This week, in addition to my daily morning routine, I have been experimenting more with figuring out an effective evening routine. A lot of times, when it is time to go to bed I don’t feel ready, I drag my feet to start getting ready for bed, and I end up laying awake for a long time trying to invoke sleep. 

In the past, whenever I have taken more time to intentionally prepare for bed I always ended up feeling better and sleeping more easily.

And since I have been having some trouble getting a good night's rest recently, I figured it would be a good idea to create an evening routine.

When I have implemented successful evening routines, I have experienced the following benefits:

• I am able to close out the day on a positive note. There is always so much to do and I want to get as much time as possible with my loved ones. So, it can be hard to pull myself away from my day to get ready for bed. It feels so final and I sometimes don’t want the day to end so I get grumpy. But when I have an evening routine, I feel happier about winding down the day - I even look forward to it sometimes because I know it will help me relax and let go.
• I am better prepared for a good night's sleep. I feel more relaxed after doing an evening routine and I end up sleeping better. Rather than abruptly ending my day and jumping right into bed, a morning routine helps me calm down at a slower pace, which sets me up to sleep soundly.
• I am more intentional about creating an environment for sleep. When I am preparing for or doing an evening routine, I am more aware of what helps me sleep and what distracts me. I am less likely to check social media before I fall asleep or get into deep conversations with my partner because I realize that these prevent me from falling asleep.
• My mind is calmer. I am less “thoughty” and I worry less about little things after doing an evening routine. The actions I take help to slow down the racing of my thoughts and calm my concerns about the day.