For #sleepawarenessweek we’re sharing some simple evening rituals to help you achieve that perfect slumber.

A good night’s sleep is fundamental for both our physical and mental health. Insufficient sleep is associated with some of the leading causes of death such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, accidents and hypertension (Chattu et al. 2019).

When we consider the social implications, lack of sleep can also contribute towards poor performance at school and work, as well as a decline in mood and relationships.

So, what bedtime rituals can we implement to get a better night’s sleep and prevent all of this?

 

 

How can we put our mind and our bodies into a more calming state in the lead-up to bedtime?

It’s all about creating a calming environment to help induce sleep. Whether it’s having fresh clean sheets, dropping a few lavender drops on your pillow or lighting a relaxing scented candle to infuse the air with dreamy, scented notes, these all work to create the perfect ambience to induce a quality night’s sleep.

Get investing in your sleep tools and find what suits you best!

 

 

The optimum temperature for a good night’s sleep is around 18 degrees Celsius. Our body changes temperatures all throughout the day and night. We are usually the highest temperature in the late afternoon and our coolest temperature is around 5am.

We tend to drift off to sleep when our body temperature drops. If you increase the temperature in your bedroom you may notice you are tossing and turning a lot in your bed, this is because you are preventing your body from adequately cooling down to its core temperature.

One study that analysed 765,000 survey respondents found that they experienced abnormal sleeping patterns during the warmer months because it impacted the body’s ability to cool itself at night (Okamoto-Mizuno et al. 2012), whilst another study found that room temperature was one of the most important aspects for achieving a quality night’s sleep (Obradovich et al. 2017).

That’s why you may want to think about opening a window or investing in a fan for when we get into the warmer months ahead…

 

 

So often we’re consuming technology at all hours of the day and evening, but all of that blue light exposure is suppressing our melatonin production (our natural sleep hormone). Let’s acclimatize our mind and body to gearing down towards sleep as soon as it reaches 8pm. One way you can do this is by altering the warmth of the light omitted from your technological devices (i.e. change to ‘night shift’ by following the instructions below).

If you have an iPhone or Mac computer, simply go to ‘Settings’ – click ‘Display & Brightness’ – ‘Night shift’ – Make sure ‘Scheduled’ is switched on – set the timings from 20:00 to 07:00 – Lastly, dial up the colour temperature to ‘More Warm’.

 

 

Do you have the right materials for sleep (i.e. is your bedding best suited to you)?

When we last ventured to our parent’s house, we noticed a shift in our ability to get off to sleep easily. Most notably our duvet was hanging over the sides of the bed as it was extremely thick and heavy, weighing us down. We replaced them for duvets that were lighter, airier and the right fit for the size of the bed, enabling a better night’s sleep.

We’re all different. Some love a weighted blanket which makes them feel nurtured and comforted (easing anxiety), whereas some prefer bed sheets, some prefer fluffy pillows and others like thin pillows.

Test out the materials that are right for you and let’s also not forget to ensure you have a good quality mattress!

 

 

Are you a person that forgets to drink adequate amounts of water throughout the day, and instead feels parched on an evening so downs a few glasses?

This can happen to many of us and cause us to frequently feel the need to urinate at night, thus disrupting our sleep routine. Some individuals even experience anxiety regarding the need to get up out of bed again for those late-night visits to the bathroom. If it’s causing you anxiety, this can impact your cortisol levels and further interfere with your ability to nod off to sleep.

To avoid this, make sure you are drinking plenty of water throughout the day to avoid the need to make up for this at night. If you find that you are forgetful person, implement drinking a glass of water as soon as you wake as part of your morning routine and download a water reminder app freely from the app store for those subtle prompts throughout the day.

 

 

Timing your work-out and the type of exercise you do can impact your ability to get off to sleep efficiently.

Doing a HIIT workout for example late on an evening will just get your body pumped, heart rate up and cortisol levels high, it can put your body into a more stressful state right about the time when we need it to be relaxed in order to drift off to sleep. Therefore, if the late evening is your only time that you can exercise then try more restorative exercises such as yoga or Pilates, which will put your body into a more restorative state to fall asleep soon afterwards.

 

 

It’s important to remember that you are in control of your stimulus and environment, and oftentimes when it gets messy or cluttered, can give space for anxiety-driven thoughts to grow, which can disrupt our sleep routine. You can cleanse your energy and space early in the evening and address any worries and let go.

We recommend de-cluttering your bedroom, which should be your sanctuary. Think about it keeping it light and airy with clean sides and a nice white duvet. For a complete cleansing, light a stick of Palo Santo within your space to clear the energy of the room and help purify whilst giving off this grounding aroma.

 

 

References:

Chattu, VK. Manzar, D. Kumary, S. et al. (2019).‘The Global Problem of Insufficient Sleep and Its Serious Public Health Implication’, Healthcare (Basel). NCBI [Online]. Available at:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6473877/ (Accessed 21 January 2021).

Okamoto-Mizuno, K. Mizuno, K. 2012. ‘Effects of Thermal Environment on Sleep and Circadian Rhythm’, J Physiol Anthropol. NCBI [Online]. Available at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3427038/ (Accessed 1 February 2021).

Obradovich, N. Migliorini, R. Mednick, S. et al. ‘Nighttime Temperature and Human Sleep Loss in a Changing Climate’, NCBI [Online]. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5446217/ (Accessed 1 February 2021).