Improve Your Sleep With an Evening Routine Makeover

Let’s face it. Nobody has a perfect sleep cycle.

In an ideal world, we’d follow the natural flow of the universe, rising with the sun, and snoozing by sunset. However, this may not be the most realistic approach for everyone. Instead, what we can focus on and control is improving our sleep hygiene while supporting the circadian rhythm with single-origin CBD.

Sleep Hygiene: No, It’s Not Flossing While You Snooze.

No magic abilities required. Sleep hygiene is all about adopting quality sleeping habits to ensure a full night’s rest ahead. This may include environmental factors such as room temperature and darkness, but also being open to adopting bedtime rituals.

Stress, busy schedules, and non-stop mental chatter leave thousands of adults scatter-brained by the time they hit the sheets. If your evening routine involves answering emails, checking your phone, and crunching budgets until you’re beat enough to roll into bed… it’s time for a serious evening routine makeover!

The Importance of Rituals

Rituals and routines are something that is a crucial part of all of our lives. However, some of us are unaware of them or may not be reaping many benefits from their current routines.

Having a simple, consistent evening ritual will help to activate the parasympathetic nervous system, AKA “rest and digest mode.” When in the parasympathetic state, the body is able to fully relax, heal any ailments or wounds, and allow the mind to clear enough to achieve deep sleep.

The key here is to build your evening ritual with mindfulness as the foundation.

Nothing stimulating. No distractions.

Not only will mindful evening rituals improve the quality of your sleep, they completely elevate your mood, clear a foggy brain, and improve your relationships with others.

Count us in!

Building Better Bedtimes

So, where can we start if our evening routine needs a total revamp?

First things first: Kava Kava.

CBD has been shown to influence receptors in the brain that control sleep/wake cycles, and ease symptoms of occasional stress. We paired our single-origin CBD with Kava Kava and Valerian Root to take the stress out of your evening equation.

Kava Kava, a nifty little root native to Southern Pacific islands, creates a safe, calming effect throughout the body. Kava has also been studied for its muscle-tension relief, sending soothing signals through your entire body a few hours before you crawl into bed.

Valerian Root has been shown to gently assist restlessness, and foster feelings of tranquility and inner peace.

One of our team’s favorite rituals is to take one serving of Kava Kava Valerian before dropping into a 10-minute meditation.

Countless studies have proven the benefit of incorporating meditation into our daily lives. And if you’re a busy bee, 10 minutes before bed will help you to:

• Increase melatonin production
  
• Clear away stressful thoughts
  
• Activate the parasympathetic nervous system
  
• Inspire creativity
  
• Lower blood pressure and rapid heartbeat
  

An Evening Escape

Treating yourself to a mindful bath or shower is another easy way to sneak some solo self-care into your daily routine.

Take a few extra moments to feel how the water feels on your skin, sync your body and mind once again, and finish your evening pamper with our incredibly soothing CBD Body Lotion.

Yes, that’s right… we DID do that!

Broad-spectrum hemp extract meets a sensorial blend of calming essential oils. Ideal for any gender, and all skin types in need of soothing nourishment. Our Body Lotion is also formulated with plant extracts to support healthy, hydrated skin including:

• Blue-Green Algae Extracts: Chockful of essential amino acids vital for improving strength and repairing damaged skin. This amazing plant extract contains antimicrobial actives as well.
  
• Rooibos: Popular amongst tea-lovers, Rooibos is anti-inflammatory and a natural antioxidant, helping to soften and bring radiance to the skin.
  
• Aloe Vera Powder: Most people think of aloe when they think about healing sunburns. While this is true, aloe’s benefits for the skin stretch far beyond the burn. Aloe contains vitamins, antioxidants, minerals, amino acids, and antibacterial properties.
  

CBD Body Lotion may be applied anytime throughout your day. We recommend wrapping up a long day by applying a generous amount to towel-dried skin. Wait a few moments for complete absorption, and get into your chill-out jammies.

Tips for Good Measure

While Kava Kava Valerian brings you into ease, there are a few extra add-ons for you to customize your perfect evening ritual. Some tried-and-true practices we love at Pachamama include the following. Pick and choose what calls to you!

• Sipping on a non-caffeinated bedtime tea or elixir. We love a few drops of Kava Kava Valerian in a Rooibos blend!
  
• Quitting the screens. At least one hour before bed, ditch the screens and drop into the real world. The possibilities are endless from here. 
  
• Journaling. One of the best features of journaling is that it serves as a portal to take you really...anywhere! You could journal about fleeting thoughts, emotions that arose throughout your day, future goals, or some gratitude scribbles.
  
• Gentle yoga. If your body tends to feel antsy late at night, give some gentle yoga/stretching a try. It’s a simple way to unwind and reconnect with your body, and can even be practiced with family+housemates.
  

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