If you’ve spent the night tossing and turning and reaching for coffee to shake off the fog, consider these tips for a calmer, more restorative sleep during the heat of summer.
Have you endured more than a few sleepless nights lately? The upside of warmer days is real, yet the steamy nights offer little relief when you lie awake. Here are practical tips and tricks that people in hotter climates use to sleep well through the summer.
Prepare
To begin with, there are steps you can take during the day to help keep your bedroom a touch cooler once night falls. The pull to fling open the curtains and bask in bright sunshine can be strong, but if your room tends to heat up during daylight, keep the blinds or curtains shut. This simple move limits daytime warming. When possible, it’s handy to keep windows on the shady side of the house open and those on the sunny side closed.
Store away the heavy duvet, and try sleeping with just a sheet. Keep a light blanket nearby to cover yourself if you get chilly, since adding lighter layers is easier than wrestling with one heavy cover. Another tweak worth considering is swapping a large fluffy pillow for a firmer, smaller one, because fluffier pillows trap more heat.
Before bed
Evenings that feel pleasantly warm may tempt you to have a few drinks, but alcohol interferes with your body’s ability to regulate temperature, and dehydration makes you more prone to restlessness and overheating. Alternate each alcoholic beverage with a glass of water, and try to finish drinking well before you go to bed. Similarly, late-night meals keep your digestive system active overnight, so aim to have your last bite a few hours before sleep. To fall asleep, your body temperature should drop about half a degree below your waking temperature.
A lukewarm shower can help cool your body, but steer clear of a cold shower, which can wake you up rather than calm you. Choose loose cotton nightwear that lets your skin breathe, instead of fabrics that trap heat.
If you’re tossing and turning
During the day, set aside some ice bottles to freeze for use at night—an ice pack works, or you can fill a hot water bottle (just be mindful that water expands, so don’t overfill). Now is the time to retrieve them from the freezer to help cool your bed. Keeping your face cool can also aid sleep. Try dampening a cloth with ice-cold water and applying it to your face and neck as needed for relief.
If you have a fan, aim it toward your face to help you stay cool, but don’t place it too close as that could feel uncomfortable. Alternatively, position the fan so it blows toward an open window with your bed between them, creating a cross breeze. If there’s no outside breeze and the air is stifling, you can make a makeshift cooler by placing a tray of ice in front of the fan.
Of course you can try all of this and still wake up feeling exhausted from a restless night. In that case, embrace the pleasant weather and enjoy a siesta during the day.
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