Create A Sleep-Friendly Bedroom Environment

You can’t get proper rest and maintain your health if your bedroom is not a sleep-friendly environment. If you associate your bedroom with too many non-sleep activities (home office, snack bar, family recreation center), it then becomes a center of action instead of a place of rest.

Sleep-Friendly Bedroom Tips

Here are a few tips to create a room fit for a good healthy slumber.

1. Keep the room as dark as possible, as your body perceives light as a call to action. Consider blackout shades or an eye mask.

2. Keep the nighttime temperature in the mid-60’s. Research shows this to be the optimal sleep temperature range, as a too hot or too cold room causes people to wake from the deeper stages of sleep.

3. Keep noise to a minimum. If you can’t eliminate noise, try ear plugs or white-noise devices.

4. Maintain a comfortable mattress. The larger the sleep surface, the better. A worn-out mattress set can be a major contributor to grogginess and morning aches and pains. A bed wears out gradually, so if your sleep set is more than 8-10 years old you should consider a replacement.

5. Keep the relative humidity below 50%. A too-humid sleep environment negatively impacts your ability to achieve restorative slumber and is often overlooked, as people focus solely upon room temperature.

6. Don’t bring work into the bedroom. Using your computer in bed associates that with work and stress, and not the restful haven it should be.

7. Minimize/eliminate electronic use. Don’t bring cell phone/tablets to bed. Their use stimulates the brain and makes it more difficult to begin sleep. Also consider removing your television from the master bedroom should you have one.

8. Keep a notepad on your nightstand. If there is anything you’re trying to remember before going to sleep, write it down. Doing so frees your mind to drift off.

The Better Sleep Council advises that you limit your bedroom to as few non-bedtime activities as possible, as you may have trouble switching mental gears when it is finally time for sleep.