12 Holiday Sleep Tips #3: Avoid Late Night Tasks

Instead of 12 days of stuff you don’t need and don’t have a place to keep anyway (three french hens, anyone?) SleepBetter.org is giving you the gift of sleep.  Between now and December 25, we’ll publish our 12 Holiday Sleep Tips to help you get the sleep you need as we reach the end of the year.  As more of our 12 Holiday Sleep Tips are published, you’ll be able to find them by clicking here.

Tip #3: Avoid Late Night Tasks

This is a tip that’s likely to cause many of you to scream, “HOW???”  We admit that it may be easier said than done, but if you want to sleep better this holiday season it’s best to use the last hour or so of your day winding down rather than frantically wrapping presents or running to your local 24-hour big box store for last minute gifts.

The answer is that it’s a matter of time management.  As we suggested in the first of our holiday sleep tips, make a list of things that need to be done, work your way through the list, and don’t wait until the last minute.  If you race around trying to get things done and then throw yourself into bed, it’s unlikely that your brain will be able to shut down right away.

If you must stay up late to finish holiday tasks (or, for that matter, year-end work tasks) take at least 15 minutes to wind down before tucking yourself in for the night.  Listening to quiet music or reading a calming book are two good ideas to help you get your mind off of what you were doing.  In the end, you may get to sleep more quickly and have a more restful sleep if you get your worries off your mind.