This World Sleep Day, we’re highlighting the importance of making sleep a priority.
From mood regulation to health, fitness and wellbeing, sleep is the magic ingredient that has the power to transform our lives. Sleep restores and repairs our bodies, and a lack of sleep can have a debilitating effect. We may not all be professional athletes, but we should listen to them when they say that part of their success is credited with consistently good sleep. "When athletes sleep for 8 hours or more at night, their performance and their accuracy is increased by up to 9% and this can be the difference to achieving the great and not", says sleep expert Julie Mallon.
We invited Dr Maja Schaedel of the Good Sleep Clinic to share some of her sleep tips with us:
- Put your clock or phone out of reach when you go to bed so you're not tempted to check it. We are often distracted by our phones and checking the time can make us more anxious if we are struggling to fall asleep.
- Don't go to bed too early, or you might find yourself awake for longer! Only get into bed when you are sleepy and ready for bed.
- Always keep your wake-up time to roughly the same time and keep your lie-ins at the weekend to a maximum of an extra hour
- If you exercise in the evening, have a hot bath or shower to help you cool down and make sure you don't go to bed if you're still feeling hot and/or stimulated
- If you often get up to go to the loo during the night, have your last drink 2 hours before bedtime and have your last caffeinated drink at lunchtime
- If drinking alcohol, have your last drink by 9pm, as this will help your body to process the alcohol before you go to sleep, minimising the impact on your sleep and eat your last meal at least two hours before bed
- Keep you room fairly cool (between 16-19 degrees celcius)
- Make sure your feet aren't cold by using bed socks, hot water bottles or a shallow warm foot bath before bed
- If you tend to doze on the sofa, try to sit upright and put your feet on the ground - this should stop you falling asleep on the sofa.
- As the weather warms up, it is important to ensure you are not too hot at night so having bed linen that is soft and cool and the right tog or thread count can help with sleep quality.
Here at London & Avalon, we strive to deliver a sleep experience second to none, thanks to our meticulous approach to building your best ‘bedscape’. From the mattress up, we will help you choose the perfect layers to create the ideal sleep sanctuary, ensuring you treat yourself to the gift of the most restorative sleep.
Vicky Charles, an Interior Designer client of ours, who looks after more VIPs than we can count, puts it perfectly, "The nurturing of sleep is the most important thing you can do, especially as you get older, so creating a bed that not only looks good and feels good and lasts, is the most important thing that I can give my clients". Listen for yourself here.
After two decades of providing the finest bedding and homeware, every new product we create has our DNA of excellence, understatement, and superior experience at its core, to ensure that the bookends of your day are filled with enjoyable moments. From stepping out of the shower onto a plush bathmat to enveloping yourself with the fluffiest towel as preparation for a good night’s sleep.
Timeless and elegant linens crafted from the finest cotton that will stand the test of time and get better with age. Experience the unparalleled luxury of our finest cottons and give yourself the gift of sleep.