It’s no secret how important quality sleep is. Aside from some healthy exercise and eating well, quality sleep is one of the key pillars that supports healthy living. It’s pretty shocking then that only 45% of Australian adults say they are ‘satisfied’ with their sleep and only 20% report enjoying an uninterrupted night’s sleep. That’s a lot of lost zzz’s!
So how do you improve your sleep? There’re many ways, like creating a bedtime routine and being consistent with it. Regular exercise, avoiding stimulants like caffeine, not taking your phone to bed, buying the right bedding etc. However, one often overlooked way to increase the likelihood of sleeping success is to create a sleep friendly bedroom environment that’s conducive to deep restful shut eye. Here are some ways to make your bedroom the sleep sanctuary you need it to be.
Room Design To Ease The Mind When you walk into your bedroom do you feel a sense of peace and calmness? If the answer’s ‘no’ then you need to take action. Consider the colour scheme in your bedroom. A neutral colour palette can feel calming where as a bright colour can be over stimulating. Declutter. Having a cluttered bedroom can prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep. Neuroscience researchers found clearing clutter from your home (and in this case the bedroom) leads to better ability to process information, less stress and reduced anxiety. Make your bed! A tidy clean bedroom means a ‘clean’ (less anxious) mind! Try shuffling your room around and altering where your bed faces. According to ancient traditions like ‘Vastu Shastra’ the best direction to sleep in is toward the south, meaning that when you lie in bed your head is pointed south and your feet are pointed north. There’s no harm in giving it a try!
Sounds Of Silence Seems pretty obvious but keeping your sleeping area as quiet as possible is pretty important. Certain sounds indicate to your brain it’s time to be on alert and will prevent you from falling asleep, which is another good reason to keep your phone away from your bedroom! Same goes for television. If you need background noise to help you fall asleep, try leaving a small fan on or use a sound machine – ambient, mellow sound helps best. Of course, there’s always earplugs!
Let It Flow And Keep Your Cool Our body temperature naturally reduces at night and during sleep so keeping your room cooler can help the sleep process. Good indoor air quality also helps reduce sleep disruptions and sleep disorders like sleep apnoea. Along with an uncluttered room, introducing plants can help to elevate calmness and help to clean your bedroom air. Sleep with the windows open (where possible) to let fresh air flow. Keep your floors clean (whether it be a good mop or vacuum) any dust build up can affect your air quality and breathing. Similarly, make sure you eradicate any potential mould issues in bedrooms, mould can be disastrous not just to your sleep but to your overall health. Wash your sheets! No point in getting the rest of your room all clean if your sheets are harbouring bacteria, dust mites or dirt, clean sheets improve air quality.
Fresh Sheets = Bliss For Your Sleep! The National Sleep Foundation found that 73% of people sleep better on clean sheets. Particularly those that had a clean, compelling fresh scent. It stands to reason, when you use a quality laundry liquid like Linen Savvy to wash away bacteria, sweat and odours as well as infuse a fresh fragrance, it will increase your chance of sleeping success. Choosing a premium natural hypoallergenic laundry wash that already has a built-in softener and is devoid of irritating chemicals like Linen Savvy, will make your sheets super soft, more comfortable, remove skin sensitives and enhances the feeling of nurture with a fresh clean naturally derived fragrance minus any toxins or allergens.
Get Scents-ible There’s nothing better than sliding into bed with fresh clean smelling sheets in a room with a calming aroma. But you really do need to be picky about what kind of aroma’s you introduce to your bedroom. Not all fragrances are conducive to a deep sleep or created using naturally derived ingredients. It’s very important to avoid anything in your bedroom with synthetic fragrances in it. Many people find the chemicals in synthetic fragrance cause breathing issues, skin sensitivities and sometimes even nausea.
Bon Savvy knows a thing or two about crafting scents that accompany you to bed and when you experience mindfully designed, natural sophisticated fragrance in your bedroom whether it be via room spray, linen spray or the fragrance within your laundry liquid (that you’ve washed your sheets in) it’s not just better for your sleep, its pure pleasure. Our fragrances are created to make you feel loved, nurtured, uplifted and reduce anxiousness which greatly contributes to a deeper sleep. For convenience we’ve specifically designed a unique fragrance layering system where our Le’ Savvy Mists for Linen | Room | Body matches the scents within our Laundry Liquid’s (In this instance we would use our Linen Savvy and Charmant Mist set). You can easily create your own sleep haven by washing your bedding in our specially curated washes and then layering fragrance by spraying your sheets, pillow and room with the matching scent.
So how often should I wash my sheets? It’s generally recommended to wash your sheets weekly; not just for cleanliness but for good sleep hygiene. Did you know the human body sheds 1.5 million skin cells per hour? And when you think that mixed with bacteria, sweat and dust mites, the thought of being proactive in keeping your bed sheets clean takes on a whole new meaning for your health and well-being as much as for achieving better sleep. Don’t forget to get outside! Hanging your washed sheets outside on the line to dry works best for adding a natural added freshness to your sheets, in a way that the dryer simply can’t.
Not All Bed Sheets Are Created Equal! Choose your bedding to suit your sleep goals. Your choices could help the planet too! The fabric your sheets are made from really does matter. Some fabrics can trap heat making sleep uncomfortable, others can be scratchy and even irritating to the skin. We always recommend choosing a natural fabric, it’s better for the environment (sustainably made fabrics always are) but it’s the best choice for comfort, breathability, temperature regulation and your skin. Don’t forget however, that natural fabrics require proper care. There’s no point in investing in beautiful natural fibre bedsheets if you then go and wash them in standard chemical-laden laundry detergents. Standard detergents are not made for the needs of natural fibres and will reduce their lifespan and destroy the feel that you love them for. Linen Savvy is your natural bed partner, it’s made specifically for natural fibres and saves you the worry with keeping them soft, beautifully scented and lasting longer.
Now’s the time to prioritise YOU and your well-being. Start by choosing even just one of these simple ideas above and happy dreaming!
