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A good night's sleep is key to maintaining our mental and physical health—but it can be hard to stick to a nighttime routine in times of stress and uncertainty.
Try these three tips to get the most out of your sleep tonight and save energy while you slumber.
1. Turn down your thermostat at night
When you start to get drowsy, your body temperature naturally lowers by one to two degrees to prepare itself for sleep. If your bedroom is too warm, it can interfere with your body’s natural dip and can make it difficult to doze off and sleep soundly throug the night.
Research suggests that setting your home’s temperature to 16 – 19°C, is ideal, but adjust it to your personal preference until you find the sweet spot.
2. Wake up with the (simulated) sun
If you’re finding it harder and harder to drag yourself out of bed in the morning, it could have something to do with how you’re being woken up. If you rely on the screeching of an alarm to jolt yourself awake, you’ll be more likely to feel tired throughout the rest of the day. Instead, try swapping out the standard lightbulb in your bedside lamp for a smart bulb that mimics a sunrise to gradually wake you up.
These bulbs slowly get brighter over a period of 30-40 minutes to gently wake you up and leave you feeling energized for the day ahead. As an added bonus, many of these smart bulbs are more energy efficient than standard incandescents, which means you’ll be conserving energy while you sleep.
3. Say no to screen time before bed
We’ve all done it - watched just one more episode of our favourite show before bed or scrolled through our phone while snuggled under the covers. But did you know this could be causing you to have restless nights? The blue light from the screen of your computer, phone or TV mimics daylight, stimulating your brain and tricking your body into thinking it needs to stay awake. Try unplugging and powering down at least 30 minutes before you head to bed and avoid bringing your devices with you.
Sources: National Sleep Foundation, Sleep.org
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