WEBVTT - Second Cup: Get ready for bed before bedtime

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to get ready for bed a while

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<v Speaker 1>before you actually intend to go to sleep. This makes

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<v Speaker 1>it much easier to get into bed on time. It's

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<v Speaker 1>a truism of time management that everything takes longer than

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<v Speaker 1>you think it will. This is doubly true with things

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<v Speaker 1>that occur when you're tired, such as getting ready for bed,

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<v Speaker 1>and sadly, the more tired you are, the easier it

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<v Speaker 1>is to delay what will actually solve the problem, namely

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<v Speaker 1>going to sleep. This problem became clear to me a

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<v Speaker 1>few years ago when my husband was traveling a lot

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<v Speaker 1>and my then toddler aged fourth child was popping up

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<v Speaker 1>at five am every morning. I made sure that my

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<v Speaker 1>eldest child was in bed with the lights out around PM. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>theoretically this meant that I could be in bed at

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<v Speaker 1>ten pm, and in general I do fine with seven

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<v Speaker 1>hours of sleep, but night after night I would find

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<v Speaker 1>it almost if possible to be asleep before ten thirty, somehow,

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<v Speaker 1>taking out my contacts, brushing my teeth, washing my face,

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<v Speaker 1>getting my pajamas on, and so forth. Would stretch out,

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<v Speaker 1>probably because I'd look at my phone while setting my alarm,

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<v Speaker 1>or look at the mess in my bedroom and start

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<v Speaker 1>picking it up. It's hard to do anything in a

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<v Speaker 1>focused and efficient manner when you're tired, and this includes

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<v Speaker 1>getting ready for bed. Then I discovered that I didn't

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<v Speaker 1>actually have to wait until right before bed to get

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<v Speaker 1>ready for bed. I could change into my pajamas and

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<v Speaker 1>switch my contacts for my glasses earlier in the evening.

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<v Speaker 1>Since I was completely ready to sleep, I could walk

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<v Speaker 1>into my bedroom at PM and read for ten minutes

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<v Speaker 1>without feeling like I was battling the clock. The lights

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<v Speaker 1>could go off by ten PM, and my morning self

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<v Speaker 1>would wake up, thanking my past self's ingenuity. All would

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<v Speaker 1>be good, well, except for the screaming toddler part. Now

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<v Speaker 1>that I've got a newborn again, I've been reminded of

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<v Speaker 1>the wisdom of this habit. When the baby falls asleep,

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<v Speaker 1>it's good for me to go to sleep too. If

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<v Speaker 1>I'm all ready for bed, this is a much quicker process. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>maybe you don't have young kids, but anyone can fall

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<v Speaker 1>into the trap of delaying bed because getting ready for

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<v Speaker 1>bed sounds like a lot of effort. Turning off the

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<v Speaker 1>TV and going upstairs takes energy. Hitting next in the

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<v Speaker 1>Netflix queue does not. So if you feel like you

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<v Speaker 1>have zero energy, which many of us do at night,

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<v Speaker 1>guess which is more likely to happen. Now. I'm not

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<v Speaker 1>saying that if you're all ready for bed that watching

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<v Speaker 1>another show won't still be tempting. But if all you

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<v Speaker 1>have to do is slide under the covers, well, that

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<v Speaker 1>lowers the energy requirement significantly, and on the margin, that

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<v Speaker 1>just my tip the balance. So tonight, choose some time

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<v Speaker 1>when you're not completely exhausted to get ready for bed.

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<v Speaker 1>Then when the exhaustion does hit, you can go to

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<v Speaker 1>sleep close to immediately, and with any luck, you'll wake

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<v Speaker 1>up bright and chipper and ready to do great things

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<v Speaker 1>before breakfast. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening,

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<v Speaker 1>and here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod

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<v Speaker 1>that's B the number four, then Breakfast p o D.

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<v Speaker 1>You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>Podcast at iHeart Media dot com that before Breakfast is

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<v Speaker 1>spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much, I

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<v Speaker 1>look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a

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<v Speaker 1>production of I heart Radio. For more podcasts from I

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<v Speaker 1>heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

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<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.