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When it is time to sleep, your bed should be the one place that provides you with the comfort your body needs. While few things can stop you from getting that well-deserved rest, there is one that sticks out more than the others.
You simply do not know how to cool down when in bed. The inability to cool down in bed can be a considerable challenge to many people, especially those that do not have cooling appliances such as air conditioners, coolers, or fans in their rooms.
If you find yourself in this predicament, do not despair. This article provides details on how to turn things around so you can stay cool while in bed.
The Importance of Getting a Good Rest in Bed
It could be challenging to get a night of good sleep when you feel hot. When your body temperature or that of the room you intend to sleep in is too high, it will take a much longer time for you to drift into sleep.
When you find yourself in such a predicament, your night's sleep becomes distorted, and you don't get good quality sleep. Obviously, this will affect your wellness and state of mind the following day. It could even affect your looks and how well you cope with your work.
The quality of sleep you have has a lot to do with your mental alertness; if you need to be at your best at all times, it is vital to sleep well. Therefore, it becomes clear that your ability to cool down in bed will ultimately help you to be in your best form and health.
The Effects of Overheating On Sleep Quality
If you cannot cool down in bed, it means your body is finding it difficult to regulate its temperature. There are telltale signs that those who experience this difficulty often show, such as profuse sweating and restlessness. With unrelenting heat while in bed, you will not likely have a sound sleep.
If your body cannot cool down in bed after some time, you may wake up frequently or stay wide awake for the better part of the night. Lack of good sleep can result in headaches, body pains, and fever. If this continues without proper adjustments, it could lower your immunity and eventually necessitate a visit to the hospital.
Ideas You Can Use to Cool Down While in Bed
Suffering from too much heat in bed can be worrisome, especially with no air conditioning system. There are a few ideas you can work with that can earn you a good sleep if appropriately used.
The bedding materials you use determine the quality of sleep you get. While some bedding materials can keep you warm while in bed, some can maintain coolness even if you don't have a fan in the room. These ideas can help you succeed in your quest to cool down in bed.
Choose light bedding materials
Let your choice of bedding materials be those that can allow air through them. Materials such as cotton and linen fall under this category and can help you cool down in bed quickly. Not only will they prevent your body from overheating, but they can also help to regulate your body's temperature even when the prevailing room temperature is high.
Adopt lightweight sheets and not heavyweight fabrics
When the nights are hot, especially during the summer, you have to be mindful of the type of fabrics you use as bedding materials. Avoid using heavy fabrics even if you find their patterns and colours enticing. Lightweight sheets are the ideal materials for beds during hot nights.
Use the correct type of pillow
There are different types of pillows these days. Many people even have theirs customised to make their bedrooms look more colourful. The unfortunate thing about most such pillows is that they trap heat and make you uncomfortable in bed.
Whatever type of pillows you decide to settle for, make sure they are made of materials that will help you regulate your body temperature, unlike memory foam which tends to trap body heat. Such pillows are relatively easy to find, as you will see that they are made of light fabrics and materials.
Select bedding materials that give you maximum comfort
The kind of bedding materials you use should be the ones that give you maximum comfort. You do not have to stick with the materials other people use, but you can settle for what works best for you. If you experiment a little with your options, it won't be long before you find what suits you.
With the proper tone of colour, mattress pad, and environment, you should have an ambiance that induces sleep when you get in bed.
Set Your Room at the Right Temperature
If you have an air conditioner or cooler in your room, it shouldn't be challenging to cool down in your bed within minutes of arrival. These tips should guide you further on how you can quickly attain that desired coolness while in bed:
Set the thermostat to a cooler temperature
If you sleep in a relatively cool room, you should have a good sleep. So, try adjusting your thermostat such that the temperature gets lowered. Go for temperatures between 60-670F (15-190C) to get optimal rest.
Install an air conditioner or fan
If you have an air-con or a fan, either can be used to circulate air in your room. Of course, not everybody can afford an air conditioner, but a fan can be used for the same purpose. When these cooling appliances are used, they can help quickly cool down your body temperature in bed.
Make room for better airflow
If you find out that the temperature outside is cooler than that of the room where you want to sleep, you can open the windows to allow in some fresh air. With improved airflow, the heat in the hot air in the room can be replaced by cool air, which gets you to sleep easily.
Some Personal Cooling Methods
As our bodies are different, we can adjust to temperature changes in different ways. You just have to find the temperature that works best for you and go with it. Here are some personal cooling tricks that have worked for some people:
Cool off under the shower before you go to bed
A cool shower has a way of calming a hot body down quickly. Therefore, you would be doing yourself a favour by going under a cool shower before you go to bed because it induces relaxation and makes you fall asleep quickly. Remember that the shower doesn't need to be ice-cold because all you need is cool water to bring down your body temperature.
A cold compress will help when used on pulse points
Specific points in the body play temperature regulatory roles. If you can apply a cold compress to some of these points, you can get your body temperature down quickly, which should induce sleep.
Simply hold a cold compress on the points such as the neck, your temple, or your wrists, and you should see a remarkable difference in your body temperature.
Lifestyle Changes Can Keep You Cool
Oftentimes, lifestyle changes can impact the comfort or discomfort we experience during sleep. If you make the right changes to your routine, they can trigger or promote cool sleeping. The following are tips you can follow in this:
Do not eat heavy meals before you sleep
Going to bed after a heavy meal would mean your digestive system will remain active for a long time when you should be resting. The churning of food in your gastrointestinal tract and the release of digestive enzymes will increase your body temperature. To stay cool, you should have eaten at least a couple of hours before lights out.
Drink enough water
You need to keep your body adequately hydrated as this is one of the best ways to maintain a cool body temperature and cool down in bed. Drinking enough water will aid the digestion of food, and you end up with a lighter body that will be ready to drift off the moment it hits the bed. It is advisable to have taken all the fluids you want some hours before going to bed.
Consult a Professional About Your Cooling System
Having air conditioning in your bedroom can be an add-on you will enjoy, especially during the hot summer nights. If you are still finding it difficult to cool down in bed despite having a cooling system in your room, you may have to call an HVAC expert, as the appliance may need to be fixed.
If, on the other hand, you do not have an air conditioning system in your bedroom, some of the tips already outlined here will help you regulate your body temperature and have that sound sleep you are looking forward to every night. However alternatively, you can also reach out to a professional to install a new cooling system for you.
