More on a good night of sleep

People often avoid liquids after a certain hour for fear of waking up to pee during the night. Somehow, we've gotten the idea that rising during the night is a horrible event that will make us zombies the next day.

So people don't drink. And when we don't drink for 12 hours (or whatever), we're dehydrated. Which leads us to feeling tired, cranky, and a whole lot of other things.

One of the secrets to good sleep is not being dehydrated. Drinking a glass or 2 of cool water later in the evening will make you sleep better. Will you have to get up to pee? Maybe. But when you get up, do a couple of things.

First, don't turn on a light. You're probably sleeping in a room you've slept in for a long time. Unless you've got junk scattered all over the floor, you shouldn't have trouble negotiating the room, so walk slowly, and keep the lights off.

Don't look at the clock. Don't look at the clock. Because if you do, your mind will start operating, and you'll think about an appointment later, or paying your taxes or a test you've got coming up. Don't look.

Just get up and pee and go back to bed. Keep your mind in neutral. Think about a blank wall or whatever. But just cultivate the habit of disengaging your mind. And go back to sleep. When you wake up, you'll feel refreshed, without that kicked in the head feeling dehydration brings on.