Hello. This is Laverne Cox. I'm an actress, producer, and host of The Laverne Cox Show. Do you like your tea with lemon or honey? History making Broadway performer Alex Newell. When I sing The Holy Ghost shows up, that's my ministry, and.

I know that.

Well about me. That's the tea, honey. Whoever it is, you can bet we get into it. My guests and I, we go there every single time. I can't help it. Listen to The Laverne Cox Show on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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I found myself moving upstate in the middle of this fracking fight, and I'm trying to raise kids there, and my neighbors willing to poison my water.

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It's almost like everything's muddled. We're working from our beds with our laptops. We're sleeping on the couch where you're meant to be watching TV, you're eating in your bed too. So the energy of our spaces gets so muddled and mixed up that then when we get into our beds to sleep, our mind and body don't know how to react because they're used to eating there. They're used to watching TV there. They're used to working there. There's so many different energies and mindsets that you're experiencing. Hey, everyone, welcome back to On Purpose. Thank you so much for being here to listen, learn, and grow. I want to take a moment because I've been thinking about this a lot. I have no idea how to thank you, and I want you to know just how deeply grateful I am and appreciative I am of each and every one of you. I can't believe that I got to meet nearly 100,000 of you this year while I was traveling on my tour. It's insane to see how much your love and support for me continues over the years. And I want you to know that I deeply, deeply, deeply hope that the work I'm putting out is having an impact on your life and having an impact on your relationships to the people you love, to the people you work with, your careers, your purpose.

And on purpose is always going to be here to serve you and be here to help you. And today's episode is all about eight strategies for deeper sleep and boosting your energy all day. How many of you, be honest, know that you want to get better, deeper quality sleep? I have spent months of my life in certain parts getting really poor sleep, and I found that it completely drains me of energy throughout the day. You could be eating right, you could be working out, you could be doing everything, but when you're not getting good sleep, it can feel like you're pulling your body, pushing your body all day long. And I know some of you can resonate and relate to that. And how can we boost our energy through that healthy sleep? How does that healthy sleep transfer into having more energy for the things we love, the people we love, and what we want to do throughout our days? So I'm going to share with you these eight strategies. I've done a lot of research online, so I'll be sharing with you articles that I'm referencing. A lot of this will be reading from really great sources that I've learned from for this topic, because I wanted to give you the headline or the billboard of the point that I want you to practice, but I wanted to give you the science behind it as well.

So I'll be quoting a lot of sources and a lot of articles, which I hope you can check out as well if you want to really do a deep dive. And I've always found that the science is important because it's important for you to understand why you do what you do. When you recognize what the benefits are by doing something so specifically, it motivates you further. It inspires you further to actually activate and practice and apply to that degree. The first one I want to share is one of the themes that I learned during my time in the monastery, and it's location has energy, time has memory. Location has energy, time has memory. When you do something in the same place every day, it becomes easier. When you do something at the same time every day, it becomes easier because time has memory. Your body is used to that experience, and so it gets conditioned to know what to expect and to be ready for it. When you do something in the same space every day, that space starts to embody that energy. Now, the challenge today is we work where we're meant to sleep, we eat where we're meant to work, and we sleep where we're meant to eat.

It's almost like everything's muddled. We're working from our beds with our laptops, we're sleeping on the couch where you're meant to be watching TV, you're eating in your bed too. So the energy of our spaces gets so muddled and mixed up that then when we get into our beds to sleep, our mind and body don't know how to react because they're used to eating there. They're used to watching TV there. They're used to working there. There's so many different energies and mindsets that you're experiencing. Let's talk a little bit about this. How can we make our bedroom a sacred place, a sanctuary for healthy sleep? How do we control the use of technology in there? How do we make sure that we're not using it for other things? First of all, and I really mean this, and I know this might be hard, but I mean it, try and take your TV out of your bedroom. And you may say, Jay, I love watching TV before I go to bed. If you really want to do that, use your laptop, but take your TV out of your bedroom so that you are not using your bedroom as a space of just being wired into something.

