Sleep is one of the most important aspects of human health. I have heard that lack of sleep is similar to being drunk. I know that I can survive off of 6 hours of sleep a night but truly need closer to 7 or 8. TJ and I knew that if we wanted to increase the hours we slept and how sound we slept that we needed to make more improvements than just redoing the bedroom floors. Last week I shared about our bedroom remodel (click here) and how we have transitioned it into our oasis. Obviously the floors made a huge difference to the appearance and feel of the space. Today I am sharing 5 ways to improve your bedroom for sleep.

1. Lowered the Room Temperature

   • Anyone that knows me knows that I like to sleep with a minimum of two blankets so this one was tough but we lowered the temperature in the bedroom. I am not sure the exact temperature but I know it is under 70 degrees. Google says that the ideal sleeping temperature is between 60 and 67 so I would say we are closer to 67. I thought I would be cold but surprisingly I can cuddle under my covers and sleep great. I don’t sweat or toss and turn as much anymore either.

2. Removed TV

   • This was 100% TJ’s idea and I fought him hard. I was the one that enjoyed “relaxing” and “falling asleep” to a show, when in reality it would just cause me to stay up later watching whatever was on. When we brought the furniture back into our bedroom, the TV didn’t come. Instead we set it up in our guest bedroom as a “movie room” where we can lay together and watch but then go to our bedroom to talk and sleep. Now that the TV isn’t distracting us, we find that we talk about our day for 30-60 minutes. It’s become our nightly ritual to check-in with one another.

3. De-cluttered Our Nightstands and Added Greenery

   • I’ve read in A Simplified Life by Emily Ley that a cluttered nightstand can cause for a bad start and end to your day. A nightstand with unnecessary items instantly causes stress which is not how you want to start your day or conducive to a peaceful sleep. We practiced the exercise in the book to limit the nightstand to 5 items. The items I have on my nightstand are a light, diffuser, green plant, book, and sometimes a cup (that I take downstairs every morning). One habit that we haven’t kicked yet is not taking our phones to bed. Baby steps!

4. High Thread Count Bed Sheets

   • As soon as the bedroom remodel was happening I knew that I wanted high thread count bed sheets. You can’t have a luxury oasis without comfortable bed lines. I didn’t and still don’t know much about bed sheets but we purchased some white ones from Target and they are pretty spectacular. I highly suggest high thread count sheets, just maybe not white. The white looks nice but can be stressful because you don’t want them to get dirty. I also invested in a weighted blanket that is amazing. It allows you to feel cuddled and comforted without the heat.

5. Young Living Diffuser with Lavender Essential Oils

   • THIS! Life changing. I recently signed up for Young Living to utilize the chemical and toxin free cleaning and beauty products. The starter kit included a diffuser and many oils which I had never used and wasn’t sure of the effectiveness. I figured since I have it why not try it out and I did. I now use lavender in our diffuser every night. The smell is refreshing and calming when you enter the room. It helps create an environment that is ideal for sleeping almost like when you enter into a spa and instantly feel more relaxed.

*Bonus: We moved the boys out of our room and set up their own room. Every time one of them would move or change positions I would wake up which disrupted our sleep. This has been a game changer because I know they will alert us if they need us by barking but I am not bothered by their every move to readjust in the middle of the night.