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Sleep deprivation is a real struggle when you are a parent, and no matter how hard you try, it can seem impossible to get the rest that your body and mind need. From late-night feeds to early morning rises, getting a good night’s sleep can feel like a distant memory.
Not getting enough sleep can be damaging to both your physical and emotional health, and at times, parenthood can be difficult enough without severe tiredness to deal with. However, by making a few changes to your lifestyle and daily habits, you can beat sleep deprivation and catch up on that much-needed rest.
Sleep When Your Kids Sleep
Whether you are new to parenthood or you are having your third or fourth child, it is important to remember that you should be making the most of the time that they are sleeping by getting some sleep yourself.
As a parent, you can feel like you have an endless list of tasks to complete, from tidying the house to going grocery shopping. But trying to do everything at once will only make beating sleep deprivation more challenging to overcome.
Therefore, as soon as your kids go down for a nap or get tucked up in bed at night, you should not be too far behind them.
Create the Perfect Sleeping Environment
Many people do not realize that your bedroom environment can have a massive impact on how well you are sleeping. Therefore, you must create the perfect sleeping environment that is optimal for a good night’s rest.
This may include ensuring that you have blackout curtains that keep out the light that can wake you up early in the morning.
However, most importantly, you need to make sure that you have the perfect mattress for you. You cannot expect to have a good night’s sleep if you are not comfortable.
You also need to ensure that your bed is big enough as being squashed up next to your partner all night will not help you beat the sleep deprivation you are experiencing.
We recommend that you invest in better quality and bigger mattress so that you have all the space you need at night for a good night’s rest. If you aren’t sure whether to go for a king or queen size mattress, then this website can explain the differences.
Have a Screen Curfew
Scrolling through your phone and watching TV late at night in bed can make sleep deprivation even worse. Therefore, we recommend that you implement a screen curfew on the lead up to bedtime so that your body and mind can wind down and get ready to sleep.
The sleep you get when you are a busy parent is precious, so you mustn’t allow it to be damaged by any external factors.
Ask for Help
Being a parent is hard, and you should not expect yourself to handle everything alone. You never seem to have any time for yourself, and even though parenthood can feel pretty lonely, you should remember that you have other parents around you that know exactly how you are feeling.
Suffering from sleep deprivation can make even the smallest of tasks in life feel overwhelming, so if you feel like you are struggling, you should be sure to reach out to those around you and ask for help.
For example, if your parents are local, then you could ask them to help out with your kids while you get some rest.
A few small but effective changes to your lifestyle, bedtime behaviors, and sleeping environment can help all busy parents beat sleep deprivation.
Krystle Cook – the creator of Home Jobs by MOM – put her psychology degree on a shelf and dived into a pile of diapers and dishes instead. She is a wife and mother to two rambunctious boys, sweating it out in her Texas hometown. She loves cooking, DIY home projects, and family fun activities.
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These are all great ideas. I use blackout curtains and have a fan running. It does help.
I have to have a fan running or for it to be pretty cool to sleep well.
Great tips. One of the worst things parents can do is become too sleep deprived. The kids wind up paying the price, one way or another.
Very true. A tired parent makes for a cranky parent and that’s not good for anyone.