5 things that help me stay asleep all night and stop waking up

While it’s normal to wake up in the night as we cycle through different stages of sleep, usually it’s so brief we’ll barely remember it. However, if you’re waking up frequently and staring at the ceiling for more than a few minutes, your sleep is likely suffering.

And that was me for years. Whether it was a nightmare, a racing heart or my partner snoring, waking up for long periods of time were the norm. This led to sleepy mornings, gruelling days and perpetual brain fog.

But since focusing more of my attention on what was keeping me awake, I’ve figured out the five things that actually help me sleep through the night.

Why I was waking up at night

The first step in finding a solution for my disturbed sleep was to figure out why I was waking up in the first place. I analysed my daytime habits and nighttime routine to find out what was impacting me. Turns out, my sleep hygiene wasn’t the greatest.

Social jet lag was one of the biggest culprits. Late night partying at the weekend meant my circadian rhythm (internal body clock) was completely out of whack when the week started.

Next up was a snoring husband and a loud city-center flat. Even if I fell asleep quickly, I was inevitably woken by the grating sound of snoring or shouting outside my window.

Finally, a small apartment meant I often worked from my bed, watched TV in bed and scrolled relentlessly on my phone… in bed. The result? Absolutely no association between my bedroom and sleep. Plus, the nighttime scrolling made my anxiety skyrocket — not exactly conducive to a good night’s rest.

The 5 things that help me sleep through the night

Admittedly, sorting my sleep out took some trial and error. After all, what works for some people doesn’t work for others. We’re all different. But now I’m enjoying undisturbed rest most nights. Waking up for long periods is certainly a thing of the past. Here’s how I did it.

1. Good earplugs

It sounds obvious, but a pair of good earplugs has revolutionized my sleep. I used to battle with cheap foam earplugs before, and between them falling out, irritating my ears or just being impossible to fit, they weren’t exactly helping me sleep.

I tried Loop earplugs first and was impressed by the difference. Easy to fit, soft silicone and decent noise blocking meant my sleep improved quickly. But I still found that they fell out occasionally.

Then I tried a competitor: Alpine Silence Earplugs. The arrow shape meant they fit snug and didn’t move throughout the night. Plus, the noise blocking almost matched my industrial foam models. Nothing woke me up. Was my husband still snoring? No idea! Was the nightclub next door still partying? Beats me.

2. Black-out sleep mask

Even though I never found light to be a problem with my sleep, I thought I’d give a sleep mask a go and I was so thankful I did.

It wasn’t even about blocking out light for me. Instead, it meant I didn’t have an option to stare at the ceiling, thinking. I was forced to keep my eyes closed, and when paired with the earplugs, the sensory deprivation meant my brain just switched off.

This meant because my brain wasn’t stimulated by anything I saw (like phone messages), even when I did wake up I fell back asleep quickly

3. A consistent sleep schedule

A consistent sleep schedule has been absolutely instrumental in improving my sleep and overall wellbeing, and it’s something I completely underestimated before.

Our circadian rhythm is determined by the release sleep hormones like melatonin and cortisol. But without regular sleep and wake times, our hormones become unregulated, meaning we can get energy dips and peaks at the wrong time (like in the middle of the night).

Now I go to sleep and wake up at the same time every night and morning, I fall asleep fast and sleep through the night. I wake feeling well rested and don’t start to feel sleepy until evening arrives.

Admittedly, my schedule changes a little at the weekend (I’m still in my 20s, I’ve got to have fun), but only by a couple of hours.

4. A calming nighttime routine

Before, my nighttime routine consisted of late-night snacking, watching reality TV and scrolling on my phone (I know, horrendous.)

Little did I know that this much stimulation was wreaking havoc with my sleep. Kickstarting my digestive system right before bed meant my blood sugar levels were spiking at night, waking me up and affecting my energy levels.

Reading the news or scrolling through troubling Instagram videos meant my anxiety and cortisol levels increased — leading to nighttime wake ups.

So I made some big changes. First, I tried intermittent fasting. That means eating only within an eight hour period and fasting for 16 hours. Basically, no snacks after dinner — and that helped a lot.

Next, I swapped my evening binge-watching session for a long bath and book. Relaxing my mind and muscles worked wonders for nighttime anxiety.

Then I did a whip round of my bedroom, creating a nice space to relax in and got everything I needed for the next day ready and packed. This was the step that helped most with nighttime anxiety. A clean, uncluttered, tidy room keeps a clear head!

5. The right mattress

While I don’t think I was necessarily waking up from discomfort, I was tossing and turning a lot on my old mattress. It was a budget innerspring mattress from Ikea, which wasn’t particularly bad, but it just wasn’t suited to my body.

As a side sleeper, this meant I would wake up to a numb arm or pressure in my hips. I could also feel every movement my husband made, and as we have different sleep schedule, that meant waking up when he came to bed hours after I had gone to sleep.

Now, we’re sleeping on a mattress designed to support both side and back sleepers (suiting us both), which means I’m tossing and turning less.

It has excellent motion isolation which means sometimes I don’t even notice when my husband comes to bed. I genuinely see the value now in investing in the best mattress for your sleep style.

Why is sleep hygiene so important?

Ultimately, improving sleep hygiene is one of the most important steps if you find yourself waking up at night or finding it difficult to fall asleep. And it refers to a lot. From your environment to your daytime habits, a lot can impact your sleep.

To improve your own sleep hygiene, assess your lifestyle. Consider the following point

1. Are you eating a healthy, balanced diet? Food has a big impact on our sleep. Not just when we eat, but what we eat. Make sure you’re getting enough vitamins and minerals through your diet, and consider taking supplements if you’re not.
2. Do you use your bedroom just for sleep? Our brains create strong associations with specific places. In order to sleep well night after night, you need to associate your bedroom only with sleep, rather than work.
3. Are your habits or vices making sleep difficult? Habits like smoking, drinking alcohol or consuming too much caffeine (especially in the afternoon) can make falling and staying asleep a challenge.