Did you know the color of your bedroom walls could be impacting your sleep? So could the lighting or the junk stuffed under your bed or any clutter on your nightstand.
Surprised? Well, yeah, once you close your eyes you don’t see those things anymore so it seems implausible. But experts say the layout of your bedroom makes a significant difference for sleep.
Here are some tips to consider for restful bedroom design:
- Cool colors—blues, greens and greys—are restful. They reduce your heart rate, blood pressure and respiration. Warm colors—reds, oranges, yellows—are awakening. They have the opposite biological effect. So paint your room in cool colors to encourage better sleep. Muted or pastel shades of blue and green, specifically, are best.
- Symmetry creates a feeling of restfulness. So decorate your room in matching pairs. For example, matching nightstands with matching lamps on either side of the bed.
- Use a ceiling fan or open a window a crack to let air circulate. Experts agree that temperature is an important factor for sleeping. You won’t rest as well in a stuffy room that’s too hot or too cold. The ideal sleeping temperature is between 64 and 68 degrees.
- Install good-quality blinds and heavy curtains to keep light out. Our bodies naturally attune to sunlight, so in the spring when the sun rises earlier, you might be rising too—even if you don’t want to.
- Plush rugs and cushions muffle noise and cause a “soft” feeling, but carpeting can also trap invisible dust and other nastiness that you don’t want in your sleeping space. Breathing in that stuff is no good. So if you have a rug or carpet (or even hardwood for that matter), vacuuming often helps!
- Don’t feature a TV in your bedroom. The blue light keeps you awake. Instead, invest in beautiful things—art, photographs, plants, natural materials, etc.—to create a serene and lovely retreat.
- Eliminate clutter. Often, clutter on the nightstand means clutter in your brain. It’s a lot easier to drop off and stay there when everything is neat and in its place.
So yeah! Consider this your permission to have a ton of fun redecorating—in the very valid name of health and wellbeing.
Sleep tight, Urbanites!