Having a good evening routine helps you get to sleep, stay asleep, and wake up ready for the new day. But for a long time, I viewed evening as a kind of “free for all time” when I would do whatever I thought would be fun. Too often I would be clicking around on the internet and then realize an hour had passed.
As for getting ready for bed, I just would try to remember to brush my teeth. I began to notice that I woke up a lot in the middle of the night. And sometimes I stayed up too late. I slept through my alarm a few times. My evening routine needed work.
I admit I still have no fixed bedtime. As the evening wore on, I often was not sure what I should do. Sometimes I had extra energy and didn’t know how I should apply it. Or I’d sit down in my easy chair “just for a minute” and fall asleep without considering preparation for the next day. I also woke up in the middle of the night at lot.
So, I wanted to have a routine but I didn’t have it written down. As I got more tired, I couldn’t remember what I wanted the routine to look like. I could be reliable on brushing my teeth, but refilling the humidifier was pretty hit and miss. And except for taking a relaxing bath, the other things often just didn’t happen. Evening yoga had gone out the window.
Finally acknowledging there was a problem, I made a list on a notebook page of some things that I probably should do in the evening. And began to try to check the items off before falling asleep. This was a big improvement. It turned into a routine. And these are the things on the list:
- Wash the dishes. This really should have been done at 7:00 p.m., but sometimes I forgot. I’ve been trying to do the dishes every night and I have even decided that I don’t have to fill the dishwasher all the way up. I try to polish up the kitchen, too, though sometimes it’s hard if I’ve let it get to be late. Then it’s a war between my good and bad angels. My Good Angel says “Finish the kitchen,” and my Bad Angel says “Forget it just do it in the morning.” But if you wake up to a clean kitchen, it’s a good start of the day.
- Writing. I work on my blog. Sometimes it’s just correcting a couple of small errors or checking Google analytics which probably isn’t a good way to prepare for bed. But I don’t want to let the matter of writing get away from me. This blog is my writing project at this time. I have committed to writing every day. The best feeling is when I improve it in a way that I’m sure is right, even if no one else notices.
- Take a hot bath. I never miss this unless I’m staying somewhere there is no bathtub and then I will try to take a shower. The feeling of hot water relaxes me and makes me feel more safe. This is the beginning of the relaxing part of the evening routine.
- Brush my Teeth: I’ve pretty much got this one down. I tried to use one of those flossers too. I inherited my father’s not-so-great teeth and they require constant care and so brushing twice a day is critical.
- Put Water in the Humidifier. This is important because I have two guitars in this room and one of them is already damaged from the dry air. Also it just feels better in here when the air has been humidified. I love to watch the steam rising out of the humidifier and being blown by the fan toward the bed.
- Brief Yoga Routine. It’s been hard for me to be disciplined about this one I often skip it. But the truth is if I just do a few poses before bed I always sleep better.
- Set the alarm. I use my alarm on my phone which I know you’re not supposed to do. You’re really supposed to put the phone in another room. I put the phone on the floor on the other side of the room. That way it’s not right by my head, and also, that way I have to get up to turn it off.
- Read: I try to read a little bit each evening. In a paper book that is. Right now I’m reading Mussolini’s Daughter by Caroline Moorehead. This is a good book, engaging and interesting. The experience of reading helps my mind focus. My perception is of building knowledge. Clicking through the internet simply doesn’t do that. And whenever I begin to feel my eyelids grow heavy, I mark the spot and get in bed.
This work on my evening routine has really helped. Using the checklist, I get to sleep more easily and I stay asleep better. I wake up more often to a clean kitchen and with a better attitude. And I feel more optimistic which is huge. What about you? Do you have an evening routine, or are you thinking about starting one?
Other Blog posts on Building an Evening Routine:
Jennifer Tatroe explains her slow an meditative evening routine, undertaken to improve health and sleep.
Sustainable Bliss shares Jasmine Tevin’s Ideal nighttime routine for sleep.
