Sleep is just the best, isn’t it?! It makes us feel rested, it heals ailments, it fuels us for the next busy day ahead. Only problem is that it can be hard to actually fall asleep (despite being really overtired), stay asleep and/or carve out the time to actually sleep for 7-9 hours per night. We’ve always been one of those “let me calculate how many hours of sleep if I go to bed right now…” kind of sleep-worshippers, but as we’re getting older we are realizing the sleep quality isn’t quite the same, and what we do before our heads hit the pillow really affects everything else.

While exercise and eating well is important for your overall wellness, sleep is right up there with those priorities. If you’re not getting productive sleep all the time (which, who is!?), then we hope you find these winding down tips to be helpful for your next snooze.

Charge your phone in your bathroom or in another room entirely and buy an old school alarm clock. This prevents the incessant checking-of-the-phone before bed and the moment you wake up. You won’t be tempted to do the late night scroll—oh and by the way, we’re just suggesting this as a tip we’ve heard before. When we actually *do* as we say, we’ll report back.

Turn your screens off at least 30 minutes before bed time. That includes iPads and TV screens. Give your eyes a rest! If you want to be on your screen until the moment you close your eyes, we’ve heard blue light blocking glasses are total game changers too.

Read a book. Even if you’re really into your gripping murder mystery, your eyes will naturally become sleepy. There’s something about reading an actual book (or Kindle) that really helps calm our minds down and escape the day’s to-dos and just fall asleep.

Get your diffuser going with some drops of lavender essential oils. Lavender is known to be a wonderful natural calming agent that will help you relax and feel like you’re bedroom is a spa.

Take a bath (with some Epsom salts or bubble bath, a good book and a cup of tea…and some spa music). All of the things. This will help your body relax and make for an amazing night of sleep.

Stretch. Roll your mat out right next to your bed or find a carpeted area and stretch. It. Out. Do what feels good, and be gentle. You’re night trying to get a workout in here.

Journal. Reflection and brain-dumping is such a great practice especially before bed. You can also write your to-dos for the following day if that helps you take your mind off things and feel #accomplished before the next day even begins.

We hope these tips help you to have a better quality sleep. We all know that better sleep means a way better you the next day, so here’s to healthier snooze sessions!