Sometimes I wake up and feel like someone has bitten my ear off. Turns out, I’ve only been sleeping on my ear. I don’t know how it happens. Somehow, my ear folds upon itself. The cartilage bends enough to become painful and wake me. It’s one of the worst pains I’ve felt while sleeping. It’s almost as bad as waking up with your calf muscle behind your kneecap. This causes you to leap out of bed. You then find out you can’t bend your foot to straighten it out.
So how do you sleep pain-free through the night? Get your room as dark and cold as possible. I target my room temperature at 65 degrees and make sure no LED lights are illuminated. Blackout shades and curtains are a must for those pesky morning sun rays. I also run some white noise. I use a Rainmate and squirt a few drops of essential oil in the tank to circulate a relaxing plume of lavender. I also pop a sleep stack about 30 minutes before shuteye to get good REM sleep. With melatonin, be mindful of what you watch on TV before bed. One night, after watching Black Mirror, I had a disturbing dream. I dreamed three of my friends killed themselves. This happened in three separate nightmares, all in a single night. Oh yeah, get a good mattress!
Daily Irritant 
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