IFS nurses’ advice on sleep during COVID-19 circuit breaker

Nurses from the International French School in Singapore share their expertise and professional advice to help our children sleep well during the COVID-19 circuit breaker

Sleep and the current circuit-breaker are hardly talked about. Staying at home forces us to change our pace of life and upsets our habits, including our sleep habits. Finding our way to the arms of Morpheus is very complicated for some people.

Sleep, in particular, is involved in the proper functioning of our immune system and is an ally in the face of the COVID-19 epidemic. How can we manage to sleep better during this period of confinement? Here are some top tips from the IFS nurses.

10 tips for fighting insomnia given by Institut National du Sommeil et de la Vigilance (INSV) experts

1. Keep your daily routine
   Try to keep the usual rhythm: getting up in the morning as if you were at work or school,
   go to bed at the same time.
2. Get out of bed!
   If you are awake, get out of bed. It is important to get up to start a good day and strengthen the bed-sleep association.
3. Enjoy the daylight
   In the morning it is important to expose yourself to light to keep your body clock working properly.
4. Move
   The practice of a physical activity is a factor in improving sleep if you stop 3 to 4 hours before falling asleep.
5. Take a nap
   A nap is also a good ally for high-quality sleep. As long as it does not last more than 20 minutes.
6. Not (too) stimulant!
   Moderate the consumption of coffee, soft drinks, energy drinks, and especially do not consume any after 2 pm!
7. Stay busy
   During the day, to combat drowsiness, do manual activities and get off your screens.
8. Have Dinner
   In the evening it is important to have a meal, not too fatty, not too heavy and favour starchy foods that avoid night cravings.
9. Disconnect!
   Be careful with screen time. Don’t forget to disconnect 1 to 2 hours before bedtime.
10. Pay attention to the bedroom atmosphere
    Pamper your room and those of your children: darkness, silence and moderate temperature are the best allies of your sleep.

TED Conference “Sleep is your superpower” to understand and improve your sleep and that of your children.

In his 2019 TED conference entitled “Sleep is Your Superpower,” Matthew Paul Walker, Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology at the University of California at Berkeley, shares his insights on sleep and its impact on health.

According to Matthew Walker, there are two tips for getting to sleep: regularity (going to bed and waking up at the same time on any given day of the week or weekend) and “staying cool” (room temperature should be around 18°C).
Take your headphones!

Relaxation, Tips for Sleeping Like a Baby?

Relaxation is a simple and natural solution to falling asleep easily. Yoga for example promotes relaxation. Below are recommendations of sites and applications adapted for all ages :

For the little ones, go to the Bayam application

• Sessions offered in French and English (free 1 month). On Bayam application (Type “yoga” in the search) and on Bayam’s YouTube channel.

Publisher of Calm and attentive like a frog, by Eline Snel, “Les éditions des Arènes” has put a few meditation sessions online (only in French) :

• La maison des peluches from 3 years old
• La petite grenouille for 4-12 years old
• La Meditation de la pluie for 7-12 year old

Useful information

World Health Organization: Healthy at home – Physical activity