Routine is step 1

Part 1

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Welcome to the first step on your path to the best sleep of your life.

The set of new behaviors you're going to adopt with our help will correct many of your sleep issues -- without the use of prescription sleep aids -- and give you the tools you need to sleep like a baby (if babies slept through the night).

Each newsletter you get will introduce a new behavior to practice, as well as fun sleep facts, reminders why rest is essential to your mental and physical health (as important as exercise and eating well, experts say), some alternative methods for uncovering even more of that elusive golden sleep, and even tested sleep product recommendations.

Let's get started!

routine

Shutterstock

For your first challenge, you'll establish a routine. Why? Because creating new calming habits for the hour before bed will teach your brain that it is now on a quiet one-way road to Sleepville.

Start by establishing a set time to go to sleep and a set time to wake -- even on the weekend -- and stick to it. Consistency is key.

Since most adults need at least seven hours of sleep, if you plan to wake by 6 a.m., you'll need to be asleep by 11 p.m. the night before. You can add or subtract hours until you wake up feeling refreshed.

Start your nighttime routine by turning off the TV, and putting away your laptop, cellphone and e-reader. The blue light from those devices stimulates your nervous system, defeating the purpose of preparing the body for sleep.

Ready your clothes and materials you'll need the next morning for work. Empty your bladder and brush your teeth.

Now choose at least one of the following activities: a warm bath or shower, soothing music, meditation, light stretching, deep breathing and progressive muscle relaxation or reading a relaxing book (no fast-paced murder mysteries, please). If you enjoy smells, add some calming essentials oils, such as lavender, to your environment.

Just like a dog knows a walk is coming when it sees the leash, you are training your brain to associate all the nightly activities of your bedtime routine with sleep.

sleepy facts

Not getting enough sleep? You're not alone. One in three American don't get enough sleep, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, while globally some 45% of the world's population suffers from sleep problems

did you know?

Historically, sleep experts have pooh-poohed letting your furry friends into your bed at night. After all, they can contribute to microwakenings -- tiny disturbances you don't even recall that can pull you from restorative sleep. But new studies are finding there might be times when sleeping with a pet -- even a pot-bellied pig -- might be OK.

healthy hint

Altering your regular sleep-wake time by 90 minutes -- in either direction -- significantly increases your chance of having a heart attack or heart disease.

quote of the day

"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."

-- Benjamin Franklin

quirky sleep solution

Jeff Bridges recorded an album called the "Sleeping Tapes" with various tracks and his duderific narration designed to lull you to sleep. You can listen to it for free, though Squarespace asks for donations to a worthy charity.

lullabuy

Benjamin Levin/CNN

Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, recommend another unique sleep solution that could be part of your routine: the Dodow sleep aid, a tiny 3.5-inch device that projects an animated halo on your ceiling. You breathe in as the halo grows and breathe out as the halo shrinks, and you are soon breathing yourself to calmness and slumber.

nighty night

And that's it. After sticking with your routine for several days, you should find it enjoyable and starting to become effective. Until next time, good night and good luck…

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