How to Sleep in the Heat of Summer

Being unable to sleep in the heat is so frustrating and, with the weather heating up, you might be worried about not getting the sleep you need. A lack of sleep leaves you feeling tired and sleep deprived.

So, we’ve decided to put a few useful tips together to help cool yourself in the upcoming heatwave so you can have a good night’s sleep. There are things you can do to cool down your body but also tips and tricks to cool your sleeping environment. Read on for find out more…

Cool your body

1.  Wash with warm water. Just before bed, having a lukewarm shower or bath will cool your body down to the ideal sleeping temperature.
2. If you don’t want a full submersion, use a cold, wet flannel on your forehead, arms, wrists, neck, elbows, groin, ankles and knees. Cooling these areas will help lower the temperature of your whole body.
3. Spray yourself with water from a plant sprayer and stand in front of a fan. This is sure to cool you down ready for bed.
4. Simply by putting a wet flannel on your head and focusing on the cool sensation will help calm you down. The more frustrated you feel, the hotter you will get. Therefore, this meditative and mindful state will help you drift off to sleep.
5. Soak your feet or run your wrists under cold water. Cooling extremities drops your overall body temperature. You could also wet your hair or dab yourself with ice packs.
6. Remove excess clothing. You could replace synthetic clothing with natural fibres like cotton or linen. Wearing lightweight, loose-fitting clothing will allow your skin to evaporate sweat and wick it away.
7. Avoid excessive heat build-up during the day in your body by not doing vigorous exercise. Exercise increases your internal temperature. You should therefore allow yourself several hours to cool down before bed.
8. In bed, spread your arms and legs so they’re not touching your body. This reduces body heat and sweat by letting air circulate around your body.
9. Stick your feet out of the end of the covers. Keeping your feet cool will help keep your overall body temperature down.
10. Did you know that you can also use your hot water bottle as a bed-friendly ice pack? Simply fill it with water and stick it in the freezer for sweet heat relief.
11. You can also wet a towel or sheet and lay under it or on top of it. We recommend that you put a dry towel underneath you so that your mattress isn’t ruined.
12. Make sure you drink water before bed to keep hydrated. When you sweat during the night you lose vital water and electrolytes. Water will replace what is lost as well as cooling you down. However, try not to go over 250ml to avoid night-time bathroom breaks.
13. Avoid unprotected sun exposure as sunburn will make you hot when you’re trying to sleep.

Cool your environment

1. Always remember to change your bedding to cotton. The lightweight material is ‘breathable’, meaning it doesn’t trap heat and moisture. You can even put your sheets in the fridge or freezer for that extra boost of cool, although remember to put them in a plastic bag first.
2. If your room isn’t the coolest, darkest and quietest place in the house, it might be time to move rooms.
3. You shouldn’t let your pet sleep with you as they create extra heat in the bed.
4. It’s time to kick your partner out of bed too. Two people heat up the bed, so it might be a good idea to sleep separately.
5. Another way to keep cool is to turn on a fan or leave the doors and windows open to ventilate the room. If you can’t get install air conditioning, you can place a tray of ice cubes in front of a fan for extra chilly air.
6. Try flipping your pillow over to get the cool side.
7.  Keep your house cool. If it’s hot during the day, draw the curtains and blinds, this will make your house the perfect sleeping temperature when it’s time for bed.
8. Set up your fans in a smart way. Point your table-top fan out the window so that it pushes hot air out, and adjust your ceiling fan so the blades run anti-clockwise, pulling hot air up and out instead of whirling hot air around the room.
9. Sleep in a hammock. If you rig up a hammock to sleep in this allows airflow to circulate around your body keeping you cool.
10. Alternatively, sleep in a bed that’s close to the floor, sleep on the ground floor or in the basement. As heat rises, the closer you are to the ground the cooler you’ll be.
11. Keep your lights switched off. Even environmentally friendly light-bulbs give off heat.
12. To keep a room cool, hang a wet sheet over your open window and allow cool air to circulate around your room.
13. Don’t use the oven. Using the oven creates extra heat in the house. Instead, opt for cold dishes like salads. Heavy food also makes your body produce heat while digesting it. If hot food is needed use the grill or go al fresco and have a garden BBQ to keep the heat outside.
14. Electronics, even small devices, give off heat. So, unplug them at night to reduce the overall heat of your room.
15. Have a go at sleeping outside. Pitching a tent and camping in the garden will provide you with a cooler place to sleep. Don’t forget to protect yourself against mosquitos and other insects.
16. For a more creative alternative, a buckwheat pillow will keep you keep cool because it doesn’t absorb heat like cotton and down pillows. For another idea, fill socks with rice, tie the hole and leave in the fridge. The rice will stay chilly for up to 30 minutes. This is enough time to drift off to sleep.
17. Your bedroom should be the optimum temperature of 16-18 degrees for sound sleeping.

Our adjustable beds

Sometimes if it’s hot and humid you might experience swelling in your ankles and legs and this can be uncomfortable causing you to sleep poorly. However, our adjustable beds bend so that they support your legs, relive your pressure points and allow blood to circulate around your body while you sleep.

If you get hot during the night regularly, we recommend one of our pocket-sprung mattresses. The springs and mattress filling allow air to circulate through the mattress cooling you while you sleep. The filling is specially selected to wick away moisture and heat also keeping you at the optimum sleeping temperature.