How does your sleep environment look right now? Is it conducive for sleep or not? Having a healthy sleep environment is vital to help you transition to rest faster. Or what will keep you from turning and tossing all night?
Sleep environments can be different when you travel or on a prolonged flight, but the bedroom at home is your most used sleep environment. Therefore, you need to choose the best features to improve your bedroom space. Below are five things to help you optimize your bedroom for better and quality sleep.
1. Mattress and bedding
Every individual has options for how they choose to sleep. Thus, there is no right way to go about it. These variations relate to cultural practices, personal preference, financial situations, among other factors. Therefore, you need to consider the quality of your mattress and if it’s more than seven years since you bought it.
Consider the mattress comparisons to purchase a new one. Also, what type of bedding cover-ups do you prefer. No matter what you go for, ensure your comfort is key. Plus, mattresses and comfortable beddings are starters to quality and quantity sleep.
2. Noise
It is easier to sleep in a quiet place. People respond to external stimuli while they are sleeping, and it is better to control the noise around them when it is time to sleep. Therefore, if you have a noisy neighbor or a snoring partner, all these are less desirable. The disadvantage of hearing noise when sleeping is you come out of deep sleep even though you do not become fully conscious.
And the lack of restful deep sleep causes you to wake up tired. Therefore, it is best to keep things quiet to sleep better. For instance, you can use a white noise machine, put the radio on low volume, or wear earplugs to drown out the noise.
3. Lighting
The light you have in your bedroom during your sleep time impacts how you sleep. Thus, it is best to sleep in the dark, and for safety reasons, you can have a nightlight. This applies to those working at night as well, for the body’s circadian rhythm follows a dark-light cycle to help you sleep and wake up. Morning light is essential to help you wake up. But screen light exposure from devices at night will cause insomnia as it keeps you awake.
Therefore, take an hour to power down before bedtime to help you fall asleep faster.
4. Temperature
What is the ideal temperature for you to sleep at your best? Most individuals prefer an environment of a cool temperature. You may love burying yourself in blankets or not covering at all, but no matter your preference in sleeping, you know you want to be at the right temperature.
If you wake up drenched in sweat or shivering, the temperature of your bedroom is the issue. The problem with these wavering temperatures is it disrupts your sleep. Two hours before you go to sleep, your body temperature dips. So you need to know this to adjust your sleeping environment to an ideal temperature before you sleep.
If you are too hot, have fewer coverings. And if you are too cold, add more beddings to cover yourself and stabilize the temperature. If you are an insomniac, take a shower or warm bath an hour before bedtime to cool you off and help you sleep.
5. Preserving the sleep environment
People with space constraints might have to use the bedroom as a multipurpose room. Some people may need to sleep with their pets or have a television in the room. Yet the bedroom is best when it is a relaxing space and not a source of stimulation or stress.
According to the guidelines for good sleep, bedrooms are spaces to sleep and for sex, not any other activity. Avoid working there, hosting friends, eating there, among other things. You will end up associating it with these activities.
Remove gaming systems, televisions, computers, and other gadgets from your sleep environment. In this way, you fall asleep easier. Thus, as a result, you sleep less and go through poor sleep quality.
