How to sleep better: Sleep essentials for the perfect night's rest

A good night's sleep can make all the difference to your day, but it is often something that eludes many of us. Stress, work, screen time, and comfort, or lack thereof, are all factors that contribute to why you can't sleep at night and are often things that are simply accepted by most of us. However, it's quite easy to take a few simple steps to help you fall asleep fast. To make things easier, and to help stop you wondering "why can't I sleep?" we've put together this list of sleep essentials on how to sleep better.

Have the right quilt and pillow

Your sleep set up is important. Making sure you have the right pillow or pillows to maximise your comfort is a great first step to take to improve your sleep. Figure out if you prefer a softer or firmer pillow, maybe one of each? The same can be said of quilts, temperature is a huge factor that affects sleep particularly in Australia, so make sure you're not using too heavy or too light a quilt depending on the season. If you're searching for the right pillow, take a look at our complete guide here.

Avoid excessive Screen Time

It's all too easy to jump into bed and seemingly switch the mind off by indulging in some passive scrolling on your phone, but you're not doing yourself any favours when it comes to a good night's sleep. The light from phones and laptops contributes to insomnia and poor sleep, so try to not engage in excessive screen time at least an hour before jumping into bed. If you're really finding this difficult, most laptops and phones have a "Night Shift" function which can be manually or automatically set to shift from cooler to warmer tones from sunrise to sunset, specifically designed to aid a good night's sleep.

Get up at the same time everyday

Routine is important, your circadian rhythms are set by when you wake up so try to keep this as regular as possible. While it might seem difficult not to snooze three or four times every morning, practicing getting up straight away becomes easier with time. You'll also begin to feel the benefits in the evening as you'll find yourself naturally gravitating towards a more regulated bedtime, and maybe even start to form a habit where you fall asleep fast .

Don't lie in bed awake if you can't sleep

There's nothing worse than lying in bed, tossing and turning, thinking why can't I sleep and stressing right up until the moment your alarm goes off the next morning. If you find yourself unable to nod off for twenty minutes or so after you've hit the lights, do something to take your mind off it. Get up and leave the bedroom, read a book, make yourself a cup of decaffeinated tea. There are also a number of specific blends to aid a good night's sleep readily available at most supermarkets. It might be tempting to flick the telly , but resist this urge and try listening to some soothing sounds or calm music, there are a number of great apps for sleep encouraging audiobooks available too.

A warm shower and some gentle stretching before bed

Throughout the day, no matter what you're doing, various tensions will creep into the body, whether you've been exercising, sitting at a desk all day or working with your hands you'll undoubtedly be holding tension somewhere. Try some gentle stretching before getting into bed, nothing too strenuous- just enough to relieve some of the tension that has built up throughout the day. If you're unsure where to start there are plenty of online guides available. As for showering, the comfort of warm water will help you feel cleansed and ready for bed, while your body's temperature will naturally drop after exiting a hot shower which helps your body get ready to fall asleep. Try adding some lavender oil to your evening shower to soak yourself calm before bed.

To complete your sleep routine, make sure you have the best quality bedding, creating a cosy bedroom that invites relaxation in. Shop our bedding range now.