Do you find it hard to sleep in hot weather? You aren’t alone. Whether it’s a holiday abroad or a local heatwave, there are hundreds of people who just can’t doze off while the temperature is too high. While sleep studies helpfully show that the optimum sleeping temperature is between 18 and 20 degrees Celsius, what do you do when it’s much hotter than that? The following tips can help you get to sleep in hot weather.
Forget opening the curtains in the morning – start getting your bedroom prepared for sleeping as soon as you wake up in the morning. Keep curtains and blinds closed, and leave the door open. Once the sun has gone down, open the windows to allow a breeze to pass through. It’ll be much cooler, and you’ll have a better chance of being able to sleep in hot weather.
A fan might not be powerful enough to reduce the overall temperature of your bedroom, but it can create a soothing cross breeze that might just be enough. If you are still melting, try grabbing a shallow container and filling it with ice. Put it in front of the fan, and you’ll have a makeshift aircon.
Before bedtime, jump into a cool bath or shower. Not only will this reduce your body temperature, making you much more likely to drift off, but you’ll wash any pollen off too, which can reduce hay fever symptoms.
Wear minimal clothing to bed when it’s hot. It doesn’t matter how cute your PJs are, they’ll make you boil when it’s hot! Your skin should only come into contact with the bed sheet. You’ll feel a lot less twisty and trapped this way.
Don’t use a duvet when it’s boiling hot. If you need to sleep under something, use a sheet or a lightweight blanket. You’ll get that same covered-up feeling, but without the heavy weight and heat that a duvet brings. For the record, 100% natural cotton sheets are best for hot weather, as they absorb sweat and stay cool. Opt for a light color, as black will attract heat.
Make sure you add an extra few glasses of water when it’s hot. Remember that being thirsty means you have run out of water, so you should be drinking before you reach that stage! Dehydration is common when the temperatures rise, and it can leave you with a headache or body pains that are impossible to sleep through.
Ignore the urge to stay out later, and try to stick to your normal bedtime. Your body doesn’t need to be any more confused! If you knock your circadian rhythm, you could find it harder than ever to get to sleep. Even if you are an insomniac, stick to your bedtime routine! You’ll need to make some changes if you usually exercise before bed, though, as exercise increases your core temperature for several hours afterwards, making it impossible to sleep in hot weather.
If you follow these tips, you should soon be a pro at drifting off to sleep in hot weather! If you still can’t get to sleep, try using an eye mask to block out light, and banning all electronics from the bedroom. Have you got a tip for sleeping in high temperatures? I’d love to hear it – this heat is killing me!