Sleep better & feel better this winter

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The average person will spend approximately 25 years sleeping, and with good reason. Whoever said ‘sleep is for the weak’ certainly hasn’t experienced the joys of being horizontal on a Sunday morning.  I wonder if there’s a stat out there for the amount of time people daydream of their bed whilst at work? I can only imagine that would be immeasurable. And how many times have you had that late night social media craving? You’ve scrolled on Instagram for an extra 5 minutes, which morphs into an hour (and a half) and then feel completely rubbish in the morning when you’re pressing snooze for the too-manyieth time.

Well, they do say you only know what you’ve got when it’s gone, and I think sleep is SO important to make sure I’m happy for the day! It’s time to focus on waking up in the morning feeling refreshed, not wanting to sleep for 5 minutes longer, and certainly not relying on your good friend coffee to pick up all the pieces. The positive effects that a great night’s sleep can have on your well-being are hard to ignore, so here are my top 5 tips for sleeping like a baby…

Tea and coffee curfews

You may think curfews are for children, but it never hurts to have a little self discipline, especially when it comes to caffeine. If you’re anything like me, you really love a good brew tucked up in bed— sorry friends, this has to stop. It turns out that while coffee is our primary suspect for caffeine consumption,  that crafty hug in a mug we know as tea can contain over half as much. Try and decide a suitable time to have your last sip, for me, tea is prohibited after 6pm. Well, I’m sure I could have a hot chocolate instead..!

Flight-mode the phone

A phone is no longer simply a phone, it’s your portal to another dimension these days. With emails, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest at the mere touch of button, your social self-control is constantly being tested. Even if if you’re not planning on touching your phone, push notifications are there to persuade you otherwise! Turning your phone onto flight-mode or ‘do not disturb’ is a way of avoiding temptation and leaving the ‘likes’ for the morning.

Be posture savvy

How many of you have woke up in the morning with a stiff neck, a sore back, and cramp in your leg? We’re effectively horizontal for eight hours per night, and if this was eight hours vertical (although that would be weird if we were sleeping upright!) we’d be weary of our posture. Whilst different sleeping positions work for different people, we should all aim to maintain the curve in our lower back— a top tip for maintaining this is to place a pillow between legs just under your knees. I also make sure that my pillow isn’t too pouffy otherwise I get a crick in my neck the following morning.

Find the right mattress

You can’t have a great sleep on an awful mattress, it just ain’t happening. Don’t they say that investing in beds and shoes is important because if you’re not in one, you’re in the other? Is that the saying? Whilst beds can be expensive, considering you’re spending 25 years in one, it’s pretty important to get the right one for you. In some cases, this might mean ditching the generic one-size-fits-all and opting for an Adjustable bed, like the ones at Adjustamatic, who also specialise in riser recliner chairs, for those of us who love a power-nap between our food during the festive period.

Keep it dark

This sounds like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many people leave lit electrical items in their room on overnight. An open laptop, a TV on standby, an extension lead— switch it all off and avoid any light as a distraction. Melatonin is a hormone controlled by light exposure which helps your sleep cycle, so the darker it is, the more your brain will secrete melatonin, making you more sleepy.

I hope that these ideas help you get a good nights sleep and that you feel well rested throughout the festive period. Please tweet me @cassiefairy or leave me a comment below if you have any other top tips for a comfortable night’s sleep, I’d love to hear your ideas.

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