Sleep day: five simple (but effective) tips for better sleep

Difficulty falling asleep, sleep apnea, nocturnal awakenings, insomnia: sleep disorders are numerous, and affected one in three French people five years ago, according to a file published by theInserm in 2017. The National Institute of Health and Medical Research told us that the French slept on average 1h30 less than 50 years ago. A finding that would have worsened, according to many studies, since the Covid-19 pandemic. While an adult aged 18 to 64 should sleep between 7 and 9 hours a night, according to data from the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), a recent survey reveals that nearly three in ten French people (28%) are satisfied with 6 hours of sleep, and 32% only sleep between 4 and 5 hours maximum.

So many reasons that push ordinary mortals to look for solutions to fall asleep more easily, and sleep longer with – as a bonus – quality sleep. If some disorders require a consultation with a health professional, others could be relieved thanks to simple gestures and tips to adopt on a daily basis. On social networks, sleep is the subject of a host of videos – and more than 20 billion views – with so many tips for enjoying restful sleep. Here are five that could change your daily life – and your nights.

The 10-3-2-1-0 method

Popularized last year by fitness coach Craig Ballantyne, the 10-3-2-1-0 method consists of introducing a new routine to your daily life to enjoy a good night’s sleep, each number corresponding to a good action. specific. The 10th coincides with the elimination of caffeine ten hours before bedtime, the 3rd with the consumption of the last ‘big’ meal and/or drink of alcohol, and the 2nd with the time needed between stopping work and falling asleep.

To complete the whole thing, it is necessary to stop looking at screens an hour before falling into the arms of Morpheus, and never to postpone the time of waking up. When the latter rings, you have to get up and not try to grab a few extra minutes of sleep to face a new day. This technique, rather accessible, would not only allow you to sleep faster but also to sleep better, according to the sports coach at least.

The colored noises

The benefits of white noise have been the subject of numerous scientific studies; which is not the case with colored noises. However, they are the ones who have been a hit on social networks for several months. And more particularly pink noises (29 million views on TikTok) and brown noises (nearly 120 million views). Users attribute them with real virtues for relaxing, calming down, de-stressing, falling asleep more easily, and enjoying deep sleep. An entire program.

Corresponding to a regular buzzing, pink noises would particularly promote deep sleep by their monotony. Something confirmed by a scientific studies, however conducted on a limited number of participants, which reports the rustling of leaves, rain falling in the distance, or the movement of waves. On the order of rumbling, brown noises would promote relaxation and concentration, although some associate them with sleep, and take the form of a waterfall or thunder. Ideal for relaxing after a busy day.

Returning the bed to its main function

The bed is made for sleeping. Nothing more, nothing less. If this is not the case, it is better to make sure to return it to its main function, and to remove all the activities – or almost – which you indulge in your bedroom. It must be said that the successive confinements, like the democratization of telework, have not helped to consider the bed as a place of rest. Between Netflix sessions, social network sessions, and – worse – videoconferences while lying down, it is clear that ordinary mortals no longer consider the bed to be the safest – and most effective – place to help them fall asleep. .

Very popular on TikTok, the Dr Karan Rajan, who officiates in the United Kingdom, believes that to counter this phenomenon it is essential to reaccustom your body – and your mind – to seeing the bed as the only possible place of rest. And to go there only once the fatigue has come. If this is not the case, it is necessary to attend to any other activity in other rooms of the dwelling before going back to bed. A piece of advice that seems to have convinced many users in view of the approximately 600,000 views generated by the video.

Music to fight nightmares

Not content with frightening, if not making anxious, those who have them, nightmares can also disturb sleep. However, there is an infallible technique – or almost – to avoid them. This is in any case what we learn from Swiss researchers from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Geneva, who have developed a method to limit the occurrence of nightmares. And this one would only hold in a simple chord of music… played on the piano.

Published in the journal Current Biology, their work reveals that the piano chord C69 (mixing the notes Do Mi Sol La) would significantly and quickly reduce the number and frequency of nightmares. A study carried out on 36 volunteers over several months which, however, requires additional research. The fact remains that at the end of this work, and without treatment with music, the participants observed a gradual resumption of their bad dreams, clearly testifying to the impact of this agreement on nightmares.

Sleep better… together

Sleeping alone is not easy, but together it can sometimes turn into a nightmare. Heavy breathing, snoring, even the movements of one’s partner can lead to frustration, disturbances, and even nervousness, and do not really work for the peace of couples. A simple and accessible method, called ‘Scandinavian Sleep Method’, because straight from northern Europe, would make it possible to sleep better for two, without having to have a separate bedroom. And the good news is that it doesn’t require much other than a bed – it should do – and two individual duvets.

As you will have understood, it is a question of gaining independence by having your own duvet, without suffering the harmful effects of the sudden movements of your partner. On the other hand, this will not avoid the snoring of the latter, but will allow you to evolve in your own space while maintaining a certain proximity with your other half. A tip which, according to TikTok users, would have saved many couples.