Top tips to help you sleep in the summer
A guest post to help you sleep in the summer by Nina from Nightire Sleepwear.
This UK summer has definitely not been filled with the most amount of steamy days, but the ones that are few and far between have left us hot under the covers, and not for any exciting reasons. “Temperature is quite important for your ability to sleep, and that’s an underestimated factor,” says Matthew Ebben, PhD and assistant professor in the Department of Neurology and Neuroscience at NYP/Weill Cornell Center for Sleep Medicine. “Part of your biological rhythms include a cooling of your body as you’re sleeping during the night,” If it’s hot out, your body cannot cool down as needed for sleep to set in, so it might take you longer to fall asleep if heat is not released from your body pre-bedtime.
But don’t sweat it, pun intended. Nina Clark, the founder of Nightire Sleepwear, has rounded up a few tips on how to tackle the burn when you’re in need of a good snooze.
How to sleep in the summer when it is hot
These tips should help you get a good night sleep in the summer even when it is hot!
Cool your bedding
Place your sheets and/or pyjamas in the freezer for a couple of minutes before bedtime – even though that lovely cold sensation won’t last throughout the night, it’s a quick and easy tweak to ensure you start the night cool as can be.
Use your fan well
Grab some ice, pop it in a shallow bowl and place this in front of your fan. The air will chill as it travels over the ice, making the air nice and refreshing as it hits you. I promise this will really help you to sleep in the summer!
Don’t exercise
Avoid exercise before bedtime, because getting your heart rate up can boost metabolism and raise your body temperature.
Dress your windows well
During the day, when the sunlight hits your room, keep your windows closed and blinds drawn. By keeping the light out of your room, you prevent heat from building up inside as the day wears on.
Bathe or shower
Hot showers or baths can actually help cool you down. Here’s the thinking – if you heat up your body before going to sleep (with a hot shower or bath), then subsequently get out of said shower or bath into cooler air, your body’s temperature will cool down and you will find yourself growing sleepy (cool body = sleepy body).
Drink water
Drink plenty of water prior to bed to counter the sweating you might do during the night, but obviously not too much that you are up often for loo breaks. Try to avoid alcohol as much as possible for about four hours before bed, because it can dehydrate you in the middle of the night.
The right night wear
Wear moisture-wicking pyjamas that are made of natural fabrics. Bamboo, the fabric that is used at Nightire for all sleepwear, sleep accessories and bedding, does exactly that – moisture is pulled away from the surface of your skin and wicked away from the fabric so it’s not absorbed (important as fabrics that absorb moisture will have you sleeping in drenched PJs all night). So, in Nightire, you will stay cool when it’s hot and cosy when it’s cold out. All in all, the perfect fabric for any time of year.
Check out the Nightire website for all their products and go and follow them on Instagram too!