How to Set the Stage for a Healthy Sleep Routine
A night of great sleep is an essential component of mental and physical health, but after a busy day of non-stop activity, it can be hard to wind down and fall asleep. While there is no universal way to guarantee sleep success, setting the stage with a healthy sleep routine will have you leveling up the quality of your sleep in no time.
Make your Bed an Oasis
Has your bed become your second office while working from home over the past couple of years? Leave the laptop, streaming apps, etc., for the living room. Going technology-free in the bedroom may seem like a significant change, but the results are ease of restfulness and better sleep quality thanks to increased melatonin. So instead, turn your bedroom into a sleep oasis that beckons every night with a high-quality mattress from Fairmont. The Fairmont Signature Bed from Sealy Stearns & Foster is made-to-order with gel-infused memory foam and breathable silk and wool fiber cover that will set the stage for that vacation-like sleep you need.
Shift your Sleep Mindset
If you dread bedtime due to a fractured sleep pattern, it’s time to shift that mindset. Viewing your sleep as the final item to check off a long list of things to do during the day is not doing you any favors in the sleep department. Instead, envision setting yourself up with seven to nine hours of sleep for a healthy and productive day tomorrow.
Nix Naps
Naps can be a catch-22 when it comes to sleep. While well intentioned, a nap during the day can sabotage a successful night's sleep by throwing off your bedtime. What’s more, longer naps tend to leave you with a groggy rather than a refreshed feeling. It’s best to avoid napping during the day, but if you have to nap (parents of infants, we hear you), try to make it a cat nap or shorter nap between 10-20 minutes in duration and before 3 pm so as not to disturb your sleep cycle.
Pick the Perfect Pillow
Choosing the ideal pillow to support your head and neck provides an elevated level of comfort as well as surprising benefits for your skin. If you can, try to sleep on your back, this will relieve pressure on your spine and is also an essential technique to prevent the wrinkles that can ensue from the pressure of laying on one side of your face. When assessing a new pillow, look to one that creates a neutral spine alignment for the best sleep and avoid that dreaded crooked neck situation that can plague your day. Standard in Fairmont hotels, the Feather and Down Pillow is the perfect combination of feathers for support and down for comfort that will have you drifting off to vacation-like sleep in no time.
Stick to a Regular Bedtime
After a few late nights on the weekend, the process of falling asleep at a decent hour on Sunday can be daunting. Your internal clock or circadian rhythm knows when things are a tad off. The best recipe for a great night’s sleep is to try to have dinner at the same time nightly and head to bed relatively near the same time. When the sun goes down, your brain will start producing signals to trigger you to go to sleep. If you are having trouble winding down post dinner, try calming your body with a relaxing bath. Fairmont's Rose 31 Bath Salts are infused with Rose 31 fragrance for a calming tone for a serene soak that naturally detoxes and soothes the mind and body.
Don’t lie in Bed Awake
Waking in the middle of the night is typical. However, if you find yourself waking and having a hard time dozing back to sleep, lying there for prolonged periods can leave you associating your bed with lack of sleep and can lead to chronic insomnia. If you find yourself awake for more than 20 minutes, it’s time to get up and reset. Sit in a comfortable chair in another room, read for a few minutes, or listen to some soothing music or audio meditation. Then head back to bed when you are feeling sleepy again. Establishing that positive relationship between your bedroom and sleep will set you up for sleep success.
