As we step into March, we’re embracing Sleep Month - a time to reflect on the importance of rest and how it impacts our daily lives. With the days growing longer and the promise of spring in the air, it’s the perfect moment to refresh not just our homes but our sleep routines too. To help us do just that, we’ve enlisted the expertise of Dr Allie Hare, consultant in sleep medicine and Co-Founder of Grace London Clinic.
1. Spring Clean Your Bed
Although the majority of us recognise the importance of regularly washing our sheets, it is also important to ensure our beds are kept hygienically clean. Mattresses can harbour dead skin, dust mites and dirt and regular cleaning of your mattress will help to extend its lifespan as well as reduce the chance of allergies, which can impact your sleep.
Remember to turn your mattress regularly to ensure adequate support for your neck, hips and spine. This is also a great time of year to switch your bedding to something that can help regulate your body temperature overnight: natural fibres like cotton, linen and bamboo can help keep you cool during the night, key to maintaining quality sleep.
2. Keep it Clean in the Daytime
Getting a good night’s sleep starts in the daytime! Try to get at least 15 minutes of daylight exposure each day. This helps to regulate your circadian rhythm, which is crucial to ensure you fall asleep and waken when you need to. Move daily for at least 30 minutes: you don’t need to get to a gym to achieve this – go for a walk or follow an online programme at home, whatever you enjoy you are more likely to stick to!
Limit caffeine and alcohol. Caffeine stays in your system for hours and can continue to disrupt your sleep throughout the night: a good rule of thumb is to switch to decaffeinated beverages from lunchtime. Whilst a “nightcap” may help you fall asleep faster, studies show alcohol significantly disrupts your sleep later in the night and particularly reduces your REM sleep: crucial for memory and problem solving. Finally, avoid heavy meals just before bedtime: this can interfere with digestion and cause reflux: try to eat earlier in the evening if your main meal is dinner, or have something lighter if you need to eat later.
3. Clean Up Your Bedtime Routine
We’ve all heard the advice on avoiding screens before bedtime but in fact, the latest research shows this is less about blue light exposure and more about what we are looking at on our screens. The key is to be able to “put the day to bed before you go to bed”: switching off is therefore about more than just turning on a blue light filter on your device. Find some time to wind down before you turn out the lights and you are more likely to fall asleep reliably when you do decide to go to sleep.
Try Progressive Muscle Relaxation: a mindfulness-based relaxation strategy that helps calm your mind and relax your body. There are audios to guide you through the process available on YouTube, or simply download a script and do it yourself. If you still find your busy mind is preventing you sleeping, try using Constructive Worry. This method involves designating a time before bedtime to think through and solve worries, concerns, and problems so that your mind is clear when you are in bed, helping you to sleep through more easily.
4. Spring Clean Your Routine
One of the biggest problems I see in my clinics is an irregular bed and wake schedule. Our bodies and brains need to “re-set” their clock daily to keep on track, because most of us have an internal clock which is set slightly longer than our artificial clocks are. We can achieve this easily by going to bed at around the same time each night and getting up at about the same time each morning. If you can achieve this at least 5 nights per week, you will see real benefits in terms of your ability to fall asleep and stay asleep and your sleep quality.
Follow these simple tips for the next few weeks and you’ll be full of the joys of spring in no time!
