Fall Asleep in 5 Easy Steps

Before I struggled with insomnia, and way before I became a Certified Yoga Therapist and sleep expert, I wasn’t aware of evening routines and I didn’t even think I had one. 

The reality is that I had a very unhealthy night schedule that was preventing me from falling asleep, staying asleep, and feeling energized in the morning.  I would watch TV, read business books or study Swedish until late, making it hard to stop the chatter in my mind and to be able to fall asleep effortlessly. Sometimes, I would force myself to unplug and go to bed a couple of hours earlier than my usual schedule, but that would make it even worse, it only led to nights of tossing and turning in frustration.

I researched a lot about sleep hygiene tools and read many blogs about sleep routines. Some advice seemed good yet impossible to implement in my night routine, but I would try anyway which created even more drama in my life. After many sleepless nights, I realized that I needed to create my own routine that fit my life better and to be patient and extra flexible with it. 

That’s one of the main reasons why I won’t try to impose a “perfect” routine on my coaching clients or on you. The goal here is for you to become aware of your evening routine (even if you don’t think you have one) and then add a level of simplicity and mindfulness to it.  

Let’s take the first baby step to create your simple night routine so you can fall asleep effortlessly.

STEP 1: GET CLARITY
To start, it is important to understand your relationship with sleep and get clear of the conscious or unconscious stressors and habits that might be preventing you from getting a good night’s rest. 

Take a moment to reflect (and journal if possible) about the questions below. These are some of the things I talk about with my clients during our first coaching session to gain clarity about their current sleep situation and the transformation they would like to achieve. 
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1. Is it hard for you to fall asleep?  Do you wake up at night? How many times? What keeps you up at night?  Do you feel rested in the morning?
2. Do you currently have a night routine? How is it? 
3. What is your overall energy level for the past few weeks?
4. How many hours do you sleep at night? What time do you go to bed? What time do you wake up in the morning? 
5. How often do you feel stressed? (eg. Rarely, often, in certain situations, all the time…)  When you get stressed, how strong is your stress and how does it affect you?
6. How much is not finding a solution to your “problem” costing you in monetary, energy, and relationship terms?

You might feel overwhelmed just by reading these questions, please don’t. The goal of this step is only to gain clarity, is not about taking immediate action.

STEP 2: SET A REALISTIC GOAL 
Is time to create a realistic goal for your night routine. Ask yourself how would you like your evening routine to support your sleep, your health, or your life in general.  And decide how much time are you willing to invest in creating your ideal routine and executing it. 

Then create a goal that is measurable, simple, and realistic. Here is an example of a realistic goal. If you’re going to bed at midnight and you would like to be fully asleep two hours earlier to get deeper sleep, then a realistic goal to start with might mean being asleep by 11:50 pm instead of 10 pm. Then you can go to bed ten minutes earlier each week until you hit your 10 pm goal. I realize this might seem too simple or not worth the effort, but small steps will set you up for success. If your goal were to be asleep by 10 pm on week one, this might add more pressure and anxiety to your nights. And we don’t want that!
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STEP 3: WHAT NEEDS TO STAY AND WHAT NEEDS TO UPGRADE?
Now that you’ve created your realistic goal, and identified your evening routine and other factors that might be disturbing your sleep, and your energy, let’s identify which parts of your night routine should stay and which parts you’ll want to upgrade. 

Ask yourself the following questions to decide. 

1. What would your ideal night routine look like?
2. What simple changes can you make to your current routine? 
3. What calming and joyful activities would you like to incorporate into your routine? 
4. What time do you have to go to bed to get the number of hours you desire and get enough sleep cycles in your night?
5. Are you adding buffer space to not rush to bed?
6. What simple changes can you make this week to move towards your goal?

Even if there is a lot that you want to change, don’t try to overwhelm yourself. Keep it simple and stick to one or two things to start which will upgrade your entire sleep experience. 

STEP 4: CREATE YOUR ROUTINE
Using the upgrades that you’ve identified in Step 3, write down your ideal evening routine to establish a regular relaxing bedtime that helps your body recognize when it’s time to sleep.

Remember Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s wise words: “a goal without a plan is just a wish.” 

I use the following steps with my clients to create their night routine, and you’re welcome to use them as well:

1. Define what time you need to wake up. (Example: 6 am)
2. From that time count backwards 8 hours. This is the time you should ideally be asleep. (Example: 10 pm) 
3. How long do you take to fall asleep? (Example: 1.5 hours)
4. What time do you need to prepare for bed? (Example: 8:30pm)
5. What will you do to prepare for bed? (Example: Dim the lights, yoga stretches, light reading, meditation, etc.)

Creating and using an evening routine may be new for you, so take your time. Don’t try to rush the process. Instead, create a simple yet specific routine and be flexible with it, especially at the starting.

STEP 5:  TAKE ACTION! 
Doesn’t matter how great your night routine is, if you don’t take action it will never work. Is like making a lavender tea and not drinking it, and expecting to get the calming results anyways. 

If your night routine is too complicated, rigid, or unrealistic, is going to be hard to relax and fall asleep.  

Use these 5 simple steps to create your ideal night routine. A routine that you look forward to at night and that signals to your body and mind that is time to rest. 
Remember that taking action is not always adding more activities, less is always best at night. Here’s a 10-minute yoga Nidra audio you can effortlessly add to your evening routine to peacefully fall asleep in minutes. 

CONCLUSION
Sleep troubles don’t typically start in the bedroom; they’re just the tip of the iceberg and an indication that something else is going wrong. Not sleeping well is often caused by the things we do throughout the day, over the years, and leading up to our sleep time. Inside my

Sleep Simplified 1:1 coaching program, I help my clients identify the root causes of their sleep troubles, implement effective changes, and create lasting habits that lead to better sleep. These lasting habits start by having an ideal night routine to fall asleep effortlessly at night.

What upgrades you will be adding to your routine tonight? Please let me know in the comments below, I would love to know.