By: Laine Hammer & Cyrus Sepahbodi Raise your hand if you’ve had a rough night’s sleep. Yeah, we have too, and for many of us, it’s a nightly struggle to not only fall asleep, but also stay asleep. We all have various life stressors that make it difficult to quiet our minds and truly unwind. Getting a good night’s rest is especially important when we’re feeling most uneasy. Finding solutions for better sleep can be as simple as unplugging from your electronics or establishing a relaxing nighttime ritual. At Papa & Barkley we aim to make you feel better every day, so we’re here to help you learn about sleep cycles, why REM sleep is important, what sleep deprivation is, and several natural ways to help you sleep better with remedies like CBD drops.  What is Sleep Deprivation?  To put it simply, sleep deprivation is when you are not sleeping enough. Getting adequate sleep is as important to our survival as consuming enough food and water every day. Being sleep deprived can take a toll on brain function and affect other processes in our bodies. Sleep deprivation can also lead to drowsiness, an inability to concentrate, memory impairment, reduced strength, and difficulty fighting off infections. If you are having trouble falling or staying asleep, below is a list of natural remedies to promote healthy sleep.  What Time Should I Go to Bed?  Your sleep schedule depends on your lifestyle, so there isn’t one perfect time to get into bed. However, it is extremely important to get at least 6-8 hours of good, restful sleep. If you’re like me, you tend to work into the wee hours of the morning – that’s okay! – just make sure you’re getting enough rest to function properly the next day! For many of us, getting enough hours of sleep each night can be difficult. Most people tend to wake up at a similar time every morning, while what time we go to bed can fluctuate based on social life, work schedules, personal obligations, our latest Netflix binge (Schitt’s Creek, anyone?), and stress. Developing a consistent sleep schedule can help you regulate your sleep cycles and ensure you wake up refreshed and ready for the day each morning. To help you regulate your sleep cycle aka circadian rhythm, we recommend trying out Papa & Barkley’s Releaf CBD Drops! Taking CBD drops thirty minutes before you intend to hit the hay can help calm your mind and body and prepare you to drift off peacefully into the land of nod. -Cyrus  “Best CBD drops I’ve tried so far! I’ve had trouble staying asleep for the last few months and this did the trick. Not only did I sleep through the night, but I woke up feeling completely rested. Definitely keeping this part of my nightly routine!”   -Jennifer M.  Here’s a handy sleep chart from the CDC to help:   Keep in mind, these are just recommendations. Each person is different, and our sleep needs can change, so it’s important to stay in tune with your body and adapt your nighttime routine over time.  Sleep Stages Explained: Why REM Sleep Is Important  Sleep is not a total state of unconsciousness from the beginning to end. There are various stages that our minds and bodies go through while we sleep. Here are the primary stages of sleep explained:  Stage 1 non-REM sleep: the changeover from wakefulness to sleep. This period lasts several minutes where we are in light sleep. Our resting heartrate, breathing, and eye movements slow down. Our muscles also relax, and brain waves slow as well.   Stage 2 non-REM sleep: the period of sleep before we enter a deeper sleep. At this point our heartrates, breathing, and muscles relax further. Our body temperature lowers, and eye movement stops completely. Brain activity slows down as well. We tend to spend more of our sleep cycles in stage 2 than any other stage.  Stage 3 non-REM sleep: this is the stage of deep sleep. Deep sleep is what we need to feel refreshed when we wake up in the morning.  Deep sleep occurs in longer periods during the first half of your cycle. Our heartrates and breathing slow down to their lowest levels and our muscles completely relax.    Stage 4 Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep: REM sleep—when we dream—first occurs around an hour and a half after we fall asleep. REM is the process where our eyes move rapidly from side to side behind the eyelids. Our brain waves become active, breathing becomes faster or slower, and our heartrates as well as blood pressure can increase. Most of our dreams occur during REM sleep, although it is possible for dreams to occur in the other stages. When we are in REM sleep our arms and legs become temporarily inactive, which prevents us from acting out the dreams.    