I walk the school hallways seeing sleep deprived zombies passing me in all directions; tired eyes, shuffling feet, blankets acting as a shield from the bright light of outside world.  How did we get this way?  High school, man, it messes with you.  As the year moves forward, we have to make a conscious effort to get more sleep.  We need a full seven to nine hours of sleep to feel our best. Sleep improves your concentration, betters memory, helps support growth and development, spurs creativity, and much, much more.  Your body needs sleep in order to function properly! For a deep night’s sleep, try following these simple evening tweaks and prepare to wake up well and rested.

1. Watch what you eat before bedtime.  Eating heavy meals, drinking too much liquid, and devouring sweets before you try to doze off is wrecking your sleep cycle.  Not only does it hinder your sleep, but you wake up feeling groggy and full. Who wants to start the day like that?
2. Step away from the cell phone! It’s incredibly hard to disconnect yourself when it’s pretty much an unspoken rule of the 21st century to always have a phone within your reach, but your body (and sleep)  will thank you. When you use technology before bedtime, you are distracted from your number one goal: slumber. Putting the cell phone down will improve the quality of your sleep, reduce stress, and improve your daytime attention span.
3. Keep your room the perfect temperature.  No one can sleep in an icebox of a room, and no one can sleep in a sauna.  Plain and simple.  Keeping your room between 60 and 67 degrees is prime for deep sleep.  
4. Have a routine. Try treating your transition to bed as a ritual.  Take a shower, brush your teeth, read a book, then hit the hay. By doing the same things every night, your mind will know it is time to relax, which will make falling asleep that much easier. No more tossing and turning!
5. Reflect on the day.  This is something you can do in your mind while lying in bed, or in a notebook before you settle down for the night.  By putting your thoughts on paper, you are clearing your mind to prep for sleep.  When you are ready for slumber, there is nothing else to focus on!  

Peaceful sleeping!