3 - 2 - 1 Sleep

If you’re awake and looking for answers, or you regularly struggle to fall asleep, you’re not alone. One of the most overlooked causes of poor sleep is what happens in the hours leading up to bedtime.

This is where the 3-2-1 method comes in.

This simple, structured approach helps prepare your body and mind for rest by following three time-based rules before bed.

Here’s how it works:

3 Hours Before Bed: finish eating for the evening and don’t drink anything besides water or herbal tea in the remaining hours before bed. Brushing your teeth is a great way to cue your body that you’re done eating for the evening. Your body will rest better when it’s not working so hard to digest and when your stomach feels less full. Eating at least three hours before lying down also reduces your risk of heartburn and acid reflux.

2 Hours Before Bed: Stop working and do not perform any intense exercise. Whether you’re reading emails, prepping for tomorrow or arguing with someone, stimulating your mind and body too close to bedtime can lead to racing thoughts and restless nights.

Instead, use this time for stretching, reading, or taking a bath or warm shower. Creating your own ritual for this time is even more effective in signaling to your body it’s time for sleep.

1 Hour Before Bed: Go dark! Turn off your screens, plug your phone in to charge for the night, avoid binging on another show. It’s well documented that the blue light from screens interferes with your body’s melatonin, the hormone that helps you fall asleep. But it’s not just the light - it’s the mental stimulation keeping your brain alert.

Instead of using screens before bed, turn the lights down and read a paper book, meditate, or listen to music or a sleep story.

Following these three simple rules regularly will help you transition from doing to being. Stopping the things that keep us occupied and busy opens up space for the rituals and practices that encourage well being and quality rest.

May peace and calm find you. Sleep gently, friends.