A good night of dreaming starts with a good night’s sleep. And a good night’s sleep starts with a good evening routine.

Here are some of my favorite tips and tricks to wind down toward dreamtime that help promote a sound sleep:

Z After dinner, have a cup of calming tea. Some of my favorites are Celestial Seasoning’s “Sleepy Time Vanilla,” Chamomile, and my all time favorite: Tulsi Tea–I prefer the Rose flavor, which is billed as being relaxing and magical … what better for dreamtime! But you can also go the more traditional route and get Tulsi for Sleep.

Z I love a late evening snack. Sleep-friendly after-dinner snacks include bananas, low-sugar cereals, milk or kefir (I prefer kefir!), or a turkey sandwich (yup, it’s true, turkey makes you sleepy).

Z We all know we’re supposed to stick to a regular sleep and wake schedule to promote good sleep hygeiene. I don’t know about you, but I find this difficult to accomplish. But here’s a tip that helps me on the nights that I resist getting to bed on time: Don’t hit the snooze button the next morning. That’s just making a bad situation worse. Rather than sleep in, take a 20-30 minute nap in  the afternoon to make up for the sleep you missed. This will help you get caught up without compromising your sleep schedule too much.

Z You suspect it and studies prove it: Being on the computer, the smart phone, iPad, etc. in the evening hours are all compromising your sleep. Even watching TV is bad for sleep. But face it, even though we know the light from our e-readers and other screens is interfering with our sleep, we can’t give them up altogether. So, consider these modifications: If you use an e-reader, don’t use back light feature. For other screens, look into getting a blue light filter, as it’s the blue light that’s been linked to sleep interference. Here is a link to a site that offers other tips and apps to help make your screens more sleep friendly.

Z Meditate in the evening. You can even meditate in bed if you wake in the middle of the night. Not only does meditation relax you, it increases your chances of having lucid dreams.

Z Wind down with a few yoga stretches. Legs up the wall pose, plow pose, and easy forward bend are a few good choices. Here’s a link that gives more information on helpful yoga poses for enhancing sleep.

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Do you have a favorite relaxing tea, ritual, or routine? Share, please! After all, we could all use a better night’s sleep!

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If you’d like to learn more about your dreams, schedule an appointment for dreamwork, purchase a dream journal, or buy a dreamwork gift certificate, visit me at Third House Moon.

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