Your Sleep Deprivation Protocol

Since having Lenni (my daughter), I have become an expert on feeling pretty good, even when getting less than ideal sleep! I honestly have seen massive improvements in both of our sleep over the past few months, as I have been really intentionally implementing sleep support, but we still have plenty of restless nights when she is teething or in a developmental leap. The morning after a terrible night of sleep, it is soooo tempting to just drag myself through my duties, squinty-eyed & in a terrible mood. But I have learned that only makes me feel worse.

The goal of this protocol isn’t to override the sleep deprivation, pretending it doesn’t impact us negatively, because that is impossible. The goal is to lower your stress load everywhere else — to make your body feel as safe as possible through routines, light, movement, food, and strategic caffeine intake, so that you can still live your life & feel decent when you’re in a season of getting less sleep. AND to support your body in hopefully getting deeper, more restorative sleep very soon!

YOUR FIRST 60 MINUTES

The way you start your day, especially after a night of little sleep, really does make a massive difference in how the rest of your day will look & feel.

1. Immediately upon waking up, go outside and point your face towards the sun (eyes closed). Even for 1 minute, this is what tells your body that it is daytime. If you are in an apartment and don’t have a balcony, you can open your window too, but ideally, you are stepping OUTSIDE with no screen in between you and the sun! Do this BEFORE looking at your phone.

2. Do some form of gentle movement. I love a morning walk, the lymph BIG 6, and/or just hanging out on my vibration plate for 10 minutes. It isn't recommended to do an intense workout after little sleep, as that will just further solidify your body’s experience that it is in danger & cause more issues!

3. Speak life & energy over your body. This might be the single most important thing you do today & sadly the thing most people will skip over. Whether it is while you’re doing your makeup for the day, or when you’re getting outside in the sun, or doing some gentle movement, speak out loud what you want your body to feel like today. Our words are literally clinically proven by countless studies to impact what we feel & experience. I usually say something like, “I am full of life & energy. God has already given me exactly what I need to get through today with peace and joy. My body can handle less sleep and knows exactly how to get what it needs on days like today.”

4. Sleep deprivation often causes digestive disturbances & blood sugar issues. Start your day with some sort of lemon/ginger drink to support digestion. I love a shot or so of Andra Sitoianu whole lemon drink recipe! An alternative could be warm lemon water with a little bit of freshly grated ginger if you have it on hand. Following this, have a hearty, balanced breakfast with plenty of carbs & protein!

5. Do somethingggg about that puffy face! Sunshine, gentle movement & ginger will all help with this, but I always like to give my face a litttttle extra care on mornings after a rough night. It just makes me look better, which makes me feel better & helps wake me up before a coffee. My go-to is often facial cupping with facial oil or ice rolling, followed by eye patches!

YOUR CAFFEINE STRATEGY

After a restless night, coffee is usually the first thing I think about. But on these mornings, it is so important to be strategic about your intake, or else you will end up feeling worse instead of better!

1. If you feel at all capable of avoiding caffeine altogether today, do it!! I know it seems counterintuitive, but on the days after bad sleep that I have been able to avoid coffee, I actually do feel wayyyy better around 3-4 pm when I would otherwise be wanting to go to sleep.

2. If you need your coffee, I get it. I usually end up having coffee too lol. The key to it working FOR you instead of against you is waiting at least 1 hour after waking, and of course, after having a good breakfast. I know waiting sounds awful, but it will be worth the wait! Research suggests that waiting 60 to 120 minutes after waking to consume coffee is better for energy regulation and reducing jitters. And our goal is to help you feel good ALL day, not just for an hour or so after a cup of coffee!

3. Consider supplementing L-Theanine with your coffee to help curb the cortisol spike & produce more of a "calm focus" by amplifying caffeine's cognitive benefits while neutralizing its negative side effects!

YOUR DIET

As mentioned earlier, when functioning on less than ideal sleep, it is common to experience digestive & blood sugar issues. For digestion, most people become more prone to constipation, bloating, and/or gas. Others might experience the opposite & have loose stools. Regardless, supporting digestion is crucial! For blood sugar, it is soooo common to feel hungrier & have more cravings after a bad night of sleep. Here is how to support both of these things through your diet:

1. Eat more frequently than normal — Make a game plan to eat every 3-4 hours today. Do not wait until your tummy is grumbling & all you want to do is grab a piece of last night’s baked good. If you’re headed out, bring snacks like fresh fruit, beef sticks, clean protein bars, etc.

2. Lean into easy-to-digest carbs — Carbs are not your enemy today. Although some people might say to avoid carbs to keep your blood sugar balanced, your body will be craving carbs for energy! And I believe your cravings are speaking to you! And clean carbs (think fresh fruit, potatoes, oats & organic rice) actually help with the serotonin → melatonin conversion, which will support your sleep tonight! These foods also support healthy bowel movements & digestion. Just make sure you’re getting plenty of protein as well.

YOUR LAST 60-120 MINUTES

Okay, obviously, we are hoping for a better night of sleep tonight. And what you're doing the last hour (or 2) of your day reallllllly matters!

1. Get outside for sunset or use red light therapy during that time! This is what tells your body it is evening & time to start winding down & producing melatonin.

2. Keep all bright lights off after sunset & wear blue light blocking glasses if you are looking at blue light AT ALL. This is absolutely crucial for setting yourself up for deeper sleep tonight. Even if you cannot get as much sleep as you want, if you can protect yourself from blue light post sun down, your body will use the time it has more effectively!

3. Put your phone on airplane mode — I always do this at least an hour before I plan to be asleep. My friends know I almost always stop responding right around 8 pm when I am “tucking in” my phone for the night. Even if you are wearing blue light-blocking glasses, scrolling before bed is a recipe for a busy mind & restless sleep.

4. Load your body up with minerals — There are many ways to do this. When I am desperate, I do all of them! You can take a mineral-rich bath with a few cups of magnesium flakes. You also could make a sleepy mocktail with aloe juice, magnesium, cranberry juice & glycine. I personally have seen huge improvements with aloe + glycine specifically.

5. Read a boring book to finish your night — Once I put my phone on airplane mode, I usually get ready for bed via red light or candle light and then get in bed to read a book! When I am sleep deprived, I always choose the more boring self-help book that won’t keep me up at night because the plot is too good. Takes some discipline, but I am usually asleep within 15 minutes.

What helps you when you are sleep deprived? I wanna hear!