GB09: Biohacking Sleep — The Ultimate Bedtime Routine for Perimenopause

Struggling with sleep during perimenopause? Learn our dream bedtime routine packed with sleep biohacks to help you wind down and handle those 3 a.m. wake-ups. We share tips for managing stress and creating a calming environment to improve your quality of life during this transition.

🧬 Whether you’re brand new to biohacking or already experimenting, this episode gives you a clear, doable way to upgrade your bedtime—no pressure to do it all.

00:00 Introduction to the Ultimate Biohacking Bedtime Routine
00:12 The Importance of Sleep During Perimenopause
00:46 Castor Oil Packs: A Detoxifying Bedtime Ritual
02:05 PEMF Mats and Red Light Therapy
02:37 Grounding Mats and Mouth Taping
03:08 Yoga Nidra and Magnesium Supplements
03:34 Tongue Scraping and Non-Toxic Skincare
03:59 Essential Oils and Blue Light Blocking
04:28 Tracking Sleep and Reflection Time
04:57 Final Thoughts and Personal Recommendations
05:35 Conclusion and Glow Reflection

💫 Glow Reflection Prompt:
“Am I ending my day in alignment with how I want to feel tomorrow?”
Whether that’s rested, clear, or peaceful—let your bedtime rituals support it.

📌 Resources Mentioned:

🧰 Our Favorite Bedtime Biohacking Tools → https://dailyglowlife.com/top-biohacking-tools-for-midlife-the-devices-and-tech-that-actually-help/
🧘‍♀️ Radiant Rest Yoga Nidra Sessions → https://stan.store/thedailyglowlife/p/radiant-rest-yoga-nidra-sessions
📥 Free Daily Glow Rituals Guide → https://stan.store/thedailyglowlife/p/daily-glow-rituals-guide

Transcript

Alicia : 0:00

Hey there. Welcome back to Midlife and Glowing. I'm Alicia.

Nicole: 0:03

And I am Nicole, and today we're walking you through the ultimate biohacking bedtime routine. If we were doing all the things, this is what our dream wind down would look like.

Alicia : 0:12

Because, let's be honest, everything feels harder when you don't sleep well. In perimenopause, we're already dealing with hormone shifts, stress sensitivity, and that fun 3:00 AM wide awake moment, or bathroom break or hot flash.

Nicole: 0:26

Right. That's why the hour before bed is sacred. It's your window to calm the nervous system, prep your hormones and signal to your body that it is time to rest and repair. Here's what we'd include if we were doing all the things. Let's go down the list and no, you don't have to do all of this, but even one or two can totally change your sleep quality. One, castor oil pack on the liver. So castor oil packs are super interesting. They support detoxification, lymphatic flow, and reduce inflammation. They're especially great during your luteal phase of your cycle, so that would be the second half of your cycle, essentially after ovulation, they're great if your sleep feels disrupted. It also actually stimulates parasympathetic activity, which is your rest and digest mode. When you're doing a castor oil pack, you wanna start slow. So doing it for maybe 20 to 30 minutes your first round, and then a good general timeframe when you get into the habit and the flow of doing them is 30 to 60 minutes at a time. So throw it on at night for about an hour. Once you do it a couple of times and your body is into the routine and you wanna use one to two tablespoons on the pack, they make packs that are really great. We'll link some in the show notes that we've used. You just wrap it around your body and it makes it super easy. You can go on with your day and do other things, and then take it off, wipe your torso down, and you're good to go.

Alicia : 1:53

And you can also sleep with them on too, once you've kind of built up to that point.

Nicole: 1:58

Yes, that's true. If you want deeper results, more significant results, you just want to have it on longer, you can sleep with it on.

Alicia : 2:05

The next thing would be a PEMF mat. Lying on it for 20 to 30 minutes helps calm the nervous system, reduce inflammation, and promote really good deep sleep.

Nicole: 2:15

Red light therapy is another great addition. You can stack it with your PEMF mat and while you have your castor oil pack on, you can do them all together as one ultimate nighttime routine. Red light therapy supports circadian rhythm, collagen production, rejuvenation, sleep, cellular energy production. It's a great addition to a nighttime routine.

Alicia : 2:37

A grounding mat in bed or grounding sheets. They help regulate cortisol, reduce inflammation, and may improve HRV and deep sleep. This is something very easy to incorporate. I just put mine kind of where my feet are when I sleep at night. Just plug it in and go to bed.

Nicole: 2:55

Mouth taping is really great. It encourages nasal breathing and supports nitric oxide production, which helps with all kinds of things, including energy, it supports your brain, your heart, and helps you wake up more rested and less inflamed.

Alicia : 3:08

Next would be yoga nidra, or guided meditation. These are powerful tools to regulate your nervous system and transition into rest. 20 minutes of yoga nidra is a great foundation for deep sleep.

Nicole: 3:21

Magnesium supplement, magnesium glycinate, or threonate, help with muscle relaxation, sleep quality and stress regulation. Magnesium's just a really great calming mineral, so it's a great addition to a sleep routine.

Alicia : 3:34

Tongue scraping. Using a copper or stainless steel tongue scraper before bed or first thing in the morning removes bacteria and supports oral microbiome for better oral health.

Nicole: 3:44

Non-toxic skincare rituals. Support your skin barrier with clean products and make it a ritual. Facial massage, gua sha, or just slowing down to enjoy that nighttime routine

Alicia : 3:57

it's one of my favorite times of the day. Essential oils, diffuse lavender, or rub it on your feet or wrist. This signals your nervous system to slow down.

Nicole: 4:06

Putting your phone on night shift mode and using blue light blocking glasses one to two hours before bed to protect melatonin production and drift into sleep easier.

Alicia : 4:17

Amber Book Light. If you're someone that likes to read a book before bed, it's perfect for low light, non-stimulating wind down reading that doesn't mess with your circadian rhythm.

Nicole: 4:28

Track your sleep using a wearable like the Oura Ring or RingConn to see what's actually working. Data isn't everything, but it helps you fine tune what supports you best.

Alicia : 4:39

Reflection or journaling time. A short journaling practice helps calm your mind and signal closure to your day. Just a few lines of gratitude, release, or intention, like what do I want to let go of, or how do I wanna feel tomorrow? Can shift your nervous system into rest mode.

Nicole: 4:57

So this is just a list of the ultimate tools we'd use if we had the time to do all of the things. Again, you don't have to do them all. Even just one or two of these can make a big difference in your nighttime routine and support better sleep.

Alicia : 5:10

Right. I don't do every single one of these every night, but I do have my go-tos and when I layer just two or three of them, I do notice that I sleep deeper and I wake up more clearheaded and feel way more rested in the morning.

Nicole: 5:22

For sure. My personal non-negotiables when I don't have time to do everything are my grounding mat, blue light blocking glasses, mouth taping, nighttime reflection journaling and my sleep tracking wearable. So as you wind down tonight, we wanna leave you with this glow reflection. Am I ending my day in alignment with how I want to feel tomorrow?

Alicia : 5:45

Whether that's energized, peaceful, clear, or simply rested, let your bedtime habits support that feeling. Even one small shift, like diffusing lavender oil, doing red light therapy or turning off your phone a little earlier can dramatically impact the quality of your sleep.

Nicole: 6:02

You don't need a perfect routine. You just need a few moments of intention. Your body will meet you there.

Alicia : 6:08

We'll link our favorite bedtime biohacking tools in the show notes in case you wanna explore something new, but as always, start with what feels good and doable.

Nicole: 6:16

Thanks so much for joining us today, and make sure to share this episode with a friend that could use a little bedtime biohacking boost too. We'll see you next time.