What Is Sleep Hygiene? Why is it important?
What Is Sleep Hygiene? Why is Sleep Hygiene Important?
Sleep
What is Sleep Hygiene? Why is it important?
Updated 4/2025 to provide resource links
Why Sleep HygienE Should Be Part of Your Self-Care Routine
Sleep is more than just rest—it's a key part of self-care and mental wellness. A year ago I was honored to co-facilitate a presentation where I covered sleep hygiene as a form of self-care at the NYSBOTC's Inaugural Virtual Conference themed Ubuntu ( translated I am because we are). In this post, I’m sharing the top takeaways and practical tips to help you build healthier sleep habits and improve your overall well-being.
Sleep hygiene is the practice or habits to promote sleeping well and sleeping regularly.
I can’t provide the entire presentation in this blog article but I’ll be happy to share a few tips that resonated with many attendees.
What Is Sleep Hygiene?
Sleep hygiene is the practice or habits to promote sleeping well and sleeping regularly.
Normally when the term hygiene is used it is not normally associated with sleep.
Why Is Sleep Important for Mental Health?
Sleep hygiene is important because it is a fundamental need for us to function. Getting sufficient rest impacts our emotional state. It also assists our body with resting while allowing our cells to reproduce and function efficiently.
On a more personal level, when I don’t get enough sleep, it impacts my ability to process information to perform my job well. Or I may become easily frustrated which can lead to lashing out to those whom I care about. Can you relate?
Sleep Hygiene appears to be an ongoing issue as statistics show that 1/3 of all adults have significant sleep complaints.
Here are three areas you may need to reevaluate and see if there is any room to improve your sleep hygiene.
statistics show that 1/3 of all adults have significant sleep complaints.
3 Tips For Better Rest
1) Nutrition
Nutrition can play a major role in our sleep hygiene. For instance, stimulant foods like (caffeine and sugar) can lead to an inability to sleep well. It can also reduce our ability to be productive.
Remember those goals you were hoping to accomplish yesterday? Did you accomplish them? If not, take a look back at what you consumed. If you’ve consumed stimulant foods recently and were not as productive as you’d had hoped, it may be due to experiencing a crash from stimulant foods and beverages. This section is only a small part as to why nutrition can be beneficial to your mental health. To learn more, be sure to view a previous article that provides tips to start living a life of less processed foods.
Pro tip: Try reducing caffeine after noon, and explore mood-boosting, nutrient-dense foods to support rest.
Explore more: Mood-Boosting Foods eCookbook
2) Physical Activity
Physical activity is a low-cost way to promote sleep. Research indicates that there is a bidirectional relationship between a person’s ability to sleep and their exercise routine. This means that those who exercise see improvement in their sleep, those who sleep see improvement in their energy to exercise.
Pro tip: Aim for at least 20–30 minutes of physical activity during the day to help your body regulate its sleep-wake cycle.
Sleep Tips Infographic
Pin graphic for easy future reference.
Try these practices to wind down and prepare for deeper, more restorative sleep.
3) Concentration
Sleep deprivation and poor sleep quality are associated with high levels of stress. Research shows individuals who obtain less sleep also have difficulty with concentrating. Addition, these same individuals are quicker to respond more negatively and have a low stress tolerance threshold.
Pro tip: Notice how your concentration shifts after a night of good sleep. Prioritize rest as a strategy for mental clarity and productivity—not just relaxation.
Want tools to support better sleep and focus? Discover calming affirmation pillows, printable sleep trackers, and worksheets to help wind down. Explore our Sleep & Self-Care Products
Summary
In summary, sleep hygiene is a way to incorporate habits into your life to obtain sufficient sleep. Research shows that one third of all adults reported concerns with their sleep pattern. Sleep hygiene is important as it helps us to function, it also assists in our mental health and physical health. Three tips to address sleep hygiene is to explore your nutritional intake as some foods can be highly stimulating, incorporating physical activity that has a bidirectional relationship with sleep and lastly, improving your ability to concentrate can help improve your tolerance to difficult situations throughout your day.
