Sleeping is a vital part of our everyday lives. Having a good night’s sleep not only maintains physical and mental well-being, but it can also improve your overall quality of life. Poor sleep can drastically affect your health and cause several health issues, including heart problems and depression.
Your bedroom environment affects sleep quality. Therefore, when designing the bedroom, we should consider how the environment can affect your sleep.
A bedroom should be the most serene and luxurious personal space at home. It’s a place where we can relax with minimal disruptions.
Let’s explore six bedroom design ideas for better sleep:
1. Get a good mattress
A mattress quality can affect a good night’s sleep. Research shows that sleeping in a comfortable mattress can improve your sleep. If your mattress is old and sagging, you should consider buying a new mattress. A sagging mattress can not only affect your sleep but your health too.
Your best mattress options to choose from, include adjustable mattresses, foam, latex, innerspring, waterbeds, airbeds, and more. When shopping for a new mattress, consider a mattress that will guarantee your comfort and better sleep.
Research extensively before buying any mattress. There are several factors that you need to consider when choosing the ideal mattress. You should consider factors such as mattress size, type, firmness, and quality. Your body size, body weight, sleeping position, personal preferences, and whether you will be sharing the bed with a pet or a partner can also affect your mattress choice.
For maximum comfort, you should also have the right pillows to match your mattress. The perfect pillow for you largely depends on your sleeping habits, especially your usual sleeping position. For instance, if you sleep on your side, it’s ideal to get a thick and firm pillow, such as a buckwheat hulls pillow. If you sleep on your stomach, a slimmer and softer pillow is a much better choice. The most important thing is that your pillow must be able to keep your head and neck properly aligned during sleep to prevent spine and posture problems.
2. Ensure the bedroom is dark
A bedroom should be dark enough to stimulate better sleep. According to research by Brandon Peters of the University of Minnesota Medical Center in Minneapolis, the natural circadian rhythms of our bodies and minds lean on the dark-light cycle in the bedroom. This indicates that the amount of light in your bedroom can affect your sleep.
Minimizing screen time in bed and blue light exposure can help improve your sleep. Avoid gadgets such as tablets, smartphones, computers, TV, and digital clocks in your bedroom. These devices could light up the bedroom and disrupt the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep phase.
Get some heavy curtains to block street lights and artificial light from outside. Also, you can consider using armoires to hide devices such as TVs, computers, bright digital alarm clocks, and vintage open-faced alarm clocks.
Avoid using a phone in your bedroom but if you must have it, hide it in a side table drawer and use it only when necessary. Research shows that total darkness in your bedroom is perfect for a good night’s sleep.
3. Regulate the bedroom air temperature
Your body temperature also affects sleep quality. Research shows that the wrong body temperature can cause insomnia. When sleeping, you shouldn’t be sweating or shivering. The ideal temperature for a night of better sleep is between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit according to the National Sleep Foundation. However, this temperature varies with different people.
According to Ralph Downey, you should avoid a too cold or too warm bedroom because it will affect your sleep. Keep your room in the temperature that works for you and the people using it. Consider using a portable heater, ceiling fan, window treatments, and heavy blinds to regulate the room temperature.
4. Consider soothing colors for a good night’s sleep.
Colors play a significant role when creating a restful space. Research shows that bedroom wall colors can affect sleep quality. According to color psychology, you can develop specific feelings and moods based on a chosen palette or shade.
The color blue is proven to be a snooze-inducing color, followed closely by yellow and green. A research carried out by Travelodge showed that people who slept in a bedroom with blue walls had a better night’s sleep than those in a bedroom with brighter walls.
When choosing a bedroom color, stay away from very bright and vibrant colors such as brown, purple, and grey. Instead, choose the calm and soothing colors such as muted blue, pastel, and moss green. If you must use a bright color in your bedroom, consider using them as accents on your items like pillows and artwork. As for the finish, it’s better to go for a flat or matte finish than a glossy one.
If wall paint is too plain for your style, you can always use wallpapers for a more hip look. The same rules on color scheme applies on wallpapers, although you have to make additional considerations if they come with a print or design. A simple workaround is to choose a wallpaper with a dark-colored base. This way, it won’t hurt your eyes even if there are slightly colorful logos or symbols on them.
5. Put on a soothing sound
Too high sounds can disrupt a good night’s rest. However, soothing sounds may do the opposite. You may enjoy better sleep if there is a sound of a babbling brook, soothing music, or soft wind chimes in the background.
Research shows that soothing music improves the heart rate and lowers blood pressure. According to Scientists at Semmelweis University in Hungary, listening to classical music at bedtime improved the quality of sleep among young adults struggling with sleep problems. You can consider placing a CD player in your room, hanging wind chimes just outside your window or creating a fountain in your bedroom to improve sleep.
6. Reduce clutter
Too much clutter in your bedroom can cause anxiety and sleep deprivation. Research indicates that people who sleep in a messy room take longer to fall asleep compared to those with tidy and neat rooms. Therefore, if you want better sleep, you can consider decluttering your bedroom. Keeping your bedroom in order can reduce uneasiness.
Clutter may increase worry in your head when you go to sleep as you may spend hours tossing and turning and even thinking about when you’ll get it in order. Consider storage options such as buying a closet to keep your stuff in order. Also, if you have a spare bedroom, then you can consider converting it into a dressing room and a storage space. This is generally the better choice than simply keeping clutter out of sight. Just because you can’t see it doesn’t mean it’s not there. So, it’s better to free your bedroom of all unnecessary items altogether.
Design and drift off
The perfect bedroom ambience not only induces you to fall asleep, but also helps you stay asleep for as long as your body requires. Even small changes in your sleep environment can go a long way. It all boils down to making visual design and practical setup work seamlessly together.