6 Ways You Can Use Sleep to Conceive Faster!
Sleep is such a fundamental element of health and vitality generally, yet it is often overlooked when it comes to fertility.
There is a large amount of research showing conclusively - the link between sleep and your likelihood of conception, its important to note that both male and female fertility has been proven to be affected by sleep. We all need to wake up and pay attention to the impact that our circadian rhythm has on our fertility and take advantage of this new understanding. I recommend 8 hours a night is the sweet spot between too little and too much sleep for both women and men who are struggling with their fertility, you can begin to embrace this opportunity tonight, begin preparing for bed at 9, into bed by 9:30 and up at 5:30 to get an early start on the day. Having sufficient sleep allows your body to repair cells, detoxify, regulate hormone production, adjust blood sugar levels, correct metabolic imbalances and create memories. Sleep also affects our fertility hormones, including progesterone, oestrogen, luteinizing hormone, follicle stimulating hormone and testosterone, insomnia decreases our fertility and potentially causes premature aging.
Use the 6 tips below to use sleep as a powerful tool to enhance your fertility and conceive your baby faster.
Create Routine
Ensure you go to sleep and wake up at the same time everyday (including weekends) this will dramatically help to regulate your body’s circadian rhythm to normalize and optimise your sleep patterns. New research shows the best time to get to bed by is 9pm when Melatonin secretion is at its peak
Create Ritual
Creating a bed time ritual for yourself is vital step for effective sleep. You begin to signal the required hormone and neurotransmitter production to your brain when you create a pattern before bed. The point is to unwind so consider a warm shower, getting into comfy pjs, 5 mins of mindfulness, whatever it is, make sure it is calming and soothing.
Banish Light
Creating a bed time ritual for yourself is vital step for effective sleep. You begin to signal the required hormone and neurotransmitter production to your brain when you create a pattern before bed. The point is to unwind so consider a warm shower, getting into comfy pjs, 5 mins of mindfulness, whatever it is, make sure it is calming and soothing.
Eat Right
Controlling your blood sugar balance will help ensure you are not producing too much cortisol (your body will not produce melatonin when it is producing cortisol). Eating regularly, avoiding refined carbohydrates and getting plenty of good fats and protein will help. A light snack 1-2 hours before bedtime can also help, try a small handful of nuts and seeds or a little yoghurt and fruit. Don't forget to eliminate all forms of caffeine after 11am!
Remove Radiation
Be diligent in removing radiation from your bedroom. No phones or tablets on the bedside table, switch off wireless if the modem is near your bedroom, switch off all appliances at the wall, replace your clock-radio with a battery alarm clock. Radiation is very harmful to your body, particularly your vulnerable eggs (or sperm).
Create Peace
Having a peaceful, uncluttered, pleasant, cool (temperature) sleeping environment is essential for a good night’s sleep. Try to use your bed for sleeping and love making only, never eat or work in bed.
Two special hormones, Leptin and Melatonin have a powerful link between sleep and fertility. These hormones are only produced if we have good quality sleep and sufficient sleep, remember the 'sweet spot' - not more than 9 hours and not less than 7 hours!
Both hormones require a certain set of lifestyle and nutritional factors to be met to be produced in the optimal quantities. In the next blog post I'll share some powerful, yet simple strategies to increase your natural Melatonin production.
'til them, sleep tight!
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