Everyone knows a good nights sleep is vital for a productive day. Being well rested improves your health, happiness, and concentration, making you ready to take on the world. But while we hear a lot about creating a good sleep routine before bed, people forget the importance of creating a positive sleep environment. Read below for our tips on making your bedroom a soothing place to snooze.
Get the Lighting Right
The best thing for sleep is to cut out as much light as possible. Your brain associates the darkness with sleep, so too much light can confuse it and keep it awake. Studies have shown people sleep up to 50% better when the light in the bedroom is diminished – so turn off lamps, nightlights, and phone screens.
Invest in blackout blinds or curtains to block out any light from outside, ensuring your sleep isn’t disturbed by streetlights (or your lie in is ended by bright sunshine!).
Clear Out Clutter
A good nights sleep starts with a clear, calm mind. If your brain only associates the bedroom with sleep, it’s more likely to kick into sleep mode when you lie down for some shut-eye.
If you can, try and keep work items and exercise equipment in another room, so you don’t spot these objects and start worrying.
And, of course, ditch the electronics if you can bear it. Watching TV or scrolling on your laptop before sleep can stimulate the mind when you need it to relax, and screens emit blue light that tricks the body into slowing down production of the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin.
Keep Quiet and Cool
The brain is a powerful tool, and it can quite quickly tell if the conditions aren’t quite right. Outside influences such as noise and heat will alert your brain and awaken the senses associated with those feelings.
Keeping those in check in the key to a consistent, high-quality sleep, but we all know how hard that can be.
Getting the right blinds will take the pressure off your body and brain, allowing you the space to relax and rest. Add a lining to your window coverings that block outside noise, and keeps the room feeling cool – we offer lining options for a selection of our popular ranges.
Get Comfy!
A comfy bed is vital for a good night of rest. A bed that’s too hard or too soft can result in back or neck aches or keep you tossing and turning searching for a comfortable position to sleep in.
You spend a third of your life asleep – so it’s worth investing in a good bed. Most mattresses last between 8-10 years – make sure you change yours once it’s past the end of its life.
Get Smart with your Schedule
Getting your brain into a routine is key to getting a good night of sleep – and your curtains and blinds can help create your schedule.
Automating your blinds to close at bedtime and open with the natural light in the morning can help get your body used to a sleep routine – so you begin to relax and unwind in time for bed, or wake gradually as light fills your room.
With our Somfy automated system you can set your blinds and curtains to match your schedule and create the mood that helps you relax before bed.