Setting up your ideal bedtime routine could mean a lot of different things to different people, depending on many life contexts. While people in new relationships might instantly think about the best mattress for sex, exhausted new moms might see it differently.
Whichever way works for the individual, there are some things that we can think about to improve our bedtime routines. For our present purposes, let’s assume that the perfect bedtime routine is one that is most beneficial for our general rest and wellbeing.
Routine Itself is Healthy
It may not sound very exciting or cool, but the evidence on the issue is indisputable: we humans thrive in routine. This is true in both psychological and biological senses, with routine impacting both our minds and our bodies.
Not only is it comforting mentally to know what is happening now and what will happen a little later, but even our organs perform different functions at different times. For example, your liver does specific tasks only while you sleep.
Called “circadian rhythmicity”, this cyclical aspect of the functioning of your body has been well-known in the scientific community for decades now but is less widely understood by us, laypersons.
Yes, Sex is About Wellbeing Too!
Given that it’s often portrayed solely as a semi-gymnastic activity, not that many people think about sex as a form of relaxation and calm. Surprisingly, though, that’s exactly the effect it has on our wellbeing in general.
The evidence strongly suggests that sex has wellbeing benefits right across the board, from improving sleep quality to lowering blood pressure and stress. It’s even been heralded as a treatment for asthma and other chronic conditions.
Essentially, what we’re saying here is that you should include sex in your nightly bedtime routine as often as you want! The idea that it could leave you tired or disturb your sleep is just plain nonsense.
Winding Down
In our million-mile-an-hour world, there’s a tendency to rush around right up until the very point of hitting the sack. Folks are busy, so it’s easy to understand why, but this is actually pretty bad practice in terms of our wellbeing.
Those who practice the meditative arts will know that restfulness requires a little time to kick in, and there’s no way to force it. Winding down is a really good idea, whether it’s in the form of meditation itself or just by switching off from the world for a while.
It’s becoming more apparent to many how our devices have intruded into our routines over the past decades, and we’re beginning to see how this has negative effects on us too. It might be a good idea to set aside half an hour of device-free time before bed.
Last Word
There are no panacea fixes for our bedtime routines because people have unique ways of being in the world. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t some basic practices that are broadly beneficial and encourage wellbeing in us.
We ought to like our patterns and mold them to our particular ways and desires, meaning that we can try new things as well! As the old saying goes, “whatever works!”