My Healthy Bedtime Routine: How I Transformed My Sleep and Started Waking Up Rested

For years, I treated sleep like a luxury—something I would get to only after everything else was done. I was the person staying up packing boxes until 4 a.m., believing that productivity required sacrifice. Everything changed after my car accident. As a traumatic brain injury survivor, I learned firsthand that sleep is not optional—it's medicine. My brain needed deep rest to heal, and I had to completely redefine my relationship with sleep. Pushing through exhaustion was no longer an option; honoring my body became the priority.

Here is the bedtime routine I’ve built—one that allows me to wake up restored, energized, and mentally clear.

1. Electronics Off One Hour Before Bed

An hour before sleep, I disconnect from all screens—no scrolling, no responding to emails, no late-night TV. This reduces blue light exposure and signals my brain to start releasing melatonin naturally.

2. No TV While Sleeping

I do not sleep with the TV on. Even when it seems like “background noise,” it stimulates the brain and disrupts your ability to reach deep, restorative stages of sleep. Once I stopped falling asleep to television, the quality of my rest improved immediately.

3. I Eat My Last Meal Two Hours Before Bed

Finishing dinner at least two hours before bedtime supports better digestion and allows my body to focus on healing—not processing food—while I sleep.

4. Understanding My Health: Diagnosing Sleep Apnea

When my husban noticed that I had started snoring, I made an appointment with a sleep specialist. I learned that I have sleep apnea and was prescribed a BongoRx device to keep my airways open. Treating it has a dramatically improved my sleep quality, energy levels, and overall brain function.

5. Meditation Before Sleep

I end each night with meditation to calm my mind, slow my breathing, and transition out of the mental activity of the day. This helps me fall asleep peacefully rather than collapsing into sleep from exhaustion.

6. A Warm Shower Helps My Body Relax

Showering before bed has become part of my sleep signal. It relaxes my muscles, washes off the day, and helps my body naturally prepare for rest.

7. Redefining My Relationship With My Phone

To detach from the habit of nighttime scrolling, I slept with my phone downstairs for months. Now that I’ve built discipline, I use my phone only for guided meditations at night and have turned off notifications to avoid distractions from social media or email.

8. My Bedside Essentials

I keep a bottle of water by my bed to stay hydrated and a lip butter because I cannot fall asleep with dry lips. These small comforts eliminate reasons to wake up or get out of bed after I've settled in.

9. Consistent Bedtime Ritual

Everyone who knows me knows that my bedtime is 10 p.m. sharp. I head into my bedroom at 9 p.m. to begin winding down. This consistency supports my body’s circadian rhythm and signals my brain that rest is coming.

10. Sleep as a Healing Tool

After my accident, I learned that sleep is not a passive activity—it is an active form of healing, especially for the brain. Sleep became my recovery protocol. Staying up until 4 a.m. packing boxes was simply incompatible with my body’s need to repair itself. Choosing sleep is choosing health, clarity, and longevity.

Over time, these habits transformed my nights and my days. I no longer chase rest—I prepare for it. Now, I fall asleep with ease, stay asleep longer, and wake up restored.

Sleep is not weakness. It is strength, strategy, healing, and self-love.
 If you’re ready to transform your life, start by transforming your nights.