Natural Sleep Remedies  There are many ways we can unwind and calm our minds and bodies before bed, but here are a few of our faves to help you kickstart your new bedtime routine.  Breathing Exercises: Cyrus is our marketing team breathing master and has introduced us all to mindful breathing! Try the 4-7-4 method. Take a deep breath in for four counts, hold it in for seven counts, and breath out for four slow counts. Do this 3-5 times to help you slow down before you drift off. -Laine  Drinking tea: Finally, a nice calming tea! A warm cup of Chamomile, Lavender, or Breathe Easy tea is a great comfort to signal to the brain that it’s time to get cozy and drift off to sleep. This is where CBD drops come in handy! Add a dropper of Papa & Barkley’s Releaf CBD Drops to your favorite nighttime tea to prepare you for a good night’s rest. Pro-tip: there are two preferred methods when dosing with CBD drops—sublingually, under the tongue, or directly into your tea. When taking them sublingually, hold under the tongue for thirty seconds for fastest effects. Placing your dose directly into your tea is just as effective but can take up to 45 minutes for full effect!  Unplug before bed: We know it can be hard not to do a final sweep of social media and email before bed, but studies have shown that the blue light from our electronics suppresses melatonin - the naturally occurring chemical in our brains that promotes sleepiness at night! So, if your phone is five inches from your face right before you turn over to fall asleep, that could mess with your rest. Put down the phone an hour before bed and you might just see some positive changes! If you really can’t commit to that (we get it!), we recommend trying blue light glasses, or a free app on your computer like Flux to help reduce blue light on your screen at certain hours.  Meditation: Much like breathing exercises, meditation is another relaxation tool to help you decompress and prepare your mind and body for sleep. Tip: Try closing your eyes and sitting or lying still for 5-10 minutes without letting outside thoughts intrude your brain space. We mean it – really try to focus on not getting distracted! It’s hard, but worth it. We know quieting your mind can be challenging and could even feel silly at first, but the more you try, the more it pays off! If you don’t know where to start, we recommend the book 10% Happier by Dan Harris. Keep at it, you’ll get there!  Reading a book: Diving into a good book before bed is my #1 way to unwind. I’ve always loved reading, and the joys of entering a world that isn’t my own. It’s always been a relaxing past time. -Laine  CBD: Better Sleep. For You.  We didn’t list it above because we think it deserves its own paragraph! Papa & Barkley’s Releaf CBD Drops are a clean and natural sleep remedy that can easily become a part of your everyday nighttime ritual. Our Whole Plant Full Spectrum Hemp CBD Drops (tincture) are made with our whole plant infusion process using just MCT Oil and Hemp Extract. Our clean CBD tincture is also our fastest-metabolizing formula when taken sublingually, so you can fall asleep quicker. The CBD Releaf Drops come with a measured dropper, so you can easily find your unique dose and titrate as needed. 30 minutes before bed, we recommend taking 0.5ml - 1ml of the Drops. They come in Natural and Lemongrass Ginger so you can pick your flavor of choice! If you prefer to add CBD to your nightly vitamin regimen, we suggest the Hemp CBD Capsules instead! Papa & Barkley Hemp Caps consist of a precise dose of 30mg of CBD to take the guesswork out of dosing, making them ideal for getting a better night’s sleep.  Releaf Capsules really work for sleep!  “For years, I’ve had the worst time falling asleep at night. Nothing worked — not melatonin, not valerian, not even Ambien. Enter Releaf capsules. I take one about half an hour before bed, and as soon as I turn out the light, I’m asleep. Worth every penny!”  -Marci G.  We hope this was helpful! Get cozy and rest easy tonight!   Resources & Citations:  https://www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/Patient-Caregiver-Education/Understanding-Sleep  https://www.healthline.com/health/sleep/sleep-calculator#sleep-needs  https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/how_much_sleep.html  https://www.columbianeurology.org/neurology/staywell/sleep-deprivation  https://www.healthline.com/health/sleep-deprivation/effects-on-body  https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/sleep-aids  https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side