Pain Points
Discover all the pain points that match yours. Follow easy-to-use guided practices to experience the many benefits we offer.
Snuggle into bed and be lulled into a peaceful sleep with your choice of our guided meditations and sleep soundscapes.
Soothing self-massage
Soothe your nervous system and promote a restorative sleep by gently massaging your temples, neck, shoulders, and soles of your feet with our Sleepy Time Roll-On Oil Blend. Apply it to your inner wrists and inhale the scent with a few relaxing breaths.
Wind down for the night with our relaxing, calming soundscapes. We also recommend the following:
Dim the lights
Artificial lighting can inhibit melatonin production and interfere with sleep. To improve sleep quality, turn off TVs, smartphones, and computers at least an hour before bed, and dim the lights around your home.
Set aside work or anything mentally challenging
Too much stimulation close to bedtime forces your mind to work overtime to process the additional input.
Diffuse or spritz essential oils
For a calming aroma, add a few drops of our Lavender Essential Oil or Unwind Essential Oil Blend to our Yogaroma™ Ceramic Diffuser, or spray some of our Sleepy Time Mist around your bedroom.
Release tension with our gentle stretches and relaxation techniques. Other ways to calm your body include:
Drink warm milk or calming herbal tea
Rich in tryptophan and calcium, milk will help calm and soothe your nerves. Don’t drink too much or your sleep may be interrupted by a trip to the bathroom!
Take a warm shower or bath
A warm bath (not too hot) or footbath with added salt helps you relax and encourages melatonin production. To further unwind, add a couple drops of our Lavender Essential Oil or Unwind Essential Oil Blend.
Wake up early and energize your body with Yoga Dance or breathing exercises. We also recommend the following:
Go to bed early
If you’re in the habit of going to sleep late but would like to sleep earlier, start by going to bed 10 or 15 minutes earlier each night until you reach your ideal bedtime. By gradually getting up earlier, it will make it easier to go to sleep earlier.
Wake up 30‒60 minutes before sunrise
Early morning is conducive for meditation as it’s naturally quieter and more peaceful. If you’re not an early riser, start by getting up 15 minutes earlier every few days, until you’re waking up at the desired time.
Wash your face with cool water or have a cold shower
Cold showers support circulation and improve your resistance to common illnesses like colds and the flu. If you’re new to taking cold showers, make sure you’re feeling fit and healthy, or it might overwhelm your immune system.
Get some morning sunlight
Getting sunlight (30-45 minutes) first thing in the morning helps regulate your sleep cycles and improves the quality of your sleep. So why not go for a walk outside?
Exercise during the day can help us sleep peacefully at night. Try our yoga asana sessions and courses, or other exercise like walking, jogging, or tai chi.
Avoid vigorous exercise too close to bedtime
While exercise can help improve sleep, strenuous exercise too close to bedtime can make it harder to fall asleep and may reduce the quality of your sleep.
How and what we eat can play a major role in whether we get a good night’s sleep. See the tips below for ideas:
Foods to avoid at dinnertime
- Spicy foods can agitate the mind and senses, causing disturbing dreams.
- Greasy or heavily processed foods can cause heartburn and indigestion, disturbing sleep.
- Artificial colors or preservatives can agitate the nervous system, interfering with sleep.
- Try to quit caffeine, alcohol, and smoking. If you must drink caffeinated beverages, have them earlier in the day.
Nutrients to include
- Magnesium. This relaxes your muscles. It’s found in wheat bran, brown rice, almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds, barley, beans, artichokes, bananas, and dates.
- Calcium. Found in dairy products, tofu, beans, sesame, oats, and spinach, calcium will help soothe your nerves.
- Tryptophan. An essential amino acid that the body converts into serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate sleep, and is naturally found in foods like dairy products, nuts, seeds, soybeans, millet, and corn.
- Vitamin B6. This vitamin promotes sleep hormones and is found in potatoes, sweet potatoes, bell peppers, turnip greens, spinach, bananas, prunes, and walnuts.
