Getting enough sleep seems to be a challenge in itself these days. We have so many things that demand our time and attention that we start to settle for less and less each night. Waiting for the weekend might not be enough to get you through, so every night is precious. We hope to offer a few tips to help you make the most of your rest.
We live in a world of televisions, computers, smartphones, and LED headlights that bombard our eyes daily. The ‘cold’ blue light emitted by electronic devices is the same as daylight, which signals your body to be alert and produces chemicals to keep you awake. Some sources of blue light are naturally out of your control, but there are many ways to control the amount of blue light you receive in the evening.
Blue Light Modes - Most phones have a ‘blue light mode’ available to reduce the ‘coldness’ of the light they emit. This can give your screen a ‘warmer’ orange hue that can reduce your blue light exposure. There are also computer programs that automatically warm the light of your screen based on a timer.
Cold Turkey – One way to limit blue light is to cut out using electronics past a specific time. This is challenging for people who use electronics at night for work or study or want some downtime scrolling, but you may surprise yourself with the quality of your sleep after giving blue light the boot in the evening.
Warm Lighting – Changing lighting can help get you ready to sleep. Just as blue light signals the body to sleep, warm light helps relax you. Warm light is the same in sunsets and firelight and can be replicated using ‘warm white’ LED bulbs. If you spend time in warmly lit rooms before bed, you may see an improvement.
The duvet you have on your bed is also a big factor for sleep. You should have a winter and a summer duvet with togs to suit the weather. It’s easy to get lost in tog counts, but all you need to remember is that a ‘tog’ is a measurement of warmth rather than thickness. Here are some rough numbers for the tog values we suggest for duvets during each season:
You can also do it the old-fashioned way during the colder months with quality blankets. The extra warmth they can provide can make a difference in sleep quality and are easily stored once you no longer need them.
The mattress you sleep on is a massive part of your sleep routine. Swapping out your mattress on the fly may not be feasible, but something like a mattress topper is an excellent compromise. There are lots of types to choose from: memory foam for extra comfort, cooling foam toppers to regulate temperature, and even for regulating airflow.
The support your pillow gives you is just as important as what mattress or duvet you have. Your sleeping orientation, back, front or side, will affect the pillow you need to get the most from sleep. We have a fantastic guide on buying the right pillows depending on how you sleep.
The amount of noise in your room will impact your sleep, but everyone has different preferences. Creating noise is undoubtedly easier than blocking it out, but something like a mechanical timer and a good quality radio means you can play music or white noise as you drift off, knowing it won't be on all night wasting electricity.
How you wake up can influence how rested you feel after sleep. In the past, human beings gradually woke up with the sun. Nowadays, we must deal with more precision in our routines and further tweaks in the form of British Summer Time. Over the years, we’ve settled for the screeching beep of alarm clocks, and even swapping those out for our phones still has a somewhat jarring effect, no matter how serene the song we choose.
Thankfully, alternatives like slow light alarms have a light that slowly brightens before sounding. This means your alarm acts like the gradual rising of the sun, waking you up gently over time rather than shocking you awake with a noise.
Another critical element of getting the best rest is being strict with a schedule.
Caffeine Cut Out – Not having caffeinated drinks past a particular time will stop them from keeping you awake. Black teas and coffee are also natural diuretics which may disturb your sleep.
Switching Off – It can be challenging, but there are clear benefits to saying goodbye to screens in the evening. A good rule of thumb is to cut out all screen time one hour before bed.
No Screen Zone – Drawing the line at the bedroom door for your electronics and ditching the pings of a phone will stop you from being woken prematurely, and reduce the stimulation of last-second scrolling.
The quality of your sleep and how you structure your space and schedule are firmly linked, so making sure you're giving yourself all the help you can is essential. Even something as simple as changing the last hour of your day can mean significant changes in how much energy you have. We hope that these tips help you get the best from your rest!
