HIBERNATE IN STYLE THIS WINTER
Winter has set in so get ready for those longer nights, shorter days and lower temperatures. All of these can make it difficult to get the best night’s sleep and start your morning in the right way. Here, Hypnos offers its top tips to help you adjust when the clocks have gone back and transform your bedroom into the perfect, peaceful sleeping haven – no matter what time the clock says.
1. Comfort is king
Topping our list is comfort, because only a comfortable night’s sleep will give you sufficient rest, allowing you to wake up feeling rejuvenated the following day. And it’s not only your mattress you need to consider - choose fresh, clean pillows made with natural materials to help keep allergies at bay, and make sure they suit you and your sleeping position, ensuring your head and neck are fully supported.
Likewise, by adding a comfort layer to a mattress you can create or enhance that feeling of absolute luxury, ensuring you will never want to get out of bed on those cold winter nights.
2. Remember, the higher the tog the higher the temperature
It’s better not to overheat when sleeping, in fact being too warm can adversely affect the quality of our sleep. However if you like to be toasty and warm your bedding is one of the best places to start! A tog is the way we measure the flow of heat between two surfaces of material, particularly for duvets, and the higher the tog the warmer you will be. During the colder season, choose a 13.5 tog duvet and add lots of layers of beautiful bedding to increase the flow of heat. To create the ultimate cosy bed, wrap yourself up in a 16.5 tog duvet for the ultimate winter warmer.
3. Bed time
One of the hardest parts of the winter season is the darker mornings and evenings and the change in timings which can throw your sleep pattern off kilter. Try to keep to the same timings every day and factor in at least 30 minutes of exercise or activity, it will help you regulate your circadian rhythm and thus naturally settle into sleep.
4. Getting up - time the heating
The cold can have a big impact on getting out of bed in the morning and mean the difference between getting up or feeling as though you want to stay under that duvet for longer! Set your heating system to switch on 15-20 minutes before you’re due to wake up - you’ll be surprised at the difference it could make to your mood in the morning.
5. Let in the light
Once you’ve made it out of bed, open the curtains and blinds to let in as much natural light as possible. If you have the option, go outside and breathe in some fresh air while soaking up the sunlight. The light will help to stimulate your brain, releasing neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin which elevate your mood. If you have to be up before the sun, try waking up with a light emitting alarm clock. These clocks mimic a sunrise to gently wake you up ‘naturally’ with light.