I have worked in a human sleep and circadian rhythms laboratory, and the most effective thing regardless of your natural rhythms was to go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. For those with delayed sleep phase syndrome (natural night owls) who want to be on an earlier schedule, 1-3 mg of melatonin 2 hours before the desired bedtime and bright light as close to the wake up time as possible (go for a walk outside, use a UV lamp) will help you shift and maintain a regular sleep schedule. Bright light at night will completely throw this off, so cutting out screen time or dimming the lights closer to bedtime will help a lot. I don't know a lot of early birds who want to change their schedules since work hours usually align well with this pattern, but blackout curtains to prevent early morning light stimulation and keeping lights on later at night may help shift a person later.

You may want to check out the newest/Aug issue of the National Geographic for more information on sleep:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/08/science-of-sleep/

First of all, I totally agree with Amy and Ariel with their recommendations for getting a good night's sleep. In addition to those recommendations, I also find it important to make note of eating habit's during the day. Poor nutrition habits can definitely affect the ability to sleep well at night.

For example, are you consuming too many soft drinks throughout the day or relying on caffeine to get through the day? Replacing soft drinks with water with fresh lemon is a great place to start. Also, avoiding processed foods as much as possible will help reduce inflammation in the body. Think of processed foods as causing the body to be irritable and inflamed, not to mention causing weight gain. Substitute any processed food with whole, natural foods at every meal.

Start with breakfast - - add vegetables or a fresh salsa to your eggs or mix organic berries with some plain Greek yogurt. Both will boost your vitamin, mineral, and fiber intake to start the day and keep inflammation down. Before bed, enjoy a slice of turkey breast that is full of tryptophan that is associated with serotonin, a feel-good hormone released by the brain. It helps produce serotonin that can lead to feelings of calmness and relaxation..

Salmon is another good choice for dinner or before bed that contains Vitamin B6. This vitamin is responsible for producing melatonin, your body's natural sleep hormone. Adding some leafy green vegetables to your dinner salad will also help you sleep because they contain calcium. Calcium helps your brain use tryptophan to manufacture melatonin, both of which will help you sleep. By adding these natural, whole foods to your meals throughout the day, they will go a long way in helping you enjoy a good night's sleep.

There are a few things you can do. A warm bath before bed time, drink a glass of warm milk or eat a banana (if hungry), diffuse some lavender essential oil, etc. Yet, it's more important to build a pattern so your body is trained to signal "it's time to sleep" - Sleep at the same time every night, slightly cool room temperature, absence of light, deep breathing when lying on the bed, and no screen time before bed time (no cell phone and no TV). Have a good read on hand in case you can't sleep or getting used to the new sleep routine. In short, form a new habit of your very own sleep ritual.

Ariel,

Eight hours of sleep is needed by everyone on the globe every day of the week. There are two reasons.

First, the brain energy chemical adenosine is used up during the day with the thinking processes and eight hours, not less and not more, are needed to restore the level of adenosine for the next day's brain use.

Second, two hours of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep are required every single night for creation of human qualities of kindness, empathy, forgiveness, gratitude, and compassion. These two hours are obtained during the last two hours of the eight hours of sleep, so anything less than eight, there will not be sufficient REM sleep and people will not gain these human qualities. People will be irritable, argumentative, pessimistic, critical, blame others, and make excuses.

Eight hours of sleep are needed, not six and not ten. Eight.

Knowing this, understanding this, and applying this information is the single best lifestyle adjustment for sleep. This results in:

(1) Choosing a time to go to sleep, add eight hours and get up, not before and not after
(2) No eating or drinking three hours before this starting time
(3) No falling asleep watching television.
(4) Lights out immediately at this start time - stay in bed and no video screens of any type.

Gary R. Epler, M.D.
Boston
garyepler@gmail.com
www.eplerhealth.com

Lots of great stuff here already.
Just want to add 5-10 sprays of magnesium oil rubbed on body.
Also low progesterone in perimenopausal women can be issue.