The connection between romance and sleep is a familiar one. Think Sleeping Beauty, “beauty sleep,” Snow White, the Princess and the Pea…
But apparently this connection isn’t just the stuff of fairy tales.
According to a new study, sleep and romance are linked in a very clear way for women—no wicked witches or tiny green veggies required. Getting more sleep can improve women’s sex lives (and it likely follows, the sex lives of their partners).
The New York Times just reported that researchers found sleeping longer increased desire and response for women in romantic relationships. It also contributed to a higher likelihood that they’d get it on the next day, as well as more, ahem, fun.
The study assessed 171 women’s sleep quality and duration as well as their sex lives over two weeks. It found that each additional hour of sleep increased sex drive by 14 percent.
Researchers found this even after controlling for a bunch of factors including age, sexual distress, daytime feelings of happiness or sadness and fatigue.
This link between sex and sleep makes sense in a lot of ways. We know that sleep quality and amount impacts our moods, health and energy in other ways, so why not this one, too?
Indeed, there’s other evidence that sleep affects hanky-panky. The Better Sleep Council conducted a survey in 2012 that found six out of 10 Americans crave sleep more than sex and some admitted to falling asleep during the act. Yeesh.
There’s a gender disparity—58 percent of men crave sex more than sleep, while that number is a much smaller 21 percent among women. Women, meanwhile, crave sleep more (79 percent would rather sleep than have sex, while for men the number is 42 percent). With that in mind, it doesn’t take a huge leap of faith to believe that getting more sleep helps.
Of course sleep alone isn’t a cure-all for relationship problems. But, you know, we all just do what we can.
Prior research has shown pre-bedtime sex to be a very effective way to guarantee a better night’s sleep. So now the feedback loop is complete: More sleep = more sex; more sex = more sleep. Seems like a win-win.
So there you go. Tell your partner. Just one more reason why bed is an awesome place to be…
Sleep tight, Urbanites!