If you go from full speed straight to “sleep now,” your body won’t keep up. A wind-down routine gives it a runway. Do the same steps in the same order each night, and within a week or two your brain starts treating them as the signal that sleep is coming.
90 minutes before bed
- Dim the lights. Swap bright overhead lights for lamps.
- Finish eating. Aim for your last proper meal two to three hours before bed. On late dinner nights, keep it light.
- Stop caffeine by mid-afternoon, including karak and cola.
60 minutes before
- Charge your phone outside the bedroom. It’s the hardest step and the one that makes the biggest difference.
- Do a brain dump. Write down tomorrow’s tasks and anything on your mind so it stops looping in your head. Keep a journal by the bed.
- Tidy one small thing, like your bedside table, for a sense of closure.
30 minutes before
- Take a warm shower. Your body temperature drops when you step out, which helps signal sleep.
- Cool the room. Set the AC a little cooler than during the day.
- Sip something caffeine-free, like chamomile or warm milk.
- Use scent. A spritz of lavender pillow spray, every night, becomes another cue.
Lights out
- Make it dark. An eye mask blocks streetlights and early sunrise. A lavender eye pillow adds a calming weight.
- Read a paper book for ten pages.
- Breathe 4-7-8: in for 4, hold for 7, out for 8. Repeat four times.
Still awake?
After about 20 minutes, get up. Go somewhere dim and do something quiet until you feel sleepy, then try again. Lying in bed frustrated teaches your brain that bed is for worrying.
The rule that matters most
Wake up at the same time every day, including Fridays. A steady wake-up time does more for your sleep than anything else on this list.
Don’t try everything at once. Pick three steps, stick with them for two weeks, then add more. If poor sleep lasts for weeks, or you snore loudly and wake up exhausted, speak to a doctor.
Find everything for your evening routine in our Sleep collection.
