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  Getting Better Quality Sleep

Sleep expert and best-selling author James B. Maas, Ph.D., offers some insights on getting quality sleep while creating the ideal sleep environment.

Dr. Maas is the author of the New York Times best seller Power Sleep: The Revolutionary Program That Prepares Your Mind for Peak Performance. His most recent book, Remmy and the Brain Train, is an award-winning children's bedtime story about the need for sleep. Dr. Maas makes frequent television appearances on such programs as "Today," "Primetime Live," "Good Morning America," "Regis and Kelly," "The View," "20/20," and "Oprah."


1. Get an adequate amount of sleep every night.
Identify the amount of sleep that you need to be fully alert all day long, and get that amount every night. At minimum, most people need to obtain at least sixty to ninety minutes more sleep than they presently get.

2. Establish a regular sleep schedule.
Go to bed at the same time every night and wake up without an alarm clock at the same time every morning, including weekends. Do not try to catch up on lost weekday sleep by sleeping in on the weekends. If you sleep late on Sunday, you won't fall asleep at your regular bedtime that night, and your internal clock will be off: you will be sleepy when it's time to be refreshed and alert. Your brain does not have a different biological clock for weekdays and weekends.

3. Prepare your body for sleep.
Doing the following may help you sleep better during the night:
  • Reduce your caffeine intake.
  • Avoid alcohol near bedtime.
  • Take a warm bath before bed.
  • Limit usage of the TV/computer in the bedroom.
4. Get continuous sleep.
For sleep to be rejuvenating, you should get your required amount of sleep in one continuous block. Six hours of good, solid sleep is often more restorative than eight hours of poor, fragmented sleep. Don't allow yourself to doze on and off for many hours.

5. Make up for lost sleep.
Pay back your sleep debt in a timely fashion. Make up for any lost sleep as soon as possible. Sleep loss is cumulative. If you lose several hours on a given night, you will become more and more sleepy in the ensuing days, even though you get your "normal" sleep, so pay back your sleep debt. But remember: you cannot replace lost sleep at once. When you sleep longer to catch up, try to do so by going to bed earlier than usual. You cannot make up for large sleep losses during the week by sleeping in on the weekends. A nap during the day can help you pay back your sleep debt. The important rule is to return to your regular sleep schedule as soon as possible.

Dr. Maas: Tips for Creating an Ideal Sleep Environment

1) Make sure that your bedroom is an easy place to fall asleep and stay asleep. Keep your bedroom quiet. Dripping faucets, noisy radiators, sirens, barking dogs, loud stereos and late-night revelers are common rest inhibitors. If sounds cannot be eliminated altogether, you can create a soothing atmosphere by setting the tuner of your FM radio between any two stations. The pseudo white noise will mask unwanted sounds and promote sleep.

2) Too much light can contribute to sleeplessness. Using dark fabric to block windows or the rim of a door can significantly reduce the amount of light leaking into the bedroom. Eyeshades can also do the trick.    Be particularly careful to remove any light from computer screens  or cell phones because the bluish light can upset your body clock and disturb sleep patterns. 

3) The ideal temperature for sleeping is 65 degrees Fahrenheit. A hot bedroom or too many blankets or bedclothes may disturb sleep and even induce nightmares. A cold room can be just as disruptive as you'll wake up shivering.

4) An ideal relative humidity level for the bedroom is between 60 and 70 percent. You may want to buy a humidifier or a dehumidifier depending on your needs.

5) An extra lock on the front door might make all the difference in how secure you feel at night. So too might another smoke alarm. As part of your nightly bedtime ritual, check the door locks and close the window.

6) Hide illuminated clocks to avoid clock-watching during the night, which can lead to anxiety or sleeplessness.

7) Decorate your bedroom in colors that you associate with feelings of peace and ease. For example, many people choose blues or greens because it reminds them of the ocean or a park. Keep the bedroom clean and free of clutter. Piles of clothes, reports and bills induce feelings of stress. Paintings of pastoral scenes, photographs from enjoyed vacations and portraits of family members can create a peaceful ambiance for rest.

8) Try to wear loose-fitting, soft nightclothes.

9) The key for bed sheets is clean, cool and comfortably soft. Popular bed sheet materials are cotton, linen and polyester fabrics. Cotton is the most popular fiber for bed sheets and is used either alone or paired with linen, silk or polyester. They are absorbent and become even more comfortable over time. For superior quality, you might want to try linen sheets, which are ideally suited for hot climates because of their light weight and cooling effect. Also, consider the color of your sheets. For soothing sleep, you might want white or pastels or soft designs like florals, paisleys or light colored, striped sheets.