I know it's a lot to ask. I know you're like, Jay, come on, start with something easier. But if you want to get deeper asleep, you want to be in a place where it's not easy to consume content that A, could be giving you anxiety. A lot of people say to me, Jay, I feel anxiety. And one of the first questions I asked them is, What did you watch last night? Chances are you watched something that was keeping you on edge. It's giving you what I call cliffhanger chemicals. That anxiety of what's going to happen next? What about that character? Where are they going to make it? What's going to happen? That energy before you go to sleep doesn't really help you. Another thing that's really, really important about location is if you're eating in bed too, when you're eating too close to bedtime, you're then having to digest that instead of using that energy to be restorative. So the same energy that would be refueling, renewing, restoring is now being used to digest food. And that's why using your bed as just a place to sleep and rest and relax and maintaining it that way creates a sanctuary, that's the word for your body and mind.

So I want you to give that a go. Now, number two, as part of your morning routine, I'm not diving in a morning routine, but I want to give you something because your sleep is impacted by how you live when you're awake. I think we think of sleep as like, I need to improve my sleep. I need to be better when I sleep. And wait a minute, you can't even control that. But maybe you can control how you start your day. Now, one of the things that's really important, and I'm taking this from some research that talks about the need to drink warm water first thing in the morning. Of course, it helps you hydrate. And when we lose fluids during our nighttime and while we're asleep, drinking a cup of warm water when you wake up starts replenishing those fluids. This is the big one that I came across from Ayurvede about how drinking warm water can help you start breaking down certain foods and it kicks off your digestive process in the morning. So if you've woken up bloated, if you've woken up feeling like you haven't digested your night meal well, or if you're just feeling some discomfort, a slowly drunk glass of warm water slowly can clear out the waste, clear out the toxins.

And that's one of the biggest ones. Drinking warm water naturally raises your internal body temperature, which then helps you sweat, and which is one of your body's ways to reduce those toxins. So warm, not hot. Just warm water, allowing that to be part of your morning routine will help you feel flushed out, which means when you get into bed, you're again not carrying that throughout the day. You're letting that go. The third thing I want to talk to you about, which is often an overlooked part of a good sleep routine is temperature. And this is research from The Sleep Foundation online. They have an amazing website with great resources, highly recommend you check them out. And so your core body temperature, the National Library of Medicine, BioTech Information says that it generally hovers around 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, which is 37 degrees Celsius, but fluctuates by about two degrees Fahrenheit. Now the drop in temperature starts about two hours before you go to sleep, coinciding with the release of the sleep hormone melatonin. During sleep, body temperature continues to fall, reaching a low point in the early morning and then gradually warming up as the morning progresses.

Lowering the thermostat at night can work in tandem with these natural temperature fluctuations signaling to the body that bedtime is approaching. So two hours before you go to bed, if you lower the thermostat to in between whatever you feel comfortable, I'd say between 60-70 Fahrenheit. That's what you want to aim between. Some people say 63 is optimal, some people say 65. I think 60 is quite cold for me. I personally like 67. And so you're finding that sweet spot for you by testing it out. Don't start by going too cold. I don't want you to go to 60 immediately, you will freeze. But you're trying to match your body's journey with what's around you, and especially if you start it two hours before it starts preparing your body. A lot of us feel we have to be cozy, we have to be warm. And hey, you can still have an amazing duvet. You can still tuck yourself in whatever you want to do. You can wear pajamas, knock yourself out. But the goal is you want to make sure that the room is in that space. You don't have to feel cold. You can tuck yourself in, but you want the room to have that environment to prepare you for sleep.

Now, what I loved about what Sleep Foundation went on to talk about is what happens when your bedroom is too hot. So this is for all of you who are listening to me going, Jay, I am never making my room 65 degrees. I know some of you listening to me right now going, Jay, you're crazy. This is never going to happen. So Sleep Foundation says, warmer temperatures can cause discomfort and restlessness, and anyone who has slept in a stuffy bedroom knows what that feels like. Now, a bedroom that is too warm can interfere with the body's thermoregulation abilities and cause fatigue. I realized this when I lived in New York, often it would get really cold, and I would put the heat up so much that I would wake up feeling dehydrated and I would wake up feeling more tired. And often a person who's tired will feel physically and mentally tired but unable to fall asleep. And I'm sure you can relate to that. Now, sleep foundation goes on to say body temperatures also affect sleep quality and the time spent in different sleep stages. A higher core body temperature has been associated with a decrease in restorative slow-wave sleep.

