Here's What to Do If You Wake Up in the Middle of the Night and Can't Get Back to Sleep, According to This Expert

The sleep of the French is deteriorating year by year ;ée in year. However, there are tips to limit the risk of insomnia.

Sleep is declining in France, both in terms of quantity and quality. In recent years, more than one in two French people say they sleep poorly and 8 out of 10 say they wake up at least once each night. On average, these interruptions last 39 minutes, during which time, we don't really know what to do to get back to sleep. For sleep specialist Biquan Luo, there are several ways to avoid these insomnias and reduce this time of involuntary awakening.

First, try to stay calm. Dr. Luo recommends using relaxation methods such as breathing exercises or listening to white noise, such as rain or waves, to mask surrounding noise. Staying in bed when you wake up unexpectedly is not always a good idea, especially when you can't fall asleep. By staying under the covers without sleeping, your brain will assimilate the idea that the bed is no longer associated with to sleep but rather to passive waiting, which risks being counterproductive, and ultimately causing new sleep problems.

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Similarly, the specialist recommends not checking your phone, even to check the time. Once again, the information sent to the brain could cause stress that is particularly harmful to getting back to sleep. Worse still, notifications and applications are particularly stimulating for the brain. The same goes for the famous blue light emitted by screens, which according to a study by the National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance, slows down the production of melatonin, the sleep hormone.

The best technique to fall back asleep is “positive visualization”, which consists of focusing on a positive image (a feeling, a memory or an emotion) to reduce stress. To do this, the best thing is to lie comfortably on your back, breathe in slowly through your nose while inflating your stomach, then deflate it by blowing out through your mouth for a long time. All while concentrating “consciously” on your body. This method allows you to gradually relax your muscles, from the top of your skull to the tips of your feet, until you feel a completely soft and heavy body.

Finally, it is less obvious but it is, according to the expert, essential to understand your circadian cycle (biological clock). You must be able to identify the times when sleep is felt because it is a request for rest on the part of the body. The best way to sleep properly is therefore to align your sleep hours with your internal clock. To be in symbiosis with your circadian cycle, there are several little tips to know: wake up at the same time, adapt your meal times, have regular physical activity, control your exposure to light or avoid stimulants (coffee, tea, dark chocolate) and alcohol.

Circadian cycle disruption can come from many things such as jet lag, split work hours, anxiety, chronic illnesses, sleep disorders or lack of exposure to daylight. Not to mention stress, summer anxiety, eating too rich, etc.