I remember when I was trying to get up the courage to first start my business – I was watching people like Gary V on youtube and noticed how he would brag about how little sleep he was running on. It certainly inspired me to work more and sleep less until  I noticed how much it was affecting my productivity (not to mention the mood swings, yikes).

It’s not about how much you sleep, it’s what you do while you’re awake.

Throughout the years, I’ve been obsessed with getting not just more sleep but better quality of sleep – especially after reading the book Why We Sleep. 

I have 3 top hacks I want to share with you. 

Mouth taping

Taping yo mouth! Yes, it’s exactly how it sounds – taping your mouth shut at night. I know what you’re thinking: wtf, won’t that suffocate me? Nope! You’ve got your nose silly! That’s the whole point! When you can’t breathe through your mouth, you will breathe through your nose. 

It seems like a minimal change, but the health benefits are significant. “Nasal breathing increases nitric oxide production in the sinuses, which has been linked to reduced inflammation, improved sleep, improved memory, and an overall increase in immune system function,“ explains Mark Burhenne, DDS, a family and sleep medicine dentist. “When you breathe mainly through the nose, you wake up feeling more rested, without a dry mouth or a sore throat.”

I’ve been doing it for over a month now and WOW, it makes such a huge difference.

I buy Somnifix on Amazon, you could also easily use/get surgical tape.

Use Night Shift on Your iPhone

In general, you don’t want to be on your phone close to bed time but if you are… insert night time mode on your phone. Smartphone screens emit bright blue light that confuses your brain at night because it mimics the brightness of the sun. This causes the brain to stop producing melatonin, a hormone that gives your body the “time to sleep” cues. Because of this, smartphone light can disrupt your sleep cycle, making it harder to fall and stay asleep.

If you’re not sure how to turn on night shift on your phone, here’s a demo.

Meditation

As an entrepreneur, you’re going to naturally have a million thoughts running through your mind in any given day – whether it’s your list of to-do’s or new ideas you’re excited about. I get it!

Our mind’s tendency to get caught up in thoughts is strongest at bedtime, when we suddenly stop and are still. Meditation for sleep allows us to let go of the day—everything that’s happened and everything that’s been said — so that we can rest the mind while simultaneously resting the body. In scientific terms, meditation helps lower the heart rate by igniting the parasympathetic nervous system and encouraging slower breathing, which increases the quality of your sleep. If you’re new to meditation, I recommend trialing out an app like Headspace to help get you into the flow.

As always, I’d love to hear from you over on Instagram @bri_berner if you found this helpful!