As many as 70 million Americans may be affected by chronic sleep loss or sleep disorders. That’s a lot of sleepy people! And if you happen to be one of those annoyingly inspiringly happy people who’s found the man of his dreams, the downside can often be an even tougher time getting that all-important beauty rest.
While a consistently healthy sleep schedule may feel harder and harder to achieve in the age of the touchscreen, here are five tips to getting the best night’s sleep with the man of your dreams:
1. Establish a routine
Summer weekends tend to make this a little tricky, but as much as possible, try to get in sync with your nightly rituals (and your partner’s). Our bodies like to keep to a schedule as much as our minds may value spontaneity. Understanding sleep as a process rather than a switch that gets flipped helps establish a routine to naturally wind down body and mind from the many stresses of the day. Find a schedule that works for you both and stick to it. Soon enough powering down will be like clockwork.
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2. Bedroom activities only
There’s a reason it’s called the bedroom and not the bed/iPad/Netflix/arguing-with-your-boyfriend/room. It’s tempting to crawl underneath the covers and catch up on Queerty — we know. But electronics should be kept far away from the bed. And speaking of the bed, it should really only serve two functions — sleep and sex (incidentally, two of our favorite things). Your bed and the walls surrounding it are a sanctuary. Treat it as such and you’ll find all the comfort you need. Oh, and make your bed in the morning — you aren’t 14 anymore.
3. The Goldilocks temperature technique
Temperature can have a big impact on how you fall asleep as well as your sleep quality throughout the night. It’s generally best to keep your bedroom slightly cool, with a bed that’s warm enough to feel good easing into at the end of the day. This simple contrast can dramatically reduce the time it takes to fall asleep, letting you get back to that recurring Nick Jonas dream a little sooner. Since two people can have different optimal sleep temperatures, it’s important to find solutions that work for you both.
4. Find your light
If you only have two lighting options in your bedroom — on and off — you may be cutting yourself short on a good night’s sleep. There should be a middle option; we’ll call it mood lighting. Prior to getting ready for bed, switch from lights-a-blazing mode to mood lighting mode. It could be a soft, low wattage floor lamp or even a dimmer switch on your wall. Going about your nightly routine in this fuzzy low-lit atmosphere will cue your body to start winding down.
5. Knowledge is power
The more information you and the warm body next to you have about your sleep behaviors, the more equipped you two will be to make the right choices when it comes to molding an ideal environment. According to a recent study, though, one hundred percent of people are unconscious while asleep, making it rather tricky to gather said slumber data. Luckily there are some brilliant tech solutions out there designed to fill in the gaps while you rest your pretty head (shameless-but-totally-worth-it plug: use the code QUEERTY30 for $30 off a Luna smart mattress cover). It’s amazing what a good night’s sleep can do for you, but it’s up to you to own the bedroom and your hours of rest.