So I really want you to be mindful of the temperature in your room. I really want you to be thoughtful about the temperature in your room because it can have so many big impacts through something that seems so small. And excessively hot ambient temperatures also appear to less than the time spent in rem sleep, which is that deep sleep that we're trying to get into. And of course, your body can't access it if the room is too hard. This segment about sleep rituals is brought to you by DreamCloud Sleep, the world's most affordable luxury mattress. Did you know that the quality of your sleep directly impacts your overall health and happiness? That's where a sleep ritual comes into play. By establishing a soothing pre-sleep routine, you signal your body that it's time to wind down, promoting a smoother transition to dreamland and ensuring you wake up each morning feeling fully restored and eager to embrace the day ahead. But are you finding it hard to switch off after a hectic day? If you do, try some of these tips. Before lying down, take a moment to unwind with calming practices that will help you sleep better.

Try deep breathing exercises, meditation, or gentle stretching to relax your mind and body. A hot bath or a cup of herbal tea can also do wonders in preparing you for a tranquil night's sleep. Another factor that can affect your sleep quality is the mattress that you're using. Having a good mattress can give you the proper comfort and support, which means you can sleep deeply and wake up feeling refreshed, which is essential for your overall health, reducing pain and feeling your best. With DreamCloud, it's about investing in yourself, and it goes to show that you don't have to spend a fortune to sleep comfortably. Dreamcloud offers affordable luxury, proving that you can enjoy a truly restful night's sleep without breaking the bank. Their mattresses are a dreamy blend of individually wrapped coils and gel memory foam. It's a premium hybrid mattress that's both supportive and soft. It's super high quality and guaranteed to last longer. So go ahead, slip into something more comfortable and feel the DreamCloud difference. Go to dreamcloudsleep. Com and use code Jay for 40 % off plus an additional $50 off any mattress purchase. Dreamcloud, the world's most affordable luxury mattress. Number four is Cave-like darkness.

I know a lot of us sleep with flickering lights. We sleep with, like I said, TVs. We sleep with some light from our phones. Maybe you have an alarm system. Maybe you don't have blinds or blackout blinds. This is so important. There's an amazing site called MyEyeSense. I highly recommend it. Myeyesense. And it says that according to SleepExpert's darkness helps to stimulate the production of melatonin, a hormone that helps you fall asleep quickly. It also helps to keep you asleep until you complete all sleeping cycles. I remember when I used to sleep without blinds, although I loved waking up to the bright sun pouring in, obviously I didn't get the deep sleep and the length of sleep that I actually wanted. What I also found was that when I had other light sources that were flickering or coming on or whatever it may have been, what that did is that it disturbed my sleep. And on top of that, to go a step further, when you're in your home... This is something that annoyed me for a long time with Radhe. Radhe really doesn't like sitting in bright places, as in with the lights on, she loves natural light.

But then when it gets darker at night, she'd always want all these dim lights. And I really didn't like dim lights, so I went and got her some really nice lamps that I put on, and of course, candles. I've realized that she's so right that you can actually start preparing your body and your mind for sleep the darker it gets. Now, what we often do is we turn off all the lights and we turn on the TV. And that blue light, of course, we've heard about that before, that's not helping us prepare for sleep. But if you're having a conversation, if you're hanging out and you just have dim lights on or a couple of lamps, it actually starts preparing your body and mind for sleep. The study from iSense goes on to say, additionally, darkness also promotes relaxation, which helps you fall asleep quickly. The brain is very sensitive and can detect even the slightest amount of light and stop the production of melatonin, which plays a huge role in helping you get quality sleep. Therefore, next time you go to bed, ensure that you switch off all the lights to make it easier to fall asleep.

It goes on to say that sleeping in darkness can help to enhance your overall health and wellbeing. Several studies have shown that sleeping in light can increase your body weight up to 50 %. And according to experts, light could alter your metabolic process by slowing it down. This means that your body will not be able to convert fat into energy. This could lead to weight gain. On the other hand, sleeping in a dark room promotes fast metabolism, meaning your body will burn more calories, thus allowing you to maintain a healthy weight. Again, this is all about living a healthy life. And I think it's so important to understand how so many of these things are not only making you feel like you're sleeping better, they're converting that fat into energy and therefore having more energy throughout the day. Now, point number five is all about circadian rhythms. And I think we've been hearing a lot about this. Circadian rhythms, for anyone who doesn't know, are physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a 24-hour cycle. These natural processes respond primarily to light and dark and affect most living things, including animals, plants, microbes. And circadian rhythms, the study says, can influence important functions in our bodies, such as hormone release, eating habits, digestion, and body temperature.

