Sleep When You Are Excited

Is there is something about to happen the next day that's making you too jumpy and excited to be able to sleep? Excitement can make you stay up all night, or make you feel like you just can't remain still. Relaxing your mind and body can help you get the rest you need, even if you're anticipating (or dreading) the next day.

Steps

Treating It Like Every Other Night

1. Try going to bed at your normal bedtime. Going to bed early may cause you more anxiety and restlessness. Studies suggest that going to bed at the same time every night can help your body stay on schedule, which can go a long way toward helping you remain well-rested and healthy.
2. Keep your room cool. If your body is too hot or too cold, you might be adding physical stress to an already restless night. Sleep studies have found that a room temperature between 60-67 degrees Fahrenheit (or 15.5-19.4 degrees Celsius) is the ideal range for restful REM sleep.
   • Check that windows are open or closed as needed, to allow for appropriate cooling and heating. Do this before getting into bed.
   • Try using a fan. It will provide your room with white noise while also keeping you comfortably cool.
3. Make arrangements for the morning well before bed. If you've already got a lot on your mind, dwelling on everything you'll need to do in the morning will only make it worse. Take preventative action and finish any packing, cleaning, or laundry you'll need for the morning well before your head hits the pillow.
4. Avoid screen glare. Light reduces your body's production of melatonin, which helps you fall asleep. Avoid watching television and using computers, tablets, or smart phones before bed.

Calming Your Mind and Body

1. Listen to your body. If you're lying awake and too excited or anxious to fall asleep, that's probably not going to change on its own. Try getting up and doing something to distract your mind. Your body will let you know when it's tired, and when you return to bed you may find it easier to fall asleep.
2. Listen to music. Music can have a powerful effect on the brain, and if you're feeling overly excited you may find it helpful to listen to soothing music.
   • If you have a particular album that always calms you down, try listening to it in the dark.
   • Listen to a recording of natural sounds, like rainfall or ocean waves, which can create the illusion of a calm, natural environment.
   • Try listening to a sad song. Research suggests that sad music can actually leave listeners feeling soothed and even uplifted, which may help curb the restlessness that's keeping you awake.
3. Try working out. While some people find that the adrenaline boost from vigorous exercise wakes them up, most people sleep better after working out. Exercise helps release stress and can make you feel calmer, which can add up to a restful night of sleep.
4. Use meditation to calm your mind and body. There are many different types and styles of meditation, but choosing the right one for you can be a rewarding and calming experience. If you're too wound up to fall asleep, try engaging in yoga or meditation to stop your mind from racing and help relax your body.
   • Focus on your breath. Take deep breaths in and slowly exhale. Rhythmic breathing slows down your heart rate and can help you disengage from stressful thought patterns.
5. Try gradual relaxation techniques. Focus all of your attention on your body, beginning with your toes and working your way up to your head. This can help you distract your mind from thinking about whatever is keeping you awake.
6. Write down what's on your mind. If you have things to do or a brilliant idea on your mind to tackle later, make a note so you won't focus on it while trying to sleep. It's no help to you trying to remember all those undone tasks, and dwelling on them at night might prevent you from getting a good night's sleep.
7. Take a bath. A shower will also help you relax, but soaking in a bathtub relaxes the muscles better, and researchers have found that lying in a bath can have positive psychological results. Whether bathing or showering, the hot water can help calm your mind and relax your body.

Trying a Natural Sleep Aid

1. Drink some warm liquids. Whether you reach for a glass of warmed milk, a herbal tea (or other non-caffeinated tea), or a weak hot chocolate (remember that it contains caffeine though), holding and sipping a warm beverage can make you feel happier, more receptive, and relaxed.
   • Avoid caffeinated drinks for several hours before bed. Stick to herbal or naturally decaffeinated beverages.
   • If you're prone to getting up during the night to visit the bathroom, you might wish to skip this step
2. Try aromatherapy. Smelling scented oils and herbal concentrates associated with relaxation, like lavender, may help calm the body and promote a more restful night's sleep.
3. Consider a herbal supplement. Though they aren't as thoroughly researched as prescription medications, herbal supplements may be helpful as a sleep aid, when used correctly.
   • Valerian is a common sleep aid, with documented use going back hundreds of years.
   • Melatonin is a hormone that the human body produces naturally. Taking a synthetic melatonin supplement may help reduce the time it takes to fall asleep and can improve your overall quality of sleep at night. But remember, light interferes with your body's melatonin production, so it's best to avoid screen glare before bed, even if you're taking melatonin.
   • Always consult with your doctor or primary care giver before taking any sleep aids or supplements.

