Best Apps for Fixing an Irregular Sleep Schedule

To change your sleeping patterns, you first need to understand them. We usually find ourselves able to sleep better when we stick to a routine, which means going to bed at roughly the same time each day. If you find that this is something you’re not doing, it may be time to start doing so. A good rule of thumb is that eight hours of sleep is a minimum, so if you need to be up at a particular time in the morning, count back from that and stick to it. Another step is to cut out technology at least an hour before bed. The blue light in digital screens isn’t helpful and tricks your brain into staying awake. Instead, consider more relaxing activities, such as reading or light meditation. 

It’s also a good idea to track your sleep, so you can better understand where you might be struggling. A solid tracking app in this space is SleepScore, which uses your phone’s microphone and speaker functionality to record your breathing patterns and analyze your sleep. Each morning, you’ll see a report breaking down the quality of sleep, how long it took you to fall asleep and where you could make improvements. By using an approach based on science, you’re giving yourself the tools to improve such an important function. You’ll probably find yourself enjoying life more from day to day, simply because better sleep allows us to thrive when we’re awake, instead of feeling tired all the time. 

There’s also plenty you can do to aid your sleeping patterns throughout the day. When it comes to our overall health, certain things can hinder our sleep and several aspects which can help. One significant factor is alcohol. While it may give us a good feeling in moderation, it can also massively disrupt our sleep. Our blood pressure and heart rate become elevated. We’re often bloated and probably need to go to the toilet during the night at least once. Our overall levels of fitness play a part too. Not only does exercise tire us out in a good way, but it also improves breathing and heart functionality, so they are more at ease during sleep. Even the most minor improvements in our health and fitness can flow through into our rest, which will then give us more energy for the following day. It’s a positive cycle!