A national sleep foundation survey found that a full 72 percent of women wake up feeling unrefreshed at least a few times a month. This habit can impact your life.
1. Avoid too much sugar in the morning
I love taking my coffee black with lots of sugar in the morning, but eating too much sugar in the morning only kept me high for a few hours. One day I fell asleep while waiting for my daughter’s doctor to enter the room. It felt like the best 10 minutes of my life! I have been using less sugar in my coffee since then, and it seems to be working.
2. Cut back on coffee
What? What do you mean cut back on coffee? I love coffee a little to much. I really looked forward to drinking coffee every morning after after I quit night shift. I thought I was going to be able to drink all the coffee that I want in the morning and sleep like a baby at night. Nope. I was wrong. Drinking strong black coffee in the morning kept me up until one in the morning, sometimes two. And sleeping late at night almost always leads to low performance during the day. Adding two or three creamers to my coffee does the trick now. But I am only trying that until my body gets back to its regular schedule. I will go back to black coffee every other day when I feel better.
3. Up your B Vitamins and drink green tea
My friend studied biology and she calls vitamin B12 the feel good vitamin. And to tell you the truth, I feel cranky without these supplements. I suffer from megaloblastic anemia, which makes me tired and weak. That’s why I take B12 supplements to help keep me going during the day. I also take folic acid to help with my anemia, and green tea because it does not contain as much caffeine as coffee.
4. Pack up some minty gums
If you want to stimulate your facial muscles and increase blood flow to your head, which in plain English means staying awake, chew some mint or cinnamon gums. I actually learned this trick when I was working third shift. I used to chew cinnamon gums to stay awake. This trick also worked when I was driving home from work in the morning.
When you feel tired during the day, energy drinks don’t help much. Instead, some of them can leave you feeling jittery and unable to fall asleep later. Try to cut back on caffeine and create a sleeping pattern for yourself. It may not work right away, but you will feel better in the long run.
