Did you know, that approximately 12% of people dream purely in black and white?
Whether you’re not getting enough of it, your partner is getting too much of it or your children are nap dodgers we’re all guilty of obsessing about the amount of shut-eye we and our loved ones are getting.
With the average person spending around a third of their life asleep, I think it’s about time we learnt to prioritise it! I’ve done the research, so you don’t have to, and here are my favourite top tips to help you get a good night!
1. Keep your bed for sleeping
I’m guilty of this one myself but stop scrolling Instagram in bed! Put your phone across the other side of the room if the temptation to browse is too strong or at the very least turn ‘night mode’ on to protect your eyes from the blue light! Get your brain trained to know that bed, means sleep NOT scrolling.
2. Get the basics right
I know this one will seem ridiculous to those of you with children but try and tire yourself out before bed! Exercise often, eat well and make sure that you don’t get into bed until you start to feel that familiar heaviness behind the eyes. There’s nothing worse than staring at the clock waiting to fall asleep. If you find yourself trying to count sheep, get back out of bed and have a glass of water in the kitchen or read a few pages of a book on the sofa. Only head back up when you feel sleepy.
3. Set up your sleep station
I love the idea of a sleep station. Keep a few essentials on your bedside table to build a strong bedtime ritual. Hand cream, eye cream, our Relax Bedtime Mist and a Spacemask (if you haven’t tried these you really must). Think about your bedroom too – I hate going to bed in a messy bedroom. It’s distracting and stressful. Have a quick tidy up, make sure the room is dark and smells good. Basically, make sure all your senses are happy before you even try to shut your eyes!
4. Trick your circadian rhythm
Much like training a new-born to understand the difference between day and night, be outside in the bright sunlight as much as possible during the day and keep things darker when you’re heading towards bedtime. Except, it’s not as easy as that in winter in the UK! With dark mornings it can completely throw your sleep out of balance, so what about looking into a lamp that lights up like the sunrise each morning? They’re supposed to be great for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SADs) too!
At the risk of blowing my own trumpet (toot toot!) 89% of customers who have tried the products in our relax range, have said that it helped them to sleep and that is a statistic that I’m really proud of. So, if you’re struggling, please consider giving it a go and hopefully it will help you too.
I really hope these tips help you, but remember if not, there’s no shame in going to the Doctors. Sleep is so, so important.
All my love, as always!
Gem x