Sleep is the fuel of function and is a need we cannot live without. It is physically and emotionally restorative, and it positively impacts our energy, our mood and our immune system - so it’s definitely something we need to pay attention to!

Sleep is a natural phenomenon and we all start off knowing how to do it well. But then the world found a way to stay awake for longer, and combined with difficult life events, the result is a challenge to switch-off and get proper rest.

Sleep and your thinking

Initially, stress, worry or low mood resulting from difficult times can disrupt sleep through adrenaline production and emotional arousal at night, a time we should otherwise be calm and safe. This happens because our brains can’t tell the difference between ‘what is real’ and ‘what is imagined’ when responding to threats, so our thoughts trigger the stress response.

Quite often if a sleep problem persists, we start to worry about the added negative impact of the reduced sleep. Thoughts can arise such as, “I won’t be able to cope tomorrow”, or “I’m going to get ill if I don’t sleep enough”. Sadly, these negative thoughts maintain sleep problems, and only through changing our behaviour can we come out of the vicious cycle.

Tip: Try to spot if you have negative thoughts about sleep and see if you can generate more balanced ways of thinking about it. For example, “I won’t feel great tomorrow but I’ll get through the day and I’ll follow some sleep hygiene advice over the next week”.

Sleep and your behaviour

When we have trouble sleeping, we may do things like take in more coffee to keep awake the next day, drink alcohol before bed to relax or rely on sleeping pills to drift off. And because we’re tired, we stop exercising, or sleep too long on certain days. Add to this unhelpful bedtime routines like picking up your phone or watching TV at night. Even if we think it’s helping, unfortunately they just add to stimulation at the wrong time of day, making it more likely you’ll be kept awake at night.

Top tip: Write a list of what it is you do to counteract tiredness and whether you think this is helping or hurting the vicious cycle. Check out these Top 15 Sleep Hygiene Tips to make sure your sleep environment is the best it can be.

Sleep and blue light

Did you know that the blue light that fills our evenings actually changes your circadian sleep/wake pattern? Many of us have our eyeballs glued to blue light emitters (like smartphones, ipads, computers and LED Smart TVs). It’s great to get blue light during the day as it increases attention, reaction times and mood, but at night we don’t want this. Most importantly, it suppresses the production of the sleep hormone melatonin, delaying sleep onset and shifting the body’s biological clock backwards!

Top tip: To counteract blue light in the evening, try some blue light blocking glasses, and install an app on your phone that filters blue/green wavelength at night. Or, just switch off screens 2 hours before bedtime!

Sleep and the clock change

The clocks change at the end of this month and we lose an hour. It’s worth knowing that when the clocks ‘spring forward’, there is a 6% increase in workplace injuries and car accidents, as it can take up to 3 days for your body to reset. If you’re having trouble sleeping it can feel frustrating to lose another hour, but try to be grateful for the extra light in the evening and what you can use that for instead.

Top tip: Prepare your mind and body for the impending time change so it’s not a shock. Mostly, make sure you change all your clocks to the new time before you go to sleep as research shows this is the best thing you can do.

Top tip: The longer you are awake, the more a chemical called adenosine builds in your brain, sending signals that increase your desire for sleep. After 16 hours awake, your body will feel a natural pressure to sleep, regardless of the time.