So the way this works and the fastest way it works is to recognize that your circadian clock is most sensitive to light at the following times. About one hour after waking up in the morning. This is one of the reasons why I like to get out on a hike in that time zone. Because I'm getting outdoors, I'm getting sunlight. And even though sometimes I have to wear sunglasses in the morning, I'll make sure to spend a couple of minutes exposing myself to the sunlight. Obviously not directly, but the light that's coming. The second thing is about two hours before your bedtime, and the third is throughout the night. So when you get bright light in the morning, this is from VeryWellHealth, it can help you feel more alert during the day and has a later effect that helps you to feel sleepy in the evening and fall asleep faster. However, if you're exposed to bright light within two hours of your bedtime, it can make you less sleepy and fall asleep later. So you want to focus on getting that exposure to sunlight one hour from when you wake up, but not two hours before you go to bed.

Now, these are some of the ways that sunlight affects your body. First thing in the morning, your body makes a stress hormone called cortisol. Having too much of this hormone at night can keep you awake. Sunlight helps your body make a brain chemical called serotonin that plays an important role in your wellbeing. Please do not underestimate the power of sunlight. You may be saying, Jay, I don't live in a sunny place, but just being out there in the light is so important, so needed. Please, please, please don't underestimate it, and hopefully you'll be able to find some sunlight on any given day. Just being outdoors will make a big difference.

Do you lay awake, scrolling at bedtime, or wake in the middle of the night and struggle to fall back to sleep? Start sleeping better tonight. I'm Catherine Nicolai, and my podcast, Nothing Much Happens Bedtime Stories to help you sleep, has helped millions of people to get consistent, deep sleep. I tell family-friendly bedtime stories that train you to drift off and return to sleep quickly. I use a few sleep-inducing techniques along the way that have many users asleep within the first three minutes. I hear from listeners every day who have suffered for years with insomnia, anxiety at nighttime, and just plain old, busy brain who are now getting a full night's sleep every night. I call on my 20 years of experience as a yoga and meditation teacher to create a soft landing place where you can feel safe and relaxed and get excellent sleep. Listen to Nothing Much Happens, bedtime stories to help you sleep with Katherine Nicolai on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

My name is Laverne Cox. I'm an actress, producer, fashionista, and host of The Laverne Cox Show. You may remember my award-winning first season. I've been pretty busy, but there's always time to talk to incredible guests about important things.

People.

Like me have been screaming for years. We're going.

To watch the.

Supreme Court. What they're doing is wrong.

What they're doing is evil.

They will take things away. I can only hope that Dobbs is.

That.

Pearl.

Harbor moment. Girl, you and I both know what it took to just get through the day in New York City and get home in one piece. And so the fact that we're here and what you've achieved and what I've achieved, that's momentous. It's not just us sitting around complaining about some bills. The only reason that you.

Might think, as Chase said, that.

We're always miserable is because people are constantly attacking us and we're constantly noticing it. Listen to The Laverne Cox Show on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Be sure to subscribe and share.

Now.

I also want to talk about comfort being such an important part of getting better sleep. One of the biggest ways is genuinely getting a good mattress. A few questions to think about. How long have you had it? When was the last time you changed it? Now, 5-7 years is the average life of a mattress. And having a good mattress for your needs and preferences will not only help with everything else I've said before, whether it's the temperature, whether it's the comfort, whether it makes you feel like you're relaxing. And investing in a supportive mattress and pillow helps ensure that your spine gets proper support to avoid aches and pains. And you want to make sure that your sheets and blankets play a major role, and therefore you want to make sure that it's a material that you like. I remember Radhe is always testing out different materials, and there were some materials that I didn't enjoy getting into bed at night. And even changing the material made such a difference to my mindset. And so I would highly recommend that. I know that I've been using a DreamCloud mattress for a long time, and I found it to be really premium materials, really good quality.

