If you're feeling sleep deprived it can make you grumpy and irritatable, aching for a good sleep in. The health benefits of a good night's sleep are more than just how you feel, sleep lets your mind and body rest, rejuvenate and heal from a busy life.

Unless you’re suffering from a serious sleep disorder, simply improving your daytime habits and creating a good sleep environment can vastly improve your chances at getting a good night’s rest. Take a look at our top tips for falling and staying asleep.

1. Make sleep a priority
In this day and age, sleep is often grossly undervalued, with most of us prioritising everything ahead of it. However, sleep has a myriad of good health benefits and should be looked on as an investment in your health and productivity. So don't feel guilty about going to bed.

2. Create good bedtime habits
While it might feel relaxing to watch a bit of TV, catch up on some paperwork or do a bit of reading while your lying in your comfy bed you should try and do these activities elsewhere so that don’t get yourself trained to associate them with the bedroom. Your bed should be reserved exclusively for sleep and romance.

3. Make your bedroom sleep friendly
To maximize sleep, your room should be quiet, dark and at a comfortable temperature and ventilation. The key to better sleep might be as simple as making some minor changes to your bedroom like drowning out noise with soothing music, or making sure you have a comfortable supportive mattress with room to move.

4. Keep regular hours
Try to go to bed and wake up around the same time each day and it will become gradually easier to fall asleep. However tempting, try not to break the routine on weekends – if you persist your overall sleep will benefit.

5. Cut out caffeine
Caffeine can cause sleep problems anywhere from 10 – 12 hours after its consumption. Hidden in a range of products other than coffee like chocolate, and soft drinks it should be avoided. If you really can’t face life without your caffeine hit though, consider eliminating it after noon.

6. Regular exercise
Regular exercise, aside from many other wonderful health benefits, can help to reduce stress making it easier to fall and stay asleep. However, don't exercise too close to bedtime as this will stimulate the body, making it very difficult to fall asleep.

A few minutes of good stretching or relaxation yoga closer to bedtime, will help to relieve stress, ease your little pains and make your transition into sleep more comfortable… just don’t overdo it.

7. Reduce alcohol
Alcohol reduces overall quality of sleep. While a little nightcap may make you fall asleep faster, it reduces your sleep quality, waking you up later in the night and disrupting your sleep pattern. To avoid this effect, stay away from alcohol in the last few hours before bed.

8. Relax before bed
Part of keeping work separate from our sleeping area means blocking out anxieties, stress and worries, too. They can cause disrupted sleep and nightmares, so try not to think of them prior to bed and avoid activities that may be emotionally upsetting a few hours before you go to bed. A natural sleep aid can be as simple as a nightcap tea or a soothing stretch.

Take some time to relax and unwind before you go to sleep. You may try stretching, relaxation exercises, a hot shower or bath, a soothing massage (both giving and getting massages will reduce stress), meditation, or a glass of hot milk help you to relax and prepare for sleep.

9. Limit late night eating
Eating a heavy meal within two hours of bed can cause poor sleep quality. Try to make dinnertime earlier in the evening, and avoid heavy, rich foods as bedtime snacks.

If a hectic schedule throws out your meal schedule and you need to eat late. The best thing to do is to opt for snacks that dissolve quickly and won’t just sit in the stomach. Some bedtime snacks to help you sleep include a whole-grain, low-sugar cereal or granola with low-fat milk or yogurt.

10. Avoid naps
While short 10 - 15 minute naps mid-afternoon can be refreshing long naps during the day should be avoided as these could make it harder to fall asleep at night. If you need to catch up on lost sleep, you should focus on getting a little more sleep over time, as this is the best way for our body to recover from sleep deprivation and, unlike long naps, will improve the flow of our sleep cycle.

Great Sleep

If you follow these basic tips and make some simple adjustments to your night time behaviour you could be reaping the health and productivity rewards of great sleep in no time.

If you, however, still find that you're having trouble sleeping, you should talk to your doctor as you may have a medical condition that is affecting your sleep that can be helped with professional care.

To the rest of you – good sleeping!

Contributing Writer Alex Brown

Alex is a holiday writer, with a love of languages and a background in economics. Interests in travel, linguistics, fashion news and celebrity trivia.