10 Ways to Reset Your Sleep Cycle

By Camille Peri
WebMD Feature

Travel, shift work, or even a few nights up worrying can upset your sleep. They can throw off your circadian rhythm, the internal clock that controls when you sleep and wake.

You don't have to take sleep problems lying down. Try these 10 tips to get your sleep cycle back in sync.

Nix the Nightcap for Better Sleep?

Joanne Brucker, 47, grew up with European parents, who considered it traditional to drink wine with dinner each night. But eventually she noticed her nightly quaffing was interfering with her slumber. "I tried to keep it up," she says, "but anything more than two glasses definitely kept me from falling asleep. Why does alcohol before bedtime affect me so much?" Simply put, alcohol makes it hard for you to stay asleep and sleep well, says J. Todd Arnedt, PhD, clinical assistant professor at...

Read the Nix the Nightcap for Better Sleep? article > >

1. Use Bright Light in the Morning

Your body's clock is "set" by cues like light, darkness, and when you eat or exercise. Light is the strongest of these cues. It tells your brain whether it's night or day, and that tells you when to sleep.

When you wake up, turn on bright lights and throw open the curtains to bring in daylight.

2. Dim the Lights in the Evening

Too much light at night pushes your sleep time later. To cut down on light at night:

Keep lights low near the end of the day. Turn off bright overhead lights.Ban laptops, tablets, cell phones, and TVs from your bedroom -- and don't use them in the hour or so before sleep. "Our eyes are most sensitive to the bluish light that electronic screens emit," says Yo-El Ju, MD, of the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo.If you're on the overnight shift, wear sunglasses from the time you leave work until you get home.

3. Time Your Meals

When you eat may affect your internal clock, according to Harvard researchers who tested that on animals. They suggest that shifting meal times may help people handle changes in time zones or work schedules.

Say you are traveling from the U.S. to Japan -- an 11-hour time difference. If you fast for 16 hours, about the length of the flight, and then eat as soon as you arrive, it could ease jet lag.

At home, keep a regular routine for meals and exercise. That helps steady your internal clock and your sleep.

Go to bed and get up at about the same time, too, even on weekends.

4. Limit Your Time in Bed

If you lie awake when you're in bed, temporarily restricting your sleep may give you better, deeper sleep.

First, log the hours you sleep each night for a week or two. Average them out. Let's say that you sleep about 4 hours a night. If you need to get up at 6 a.m., start going to bed at 2 a.m.

Don't nap during the day. "You want to build up your sleep drive," Ju says. Once you're sleeping solidly the whole 4 hours you're in bed, gradually move your bedtime 15 minutes earlier until you're back on track. Aim for at least 7 hours of sleep a night.

5. Limit Caffeine

You may be tempted to use caffeine to get over the afternoon hump. Don't. Instead, avoid caffeine after lunch. It can affect your sleep that night.

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