Tips

• Rereading a familiar, favorite book can be more relaxing than picking up a new novel. Anything you love enough to enjoy the second or third time around has a different feeling on a reread - and less of a need to make it to the end. You already know what happens, and instead of reading for the plot you'll be rediscovering all the little tangents on the way to an ending you already know.
• Make sure you have been to the toilet before going to bed. If you get up to go to the toilet you may have a hard time falling back to sleep.
• Don't drink any beverages which have caffeine within two hours of settling down to go to bed. This will definitely have an effect on sleep, as caffeine is a stimulant that keeps you awake.
• Do something relaxing and familiar. Don't start any new projects.
• Don't use any electronics. It will make you hyper focused, and the screen glare can interfere with your body's melatonin production, keeping you awake for longer.
• Make sure you don't have any electronics near you as it may tempt you to use them. Make sure everything is off and it of reach.
• Check that the room temperature is not too hot or cold; this can impact your ability to get to sleep.
• Listen to music that you find relaxing.
• Try to close your eyes and turn off all noise-making devices.
• If all else fails, try to visualize yourself doing whatever you are excited about with your eyes closed, and you just might drift off to sleep and dream about the exciting thing.
• If the big event is happening in the morning and you really want to go to bed early, have some enjoyable reading material and read it in bed before settling down to sleep. While relaxing and reading, your body may feel more prepared to sleep earlier than usual. On the whole, though, it is best to follow your normal sleep pattern and go to bed at the same time you normally do.
• Just relax and lie down. Breathe and with each breath imagine yourself drifting deeper into sleep. I guarantee you will be asleep soon.
• Just relax! Remember: Once you fall asleep, what you are waiting for will come faster!
• Tense your whole body up, then slowly release. Work your way up starting at your toes. It will make you feel a lot more relaxed.
• If it's your birthday, try to think of all the presents you might get and try counting them. This will get boring after a while and you will more than likely drift off and dream about gifts!
• It's been suggested many times, but counting sheep, or count how many breaths you take. This will help distract you from other thoughts that might keep you awake.
• Try wearing yourself out. A brisk workout can help you get ready to sleep.
• If the event is tomorrow then say in your head, "its not for 5 more days." Keep repeating it over and over again to "trick" your brain into feeling less anxious.
• Read a book! It usually helps falling asleep. But read a relaxing book because if you read a scary or a book that has lots of action you might think to yourself 'let's keep reading and see what happens next and then you will have a harder time getting to sleep.
• Try sharing the excitement with family and BFF.

Warnings

• Try to avoid any drinks that contain caffeine that evening. Caffeine is known to disrupt sleep patterns even if you don't drink it right before sleep.
• Do not drink anything an hour before you plan on going to sleep, or eat anything three hours before.

Things You Will Need

• Book
• Music
• Hot drink
• Warm bath or shower
• Suitable bed linen (warm enough, cool enough)

Related Articles

• Sleep Better
• Manage Your Excitement
• Sleep Comfortably in a Car
• Relax Before An Exciting Event
• Calm Your Imagination Before Sleep
• Fall Asleep when You Have Things on Your Mind

• Distract Yourself from Excitement

Sources and Citations

See also

• Have Good Sleep Hygiene
• Get Back to Sleeping Normal Hours
• Fall Asleep Fast
• Sleep Better
• Sleep Late
• Power Nap
• Sleep Before Final Exams
• Sleep Comfortably on a Hot Night
• Sleep When You Are Not Tired
• Know How Much Sleep You Need

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