Everyone tends to have their own biological schedule that which they rely on. This is also referred to as the biological clock, which determines the time after which we feel awake and tired again. For as long as our biological clocks work in a normal fashion, they make us feel sleepy in the evening and active in the morning. However, sometimes due to sleep disorders or other underlying conditions/causes, our biological sleep clocks end up getting messed up. This is when help from a sleep specialist is required!
Those who have an out of sync sleep clock find it difficult to sleep in the evening and find it very difficult to wake up in the morning. This could happen due to a number of reasons that include sleep disorders, hormones, odd hours, work, travel, and stress.
Tips to fix and reset your internal sleep clock
In case you have a broken sleep clock, you can make use of several different strategies in order to fix it. In this article, we aim to discuss these strategies. If applies, you will notice an instant change and improvement in your sleeping cycle.
These include:
Manipulate the lights
According to sleep research, if you manipulate the exposure of light, your biological clock may be reset. In fact, researches often make use of light in sleep treatments.
The natural cycle of light sends cues to our brains on a daily basis. Using these cues, our brain determines our sleep cycle. This means that your sleep habits should in in line with the natural cues. So make sure that you are exposed to bright light and natural sunlight throughout the day. As the day further progresses, start to make the lights dimmer.
At night, your bedroom should virtually be black with less amount of light. This is one of the quickest fixes of a broken internal sleep clock.
Change the meal times
Metabolism and digestion also have a link with sleepiness and wakefulness. What we eat, and when we eat also helps us in resetting the sleep clock. According to researches at Harvard, the circadian rhythms in animals shift readily based on the availability of food.
So researchers say that if you fast for 16 hours, you can reduce the traveling jet lag and reset the sleep clock. For instance, try eating an early dinner at 4 pm and then do not eat until the breakfast time.
However, once your internal sleep clock is fixed, you have to get back to the regular diet!
Explore the nature
One of the best ways to reset the internal clock in a fun way, is to go out for camping with your friends. Since natural cycle of light affects the circadian rhythm of the body, it helps us in falling asleep on time.
After all, when you go for camping, there are no laptops, the phone usage is minimal, and there are no electronic lights. So all you do is, depend on the natural light cycle of the Earth. It also takes away the difficulty of manually managing the lights in your house.
Within a few days, your sleep cycle may reset!
Ending note
The three tips that we have mentioned above may work or may not. Sometimes, sleep issues are caused by sleep disorders or other underlying conditions such as sleep apnea. In case you suspect that you have sleep apnea, book an appointment with sleep apnea doctors right away! We suggest you to take your sleep issues seriously as it could have a detrimental impact on your overall health and well-being. After all, proper and good sleep is vital for a healthy life.