- Melatonin. Foods that regulate and boost melatonin production, such as cherries, grapes, and bananas, help you fall asleep quicker and improve sleep quality. Nuts, such as almonds, pistachios, and walnuts, can promote the secretion of serotonin and melatonin.
When to eat for better sleep
- If you go to bed with a full stomach, food won’t digest properly, and your body won’t get the rest and recovery it needs.
- It’s best to eat your main meal four to five hours before bed, while the sun is still in the sky or shortly after sunset.
- If you must eat late, have a small, simple meal—such as soup, porridge, warm milk, or fruit—at least two hours before bed.
If you wake up and struggle to go back to sleep, listen to one of the relaxing audios. If you still can’t sleep after 20 minutes, go into another room with dim lighting and do some gentle stretching or meditate until you feel drowsy. Below are more suggestions for common scenarios:
If noise wakes you
Play the Sleep Soundscapes throughout the night. If you wake up, simply focus on the Yoga Sound and gradually drift back to sleep. The Yoga Sound will help muffle outside noise and wearing our Sweet Dreams Silicone Earplugs can take the edge off loud noises.
If you can’t stop thinking about something
It may be tempting to turn on the light, or look at your phone or other devices, but this will only stimulate your brain, interfering with melatonin production, making it hard to return to sleep. Keep a small flashlight, pen, and paper by your bedside. If you’re woken by ideas, you can jot down notes about your thoughts and go back to sleep.
If you’re worried or upset
Soothe your mind with Yoga Sound. You can also listen to the Sleep Meditations and be gently guided back into a peaceful sleep.
When it’s not possible to get a full night’s sleep, a daytime nap will help you feel refreshed and recharged. If it’s not convenient to nap, try the guided relaxation and energizing techniques.
The ideal nap time
- A short nap of 10-20 minutes can help improve your mood, alertness, and performance.
- If you are extremely tired, a 90-minute nap allows your body to go through a complete sleep cycle.
- Don’t nap too late in the day, as this may interfere with your ability to fall asleep at night. An optimal naptime is mid-afternoon, when most people naturally feel less alert and experience a decline in energy.
Enjoy a conducive nap environment
Nap in a quiet, dark room with a comfortable temperature and no distractions. If that’s not possible, our Sweet Dreams Eye Mask and Sweet Dreams Silicone Earplugs are very helpful.
The importance of daylight and darkness for sleep
The light of day and the dark of night are like two good friends working together to aid your body’s natural sleep and wake cycles. Natural daylight stimulates the production of vitamin D, an important vitamin for the body. Sunshine also converts tryptophan to serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is involved in the body’s production of melatonin, the hormone that regulates our sleep cycles.
Set up the ideal sleep environment
- Make the room as dark as possible. Hang blackout curtains or wear our Sweet Dreams Eye Mask.
- Reduce or eliminate technology in your bedroom. If you need your phone by your bed, turn the brightness down and set it to silent mode.
- If there is environmental noise, use our Sweet Dreams Silicone Earplugs.
- Have a comfortable and supportive pillow and mattress.
- Keep temperatures cool.
- Keep your bedroom clean and clutter-free.
- Diffuse our Lavender Essential Oil or Unwind Essential Oil Blend with our Yogaroma™ Ceramic Diffuser or spray some of our Sleepy Time Mist around your bedroom for a soothing aroma.
How much sleep do I need?
The amount of sleep we need varies depending on our age, genetics, fitness, stress levels, daily physical or mental activity, and a host of other varying factors. For most adults, six to eight hours of sleep is enough. However, if we’re unhealthy, fighting an infection or disease, or doing stressful or physically taxing work, we may need more.
Everyone is different so you may need to do some experimenting to know what’s best for you. If you’re living a healthy lifestyle and generally in good health yet wake up feeling tired or tire quickly during the day, then it’s possible you need more sleep. But if you wake up after a solid eight to nine hours of sleep feeling like you need more, it’s likely you are sleeping too much.
Once you find what works best for you, maintaining a similar bedtime every night and waking up at the same time every morning will help you get the quality sleep you need to feel refreshed and ready for the day.
