We know Band-Aids don’t fix bad nights of sleep, but there are things you can do the day after to “stem the flow” and make a shitty day better.
For professional advice, we tapped Jade Wu, sleep expert for Hatch, and sleep expert Alanna McGinn.
Here are the dos and don’ts after a shitty night’s sleep.
“Get lots of light exposure, ideally by going outside. Light is the strongest force for resetting our biological clocks, and getting a lot of it during the day helps mitigate the detrimental effects that evening light exposure can have on sleep,” says Jade.
“Exposing yourself to the sun’s natural light helps promote wakefulness, and moving your body gets your adrenaline flowing and stimulates alertness in your brain,” Alanna adds.
Which brings us to …
We know. We know. It’s not what we wanna hear either. Jade says you “don’t want to have a very sedentary day to ‘rest’ after your bad night of sleep because physical activity is one of the best things you can do for your sleep.
“Go easy on yourself though. This is not the day to do a HIIT class or go for a vigorous jog. Even something as light as a walk or light stretching can get your body moving enough to help you feel more awake,” says Alanna.
Take a hot girl walk outside, and you’ve already crossed two things off this list.
DO: Be mindful of what you eat.
“When you don’t sleep well, you’re more likely (consciously or not) to reach for saturated fats and simple sugars. Eating more and eating later than usual can, in turn, make it harder to get good-quality sleep. Try to stick to a balanced diet at your regular meal times,” says Jade.
DO: Use caffeine, but in moderation.
“Many of us turn to caffeine when we need that energy boost and it can be helpful in getting us through the day when we haven’t had a good night of sleep,” Alanna says. “But it doesn’t mean chugging an entire pot of coffee before lunchtime. Two cups of coffee will be able to give you the alertness that you are seeking. Anything more than that could leave you feeling jittery all day.”
DON’T: Sleep in or hit snooze.
“While sleeping in in the morning may seem like a good idea because you’re tired, stick to waking up at your normal time to help build a strong drive for sleep at night. Sticking to consistent sleep patterns will help keep your body’s natural clock in sync,” says Alanna.
“Trust me, those extra nine minutes aren’t going to make you feel more rested, and they won’t give you the restorative sleep you need,” she adds. “Instead, set your alarm for the absolute latest you would need to wake up, and when it goes off, get out of bed and start getting yourself together for the day.”
“Today is the day to simplify your normal. It’s not the day to make big decisions or take on huge projects. It’s okay to lighten your load but still get your job done. Write out a list starting with the hardest task and ending with one or two that could be moved to the next day. As the day goes on, cross off each goal, and what is left can easily be shifted to tomorrow,” Alanna says.
DON’T: Fret so much about it.
“Don’t fret too much about the sleep loss or blame all your problems on sleep. It’s certainly useful to have a come-to-Jesus moment if you routinely have unhelpful sleep habits. But if it’s an occasional bad night, know that this is normal and okay,” says Jade. “Our bodies are resilient and flexible, so it’s not like an occasional deviation from our sleep-wake schedule will make a dent in our overall health. Sometimes, over-worrying about sleep will paradoxically put you into a worse sleep pattern,” says Jade.
“It’s okay to have a bad night of sleep, and it’s important for people to know that. Going into the next day worried about how much sleep you lost could result in weakening a positive association between sleep and your bed because you’ll head into the next night worried you won’t sleep well again. That can amplify any sleep issues you may be having.
“Sleep deprivation does not mean you have insomnia. Careful of the labels. They can only heighten your stress of not sleeping and contribute to more nights of bad sleep. So, brush off your bad night of sleep as just that. One bad night of sleep,” says Alanna.
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