparation doesn’t mean you have to get an expensive machine. A white noise machine might be worth it if you find that the sound really helps, but you can try a free option first.
The easiest way to see if white noise could work for you is to queue up a white noise soundtrack on your favorite music streaming app. If you don’t have one, you can play a video from your computer, phone, or other devices.
This way, you can also switch between styles to see what kind of white noise works best for you. There’s gray noise, brown noise, rain sounds, sink sounds, and more. You never know what your brain might need – until you try.
Sweet Dreams!
A good night’s sleep is one of the best ways to feel good throughout the next day. But as you might’ve experienced, falling asleep isn’t always as simple as taking the time for it.
With a proper sleep setup and a focus on comfort in the nighttime, you’ll be able to drift off with ease. Knowing how to sleep through the night is a skill that’ll stick with you for many adventures to come.
And for more tips on day-to-day wellbeing for ex-pats living in China, check out the rest of our blog!
