Turn your bedroom into a sleep haven

What is your idea of the perfect sleep haven? How do you think your bedroom and sleeping areas should look, feel, and smell? Despite our differences, most of us want the same thing, albeit with slight variations. I don’t know a lot of people who like sleeping in the middle of Times Square, with the sun shining bright and hot on them and pedestrians and commuters blaring their horns. Do you?

We all want a comfortable and relaxing bedroom and bed, a place that is the opposite of the situation that I just described above. Like me and everyone else, you want your bedroom to be free from distractions, whether in the form of sound, light, or heat. You can start with the following tips and make adjustments based on preferences.

1.     Get comfortable bed and beddings

Of course, you want your mattress, bed sheets, and pillows to be as comfortable as possible. For now, you can focus on how they feel and how well they support your body weight, but the main goal is to get something that is comfortable and doesn’t flare up any allergies.

The priorities are a well-supported mattress and comfy sheets and pillows at this stage. You can decide if you like the mattress soft or firm. Regarding pillows, it all depends on your favorite sleeping position. I hope you remember enough about sleeping positions from our conversation in chapter one.

If you like sleeping on your back or stomach, go for lower pillows. This prevents straining the neck and spine, thus avoiding back pain. If you prefer sleeping on your sides, a bigger pillow will be more appropriate. It provides enough height to avoid positioning the head at an irregular angle.

2.     Clean and arrange your bedroom

I don’t know about you, but it’s hard for me to relax when there is clutter around me. It stresses me out, making it difficult to relax, sleep, or think.

The only solution is to get rid of that clutter. It is simple. A clean space relaxes the mind. Your eyes don’t have to wander around all the disorder, stressing your mind and making it harder for it to unwind. You don’t even have to see the clutter. Knowing what is in your room is enough to trigger your mind. Avoid all these by cleaning your room, and you will see just how much of an impact this simple trick can have on your sleep, mood, and productivity during the day.

3.     Keep your bedroom cool

When it is time for bed, you want your bedroom to be at 60-67° Fahrenheit. Now, there is no need to set up a thermometer. Take control of your fan or AC unit to reduce the temperature until it is cool enough. It is easier to fall and stay asleep in a cool environment.

4.     Keep your bedroom dark when it’s time to sleep

There are no specific recommendations for how dark the room should be. The aim is to tell your biological clock that it’s time to fall asleep. Plus, it prevents bright lights from disrupting your sleep. The first thing you need to do is control the lighting in your bedroom. Some people like to turn off the lights when ready to sleep.

I think it’s more efficient to set up dim lighting for use in the evenings. This ensures that you aren’t bombarded with sleep-disrupting bright lights if you wake for a bathroom break. To do this, you can buy lights that include dimmers or set up a different light to use in the evening. Or you can get a sleep mask.

The next thing is to reduce lights coming from outside into your bedroom to prevent them from ruining all the work that you have put in up to this point. Heavy shades will get the job done.

5.     Keep things peaceful and quiet

Noise is another factor that can prevent you from getting a good night's rest. I will assume that you have probably made measures to get rid of noise when trying to sleep. But instead of simply trying to cut out these disturbances, there are extra measures you can take. That includes getting headphones or earplugs.

But you can go the extra step by actually introducing the right kind of noise into your sleeping area. Try an ambient or white noise machine. If you don’t have a lot of cash to burn, play something on your phone or stereo system. It could be sleep-inducing music or sounds. Remember to keep it soft and calming. You can also set it for 30 minutes or an hour so it stops playing sometime after you have fallen asleep.

This article is an excerpt from the book “How to Sleep Faster Better Smarter Naturally".