Better Sleep Starts Hours Before Bed

You’ve tried the supplements. The blackout curtains. The sleep trackers. Maybe even the weighted blanket.

And still, you lie there. Mind racing. Body tired but wired. Replaying conversations. Planning tomorrow. Anything but sleeping.

Here’s what we’ve learned: the problem usually isn’t the moment you close your eyes. It’s everything that came before it.

Your Nervous System Has a Speed Limit

Think of your nervous system like a dial. On one end: fight-or-flight. On the other: rest-and-digest.

Most of us spend our days cranked to the fight-or-flight side. Work stress. Kid logistics. Traffic. Notifications. By the time we get home, we’re still running hot.

Then we expect to flip a switch at 10pm and drift off peacefully.

It doesn’t work that way. Your nervous system can’t downshift that fast. It needs time. It needs a runway.

The 2-3 Hour Window

The hours before bed are where sleep is won or lost. What you do in that window either prepares your body for rest-or keeps it stuck in stress mode.

What keeps you wired:

• Screens (blue light suppresses melatonin)
• Work emails (even “just checking”)
• Intense exercise (raises cortisol)
• Heavy meals (digestion takes energy)
• Stressful conversations

What helps you wind down:

• Gentle movement
• Warm environments
• Dim lighting
• Sensory reduction
• Deliberate breathing

The goal isn’t perfection. It’s creating conditions where your body can naturally do what it already knows how to do.

An Evening Recovery Routine

This is what we recommend for clients who struggle with sleep:

3 hours before bed - Stop working. We know. But those last emails can wait. The cost of poor sleep is higher than the cost of delayed responses.

2 hours before bed - If you’re coming to us, this is when to book your session. Start with something warm: infrared sauna or the salt room. The heat begins the downshift.

Float tank option - Nothing quiets a busy mind like 60 minutes of zero sensory input. Floating is the reset button for racing thoughts. Many clients tell us it’s the only time their brain actually stops.

1 hour before bed - Keep lights low. No screens. Read something calming (not news). A warm shower works too-the temperature drop when you get out triggers sleepiness.

At bedtime - Your body should already feel heavy. Let it. Don’t force anything.

What We See Work

Every nervous system is different. But patterns emerge:

The Float + Infrared combo - Float first to quiet the mind, infrared after to warm the body. This sequence puts clients in a deeply parasympathetic state. Many say they sleep like they haven’t in years.

Salt room for respiratory issues - If breathing problems disrupt your sleep (allergies, congestion, mild sleep apnea), regular salt therapy sessions help clear airways.

Evening cold plunge - Counterintuitive, but works for some people. The sharp cold triggers a rebound relaxation response. The key is doing it early enough-at least 2-3 hours before bed.

Permission to Rest

Here’s what we really want you to hear:

Your body isn’t broken. You’re not bad at sleeping. You’ve just been running your nervous system without giving it a chance to recover.

Sleep is an output of how you live. Change the input-especially in those evening hours-and the output changes too.

You don’t have to earn rest. You don’t have to finish everything first. Rest is part of the work.

Come see us. We’ll help you remember what it feels like to actually wind down.

Sweet dreams.