Something I routinely tell my patients is that we want to think of our bedrooms as “pleasant caves.” A cave, by nature, is quiet, dark and cool. I add in “pleasant” simply because I want it to be somewhere you genuinely enjoy spending time.
As winter is now here in many parts of the world (we just had our first snowstorm here in the NYC area!), paying more attention to your sleep environment and creating a “cave-like” feel can really pay off when it comes to optimizing your sleep.
What Is Melatonin?
Good sleepers’ bodies have a circadian rhythm (aka your “body clock”) that begins to release melatonin naturally from the brain’s pineal gland about 2 hours before their routine bedtime. Melatonin, commonly referred to by sleep specialists as “the hormone of darkness,” helps to signal to our body that sleep should soon be coming. As the night progresses, our brain continues to release melatonin until around 2 hours before we awaken in the morning. Melatonin needs a dark and cool environment (hence the “dark” and “cool” recommendations for the pleasant cave) to be at peak and do its sleep-inducing work. As we ease into the nighttime, we need to begin cooling our environment to help enhance melatonin’s release.
Lower That Thermostat!
I am often asked what the “optimal” temperature is at night for sleep, and while there isn’t a perfect number (mostly because one specific temperature can feel different based on the humidity levels) , generally keeping the room between 64 – 70 degrees Fahrenheit, even going up to 72 degrees, is great. But higher than that can really hinder your body’s release of melatonin and cause your sleep at night to be restless – even worsening issues like hot flashes and night sweats that many women routinely suffer from.
Warm Up First to Cool Down Later
Keeping the bedroom cool is really useful to help with enhancing the body’s natural process, but while doing that, you can risk having cold extremities when trying to fall asleep. And of course, having cold feet and hands ends up making it even more challenging to fall asleep! You don’t want to warm your body up too much just before bed, as that then goes against what you’re trying to achieve with cooling off, but having the bed warmed up with a Bedsure GentleSoft® Ribbed Heated Blanket can help to encourage quicker nighttime comfort, warm extremities, and lead to relaxation. And the best part is that you don’t have to raise the whole bedroom’s temperature. Shortly afterwards, I’m cozy and warm and turn off the blanket to continue cooling off my body as I sleep.
Cooling Bedding as Extra Assurance
As a sleep specialist who works with peri/menopausal women routinely, night sweats and hot flashes are a major issue that I hear about daily from my patients (and I experience it myself, too!). Selecting cooling, moisture-wicking sheets is essential here and Bedsure’s GentleSoft® Rayon Derived From Bamboo Sheet Set. It is perfect for hot sleepers, cool to the touch, extremely soft and silky, and completely free of harmful chemicals with deep 16-inch pockets that stay in place even for a restless sleeper. All wonderful things that are ideal for anyone who struggles with staying cool and dry as the night progresses. Waking up and having to change sheets because they’re soaked can only worsen nighttime sleep, making it harder to fall back asleep at night.
Always Make the Bed Inviting
On top of the cooling sheets, I still need a great, cozy, soft comforter that invites me into bed – creating that “pleasant” cave I mentioned earlier. The Bedsure GentleSoft® Prewashed Plain Comforter is fluffly, with cotton-like softness that is really easy to care for and doesn’t lose it’s softness even with repeated washes. I have very sensitive skin, and the fabric leaves me irritation-free. It comes in tons of colors and sizes as well, making it an extremely versatile product to finish off any bed.
Do a Room Audit
I encourage you to think about your room and do an audit of what you can potentially change this winter to help further your “pleasant cave” environment that optimizes your sleep. Is your room quiet? If not, are there ways you can mitigate the noise? What about dark? Can you get some better shades? Use an eye mask? And if your room isn’t cool enough at night – would specific products help to promote cooling off throughout the night be useful? Can you start with a warm blanket that shuts off and then let some cooling sheets help? Can you make the bedroom colder while also using a heated blanket at the beginning of your sleep period to help keep your body temperature and extremities nice and cozy as you encourage your core body temperature to slowly drop? Sometimes manipulating the small variables like light, touch, temperature and sound can make a big impact to a restful night’s sleep.
