Why I Prioritize My Sleep as a Highly Sensitive Mama
Hey Mamas,
It’s no secret to those close to me in my life that I NEED my sleep. For my entire life I feel like I’ve needed more sleep than others. I’ve never been able to pull all nighters & I’ve taken a LONG time to adjust to the minimal sleep that sometimes accompanies being a mama. One thing I’ve learned though for myself and through my work with clients - if we choose to just focus on one thing to improve our physical and mental health - SLEEP is it 100%.
Lack of sleep leads too feeling anxious, overwhelmed & irritable. For us highly sensitive mamas it also leads to being more easily overstimulated and have less joy in our day to day lives.
A counseling once said to me “If you’re feeling anxious and you have a nap and it goes away, this isn’t anxiety like we typically treat anxiety, this is a sign that your nervous system is overwhelmed and needed a reset”.
When we sleep many things happen - we are able to process and integrate information from the day, our parasympathetic nervous system has a chance to help us relax and our cortisol levels go down. No wonder this is a powerful way to reduce overwhelm for highly sensitive mamas! It’s basically a reset for our nervous systems.
Now - I’m sure you like me struggle sometimes to figure out where more sleep can fit in. Here are my best tips for creating more space for sleep as a highly sensitive mom.
Nap when the kids nap. Get in your bed, close your eyes and rest. If sleep doesn’t come at first, that’s okay, it can take time. But use this time to rest and enjoy the silence.
If you have an early riser like me, create some TV time or screen time at the beginning of your day so you can get an extra hour of sleep on the couch. It’s a life saver during those 5:30 AM wake ups!
Create an early bedtime for yourself and stick to it. That extra hour or two of sleep is going to serve you so much more than that extra show on Netflix.
Talk with your partner about taking turns on weekends getting up with the kids. If you have a newborn, bring them in bed with you & nurse if needed (I am a firm believer in the La Leche Leagues Safe Sleep 7, but if you aren’t then do what works for you!) and let your partner entertain the other kids and take the baby when needed so you can get some rest! Do the same for your partner on the other weekend day. This way you both get a day to sleep in!
If and when you are ready - let the grandparents take the kids for a night every once in a while so you can get a full nights sleep! We didn’t do this until my son was almost 3, but it’s been so nice! I’m definitely going to miss it next month when we move.
Well mama - I hope these tips are helpful! Remember, if you aren’t sleeping then make that your first priority! We can add in meditation & all the other helpful things next.
With care and kindness,
Kylee :)