SWEET DREAMS AND SUCCESS - A GUIDE TO EVENING ROUTINE

It's the end of the day and it's time to put everything aside. Your evening routine is as important for your body and well-being as what you do in the morning. Whatever you do in the few hours before bed can set you up for success the next day.

Twilight time is a beautiful time of relaxation, self-care practices, and rituals before you hit the pillow. The magic hour of PM cannot be called that only because of how the sunset light turns the world into a mesmerizing, fairy-tale spectacle.

It is also a much-needed point of balance between work and play.

The first and most important step towards an evening routine is to establish boundaries between daily work and proper rest.

If you work from home, the end of the working hours can be a bit difficult because your mind insists on finishing the last task, and then the next one and the next one (believe me, I know very well from my own experience how hard it is to get up from the computer and say - that's it for today).

There is no easy way to disconnect, but remember, don't give in and don't allow yourself to become overworked (there is a very fine line between work and overwork).

I can't close your laptop for you, nor can I pull you out of your office chair and then close the door behind you. However, I can provide you with ideas on how to make the transition from AM to PM smooth.

My goal is to help you make your evening routine so irresistible that your hard-working self will have no choice but to join in the sunset fun.

Just to be clear, I'm a huge fan of sunsets, and half of the photos on my phone are from the golden hour. In its way, this is a very magical time. Try to find some free time at this time, go for a walk, observe the beautiful colors of the sky, and celebrate the moment.

And so we move on to the second stage of the evening routine.

If you have difficulty ending your working hours properly, go for a walk in nature (as I mentioned earlier, sunset time is ideal). Closing the house door will simulate leaving the building as if you were normally working at your company's headquarters.

To properly let go of your worries throughout the day, you need to physically leave your workplace. A bit of fresh air will help you take your mind off the to-do list and relax, provided you also disconnect from the phone to be present in the moment.

If you want to start your evening routine the right way, first prepare your home.

Most of us won't be able to relax with a sink full of dirty dishes. But there's more to this story. You need to keep your space tidy to ensure a smooth and easy start the next morning.

So the early stage of your evening routine is designed for:

The right atmosphere is very important for your brain to go into relaxation mode.

Dimming the lights in your home and lighting candles will help you turn off all the neon lights in your head. Let your body slow down a bit. Wrap yourself in a cozy blanket, keep yourself warm and comfortable, and undo all the knots in your mind. If you are the lucky owner of a fireplace, be sure to let it burn. Make your evening as HYGGE as possible thanks to a cozy setting, relaxing music, or an interesting audiobook. Curl up in your favorite armchair and enjoy the moment. You deserved it.

If you've had a particularly stressful day, now is the time to drink chamomile tea. At the same time, it's important not to drink caffeinated drinks too close to bedtime. Studies show that a cup of coffee drunk 6 hours before bedtime can still disrupt sleep.

Additionally, while drinking eight glasses of water throughout the day is essential to maintaining a healthy level of hydration, you may want to reconsider doing so right before bed. Your bladder wants to sleep with you and prefers to avoid frequent visits to the toilet. However, remember to have a full glass on the bedside table.

Finally, although a glass of red is considered healthy with dinner, alcohol has a different effect than sleeping pills in that it can lead to insomnia and sleep apnea. Moderation is key, especially late in the evening.

Any light at night can disrupt your circadian rhythm and put your brain into daytime mode (that's why it's important to keep your bedroom as dark as possible to ensure a good night's sleep). However, artificial blue light has a stronger effect because it hinders the production of melatonin (a hormone that controls the sleep-wake cycle) and may cause damage to the retinas of the eyes.

Using the phone before bed has another dark side, namely the temptation to check messages. And this, my friends, is the fastest way to increase the level of anxiety and stress at night. This, in turn, keeps you up all night long, whether you realize it or not.

Therefore, it is best to postpone watching TV series and films until your day off or early afternoon. When your brain feels happy and energized, it will go on one sleep after another, and you will still have to read it a bedtime story to turn it off, which will only shorten your prescribed 8 hours of sleep.

Since our devices are glued to our hands and screen exposure is at an all-time high, there may be only a few ways to reduce it during the day. However, in the evening our e-mail and WhatsApp excuses stop working. I only ask you to put away all electronics an hour before bed. Leave them alone, they need rest too. They rest comfortably in airplane mode in another room.

You are certainly interested in the question of how to determine the exact moment when you should say goodnight to your phone?

One way to set this boundary is to set a mute alarm. This way you will stop worrying whether you have exhausted your daily dose of entertainment and communication or not.

Another way to let your mind and body know that night is coming is to take a shower or bath. This activity is a strong contender for the most mindful moment in the 24-hour cycle. No distractions, just water, relaxing bath salts, and you with your thoughts (no wonder so many creative ideas were born this way). A shower relaxes your muscles, warms you up, and calms you down. It's also permission to slip into comfortable pajamas later.

A little tip: while in the bathroom, ventilate the bedroom. To get a good night's sleep, you need a lot of fresh air in a cooler room (without necessarily freezing your ass).

The last hour before bedtime is ideal for three activities: journaling, reading, and meditation (not necessarily in that order). All of this has the power to calm the mind and increase the free flow of gratitude in the heart.

Journaling is one of the most effective ways to clear yourself of negativity and get rid of emotional debris that you may still be unconsciously holding on to. Our heads need regular cleaning to maintain good mental health. Whether it's how you do this practice, or what matters is how you feel in the moment, putting pen to paper will help you clear your head and enable you to unlock restful sleep.

Remember to keep your diary handy - this will help you repeat this practice in the morning.

Next on the list – meditation. There are many ways to get into ZEN. Don't know where to start? Try apps like Headspace, Inside Timer or look for free guided meditations on YouTube. If you are a beginner and prefer to just sit still and focus on your breathing, avoid putting pressure on yourself to last more than a few minutes at first, otherwise you may quickly become discouraged.

Now let's move on to bedtime reading, which should rock you to sleep. For this reason…

Choose a physical copy instead of an eBook (again, no bedroom screens).

Choose fiction and something far less gripping than Harry Potter. You know, to eliminate the temptation to stay up all night to read one more chapter.

Sleep is one of the most effective strategies for preventing illness, provided you get enough of it, at regular times and night (my heart goes out to all shift workers, I've been through this too).

Nice reminder - 8 hours in bed does not equal 8 hours in dreamland. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7-9 hours of sleep for young adults and adults. According to health experts, these braces are standard, but you should listen to your body. It will immediately notify you if he sleeps too little or too much.

Then, just before you fall asleep, I encourage you to count your blessings instead of your sheep. Focus your last thought of the day on gratitude. Visualize your best self, your plans become reality, your happiness, and love. At this point, your subconscious has no idea whether what you are displaying in your head is true or not. He just knows how to signal all this to the Universe.

Whether you're a morning riser or a night owl, or start your evening at 6 pm or 9 pm, hours of wakefulness count as recharging your batteries in the same way that sleep counts. Try to create an evening routine and rest. You'll thank yourself the next morning.