Having trouble sleeping?
Adults require 7-9 hours sleep. Are you getting enough?
I treat my work like a lifestyle and my reflexology massage session don't end when your treatment ends. If some easy changes can be made, I'll always suggest them. I like to set you up with some holistic wellbeing hacks that you can take away.
What's so important about sleep anyway
My most common topic of conversation with my reflexology clients is sleep & also one of my favourites. There is so much we can do to help and so many great benefits from better rest. I know that when I sleep well, I’m alert and less stressed, I don't put on weight and my quality of life is better and - the most important thing - I don't get ill because when we rest, we repair. I generally enjoy my time more, and I feel a sense of overall well-being.
For my reflexology online course I created a sleep questionnaire which people fill in daily to see for themselves where improvements can be made.
Here's some helpful sleep tips from my online reflexology course
Get out in daylight in the morning. This sets the circadian rhythm (our internal clock) early in the day, as it reduces melatonin production - which helps you sleep and releases dopamine - giving a feeling of wakefulness. UVA light also boosts our mood by producing cortisol. If it's not sunny the natural light will be enough to get you fired up for the day when you most need to be awake.
Don't wear sunglasses until later in the day. They will block out the natural light and confuse the brain into thinking it is nighttime inhibiting all those healthy biological processes.
Count up how many caffeinated drinks you are consuming. This one seems obvious but so many of us overlook it. And that's why I always ask you to count up in my lifestyle questionnaire when we meet! Don't forget to add green tea & matcha to your count of teas & coffees. All these could be over-stimulating your body. Altogether we want to aim for 3 maximum. And also remember that these can be cumulative so a few days in a row of lots of coffees can build up in the system. A bit like reflexology but having the exact opposite effect :0(
Make sure your last caffeinated drink is 6 hours before you want to be asleep.
What about other consumed stimulants? Cola, chocolate, sugary snacks. I don't think I need to mention energy drinks. Remember if you are getting a better nights sleep you won't need so many stimulants to keep you awake in the day! It's a vicious circle. But we can change that symptom pattern.
Think about your evening routine. Can everything be brought forward a little? Ideally you want to be eating 3 hours before you'd like to be asleep.
Do not look at your phone or blue light device at least an hour before you want to be asleep. You can see the pattern for the morning routine and in the same way if we are looking at a blue light in the evening then the brain will think it's morning and wake us up. We need red or orange light in the evening as this signals to the brain that the sun is setting. Blue light blocking glasses are very popular in the biohacking world! They have orange lenses so yup you do look silly but they do block out the blue light & really help with sleep.
Blending the tips from my questionnaire, with the amazing effects of reflexology you will without doubt see positive changes. And if you’d like to understand more about the benefits of reflexology this will give you an overview
Then if you really want to ramp it up....
Super hack your sleep
I have been very luck to partner with Bon Charge for my sleep course who sell some amazing science-backed wellness products to optimise our sleep. I have decided to extend a discount code to you, with this code at checkout: TINA15
And of course we can't forget 'thee mask' to help with sleep. It's not my treatment that makes my clients fall asleep it's actually just the blinkable mask! 15% off with this link. I can actually sleep on a plane now.
Long haul flights are now a breeze!
Obviously I believe foot reflexology is still the first port of call for helping with sleep. So I highly recommend trying reflexology for sleep first and then add in my tips above. These guys at Healthline have amazing info on sleep and in this article getting natural light to help with our sleep will give you a bit more info.