And I'm really glad that we invested in that. Now, point number seven, this is one of my favorite ones, and I used this a lot when I had my hernia surgery. So when I had my hernia surgery, I really struggled to sleep because I couldn't sleep on either on my sides, and I slept on my back. And I felt a lot of pain on my back because my back was taking so much of the responsibility of carrying me. And I really used Yoga Nidra more than ever. And Yoga Nidra works with the autonomic nervous system. And the autonomic nervous system regulates processes of the body that take place without a conscious effort. For example, heartbeat, breathing, digestion, and blood flow. And this system also includes the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system. Now, if you just want to know more about it, I honestly recommend just typing in YogaNidra on calm. There's a beautiful Yoganidra there, or typing in Yoganidra on YouTube. And as soon as you find it, just try it out. That's the best way to explain it. It can get really heady to figure it out. And you may want to proceed this with a deep breathing exercise to help you fall asleep.

Breathing from your belly rather than your chest can activate the relaxation response and lower your heart rate, your blood pressure, and stress levels to help you drift off to sleep. You could also try a body scan exercise to help you fall asleep. Paying attention to different parts of your body, even expressing them gratitude and letting them switch off, removing any tension and breathing through them. So that's been a really, really powerful way. What's really interesting is that the military sleep method has been popularized on social media in recent years, with many people claiming it can help you fall asleep within two minutes. First appearing in Bud Winter's 1981 book Relax and Win Championship Performance, the military method combines several proven relaxation techniques like the deep breathing and body scan exercise in case you want to check out more. And the final thing I want to share with you was a brilliant article I read on Healthline, which was all about sleep positions. Now they had this brilliant table that I'm going to walk you through in this article, and it was saying, let's say your concern is lower back pain. The positions to try are side, fetal, or back.

And it says, When sleeping on your side, try placing a pillow between your knees to help with spine alignment. I again used this a lot when I had my hernia surgery. Putting them below my knees while I was on my back allowed me to take some of that strain off my back. Now let's say your concern, Healthline says, is neck pain. Position to try a back and side. And it says use a thicker pillow if sleeping on your side and a thinner pillow when sleeping on your back. Again, this is something I personally practiced. I sleep on a much thinner pillow now as I usually sleep on my back. Now let's say your concern is sleep apnea or snoring. It recommends side, fetal, or stomach position. And it says if sleeping on your stomach, try putting a pillow under your pelvis and consider using a thinner pillow under your head. Now let's say you've experienced acid reflux. This is something I've had in the past. It recommends sleeping on your side, and I would add your left side. When you are struggling with digestion or bloating or acid reflux, sleep on your left side. Now let's say you're pregnant, Healthline says fetal or side.

Experiment with using a body pillow or wedge pillow for added comfort. Now let's say you have sinus congestion. I love this table from Healthline. It says sleep on your back. Prop your head up with an extra pillow to help with drainage. And if you have hip or knee pain, sleep on your back. Try placing a pillow under your knees to take pressure off your spine. These are the eight strategies for deeper sleep and boosting your energy all day. I can't wait for you to try them out. Thank you so much for tuning in. And I want to remind you that this episode was brought to you by DreamCloudsleep. Com, and you can use the code Jay for 40 % off, plus an additional $50 off any mattress purchase at DreamCloud, the world's most luxury mattress. Check it out. Hey, I'm Wilmer Valderrama, executive producer of the new podcast, Day My Abuelita First. Each week, the incredible Vikoortiz and fabulous Abuelita Lilliana Montenegro will play matchmaker for a group of hopeful romatics. Right, Viko? You know it. Listen to Day My Abuelita first, Thursdays on the iHeart Radio app, Apple.

Podcast.

Or wherever you get your podcasts. And remember, don't do anything I wouldn't do. Just do it better. This is The Cousins.

Craig Ferguson goes in search of joy and talks with actors, doctors, standups, and scientists. Everyone, is at love, religion, drugs, money. Where do you find it? Craig Ferguson, in the Church of Joy, the celebrations, the dances, science, poetry, laughter, and music of joy. Don't miss it. Joy with Craig Ferguson. Hear it now on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I'm here to help.