Looking for other ways to improve your sleep naturally?
If you're ready to explore more tools, routines, and holistic habits that promote rest, check out our related wellness resources:
Worthy of Royalty: Self-Care Card Deck
Inside, you’ll find 52 low-cost, 15-minute self-care techniques—including those that support better sleep and mental wellness.
And if you're a business leader looking to support your staff’s mental health and wellness, I offer workplace wellness workshops focused on topics like sleep hygiene, stress reduction, and emotional resilience. Complete my Speaker Booking Form to bring this message to your team.
Share your Sleep Tips:
What have you noticed about your sleep patterns? Have you found anything that helps improve your sleep hygiene? I’d love to read your helpful sleep hygiene tips in the comments below.
Struggling with sleep?
If sleep challenges are impacting your mental health, you don’t have to navigate it alone.
I offer in-person and virtual therapy services to individuals in Michigan, New Jersey and Vermont that integrate sleep, nutrition, and emotional wellness. Book an intake session and let’s build a plan tailored to your needs.
Written By: Reynelda Jones, LMSW-C
CEO and Lead Therapist at A Solution B
If you're in need of working through some issues and feel you would benefit from a holistic therapeutic approach, Contact me today for a session.
Join my Facebook Community, The Wellness Solution: Mind. Body. Home . The Wellness Solution community is open to women who seek wellness using holistic approaches by taking steps to address their mind, body, and home. In this group, members ask and answer questions, encourage, and support one another.
Subscribe to Reynelda’s YouTube channel here.
To learn more about A Solution B, LLC click here
Book an appointment here I like it, I love it, Gotta have it
You’re welcome to join me and many others in The Wellness Solution Facebook Community
Connect with us
Subscribe to this blog
Alotaibi, A. D., Alosaimi, F. M., Alajlan, A. A., & Bin Abdulrahman, K. A. (2020). The relationship between sleep quality, stress, and academic performance among medical students. Journal of family & community medicine, 27(1), 23–28. https://doi.org/10.4103/jfcm.JFCM_132_19
Jones, R. A. (2020, February 24). 6 Simple Habits to Improve Your Sleep Naturally [web log]. Retrieved June 7, 2022, from https://www.asolutionb.com/chat-trap-blog/ways-to-improve-your-sleep.
Zhao, M., Tuo, H., Wang, S., & Zhao, L. (2020). The Effects of Dietary Nutrition on Sleep and Sleep Disorders. Mediators of inflammation, 2020, 3142874. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/3142874
DISCLAIMER FOR A SOLUTION B, LLC
The Website may discuss topics related to health, fitness, nutrition or medicine. This information should not be treated as medical advice. This blog does not substitute face-to-face medical or therapeutic services. If you require any more information or have any questions about our site's disclaimer, please feel free to contact us by email at asolutionb@gmail.com
DISCLAIMERS FOR A SOLUTION B
All the information on this website - https://www.ASolutionB.Com - is published in good faith and for general information purpose only. A Solution B does not make any warranties about the completeness, reliability and accuracy of this information. Any action you take upon the information you find on this website (A Solution B), is strictly at your own risk. A Solution B will not be liable for any losses and/or damages in connection with the use of our website. Our Disclaimer was generated with the help of the Disclaimer Generator and the Disclaimer Generator.
From our website, you can visit other websites by following hyperlinks to such external sites. While we strive to provide only quality links to useful and ethical websites, we have no control over the content and nature of these sites. These links to other websites do not imply a recommendation for all the content found on these sites. Site owners and content may change without notice and may occur before we have the opportunity to remove a link which may have gone 'bad'.
Please be also aware that when you leave our website, other sites may have different privacy policies and terms which are beyond our control. Please be sure to check the Privacy Policies of these sites as well as their "Terms of Service" before engaging in any business or uploading any information.
CONSENT
By using our website, you hereby consent to our disclaimer and agree to its terms.
UPDATE
Should we update, amend or make any changes to this document, those changes will be prominently posted here.
Let’s Connects
Shop Products
Related Articles
