Experts recommend strategies for better sleep after holiday adjustments in Finland

After an extended holiday, many may find themselves struggling to adjust back to their regular routines. If you’re feeling unprepared to transition back into daily life, don’t worry—there are steps you can take today to improve your sleep and make waking up less painful. Markku Partinen, a professor and sleep researcher at the University of Helsinki, offers several tips to facilitate this process.

1. Go for a walk and take a warm shower: Engage in some enjoyable physical activity. Exercise promotes physical fatigue, making it easier to fall asleep. However, your body temperature should ideally cool down before bed; thus, a warm shower in the evening is recommended.

2. Avoid heavy late-night meals: Eating too close to bedtime can disrupt sleep. Partinen suggests having dinner earlier and opting for slowly digested carbohydrates, found in vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, to aid in falling asleep.

3. Write down your thoughts: If work-related concerns occupy your mind as you lie in bed, write them down on paper and place them in your work bag for the morning. This can help alleviate stress.

4. Don’t stay in bed if you’re not sleepy: If sleep doesn’t come easily, resist the urge to force it. Instead, read a book or magazine. If you choose to use a device, adjust the light to a warmer tone, and avoid stimulating content like movies or texting.

5. Accept your fatigue: Partinen emphasizes the importance of not overreacting to disrupted sleep patterns. Acknowledging that it’s normal to feel a bit off after a holiday can reduce anxiety, which can worsen insomnia. Feeling a bit groggy upon returning to work might just indicate you had a great holiday.