No matter how hard you try to prioritize, quality sleep can be hard to come by. Maybe you already have a relaxing routine every night and maintain a consistent sleep schedule. But there may be another piece of the sleep puzzle you’re overlooking: the bedroom itself.
“The bedroom plays an important role in optimizing sleep,” says Angela Holliday Bell, M.D., a board-certified clinical sleep health specialist based in Homewood, Illinois. “It helps set the tone for how easily you fall asleep and how well you stay asleep.”
Dr. Holliday-Bell adds that keeping your snooze space dark, quiet, cool, and comfortable can help strengthen your body’s natural circadian rhythm, or your internal clock that tells you when to go to sleep and wake up. Improving your timing can also help you sleep better at night.
With that in mind, here are seven ways to improve the functionality of your bedroom so you can enjoy deeper, more restorative sleep.
1. Make It (Really) Dark
It’s a great system, but if exposed to light at night, your work may crumble. That’s why Holiday Bell recommends creating a dark space to sleep on a regular basis.
“You can achieve this with blackout curtains or blinds,” she says. “I also love a good blackout sleep mask to avoid excess light exposure while I sleep.”
Even small amounts of light can suppress melatonin production, says Jocelyn Chen, M.D., a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and senior director of clinical research neuroscience at Eisai in Nutley, New Jersey. So, beyond blackout curtains, “we recommend covering or turning off small LED lights on alarm clocks and electronic devices,” she says.
Ideally, she suggests dimming the lights at least 30 minutes before bedtime to give your brain time to relax (and secrete melatonin) before bed.
2. Store electronic devices
There’s no doubt that our shiny screens contribute to light pollution in the bedroom, but phones, tablets, and laptops can also interfere with your bedroom space in other ways.
“The most significant impact on sleep comes from viewing stimulating content, such as social media, before bed,” Holliday-Bell says. In other words, navigating the drama through your social feeds can be uplifting rather than depressing.
To break out of this cycle, Holliday Bell often suggests that her clients set their phone’s Do Not Disturb feature to automatically start at least an hour before bed. This will reduce the temptation to view distracting notifications and stimulating content.
If you need more than that to keep your phone out of reach at night, Dr. Chen recommends turning off electronic devices completely at least 30 minutes before bedtime and leaving them completely out of the bedroom, or at least out of reach.
“If you use your phone as an alarm, put it on the other side of the room so you don’t want to check your phone in the middle of the night,” she suggests.
3. Cool It Cool
The ideal temperature for sleep may be lower than what most people keep their thermostats at. Sleep experts suggest that temperatures between 60 degrees Fahrenheit and 67 degrees Fahrenheit can help promote deeper, more restful sleep.
“A cool room supports your body’s natural temperature drop, helping you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer,” says Chen.
If you find yourself watching TV or eating dinner at a temperature that feels a little chillier than you would normally feel comfortable with, experiment with the temperature range to find the temperature that works best for you. If you don’t have full control of your heating or air conditioning, Dr. Chen says cooling with a fan or opening a window can help.
Breathable bedding is also important. “Lightweight cotton sheets and cotton blankets wick away heat and moisture and help prevent overheating overnight,” says Holliday-Bell. Bamboo and silk are also effective.
If your partners prefer different temperatures, Chen says using a cooling mattress pad can help keep both of you comfortable.
4. Choose the right pillow and mattress
Ideally, the pillow should keep your head and neck in line with your spine and in a neutral position. On the other hand, the mattress should support the spinal position while relieving pressure. “For most people, a medium to medium-firm feel works well,” says Chen.
For this reason, we recommend testing your mattress before purchasing if possible. She also recommends looking for a pillow made for your preferred sleeping position (back, side, stomach), as height and firmness can vary slightly.
If your partner turns over a lot at night, Chen says a larger mattress or one designed to reduce motion transfer can make a big difference.
“You can take two Twin XL mattresses and combine them using a mattress connector to create a king-sized bed,” says Shelby Harris, M.D., a clinical psychologist based in White Plains, New York and board certified in behavioral sleep medicine. Also consider separate blankets, Holliday-Bell says.
5. Minimize interference
Another common culprit that disrupts sleep is having pets in your bed, Chen says. “If they’re disrupting your sleep, consider putting a pet bed right next to your bed so you can spend time together without having to constantly move them,” she suggests. “The key is to make your bedroom as quiet and relaxing as possible, but sometimes that means setting boundaries.”
6. Improve air quality
Not only does poor air quality affect your lungs, but it can also affect your sleep quality. Ultrafine particulate matter and other indoor pollutants (such as mold) in the bedroom can affect the quality of your sleep and how long you sleep at night.
According to Chen, poor air quality can worsen nasal congestion, asthma and allergy symptoms, and cause you to wake up more often during the night. She suggests running an air purifier with a HEPA filter (which meets strict standards for removing dust, pollen, mold, and bacteria from the air) and washing your bedding regularly in hot water to remove dust and other irritants.
“If you’re sensitive to allergens, a hypoallergenic pillow or mattress cover can also make a big difference,” she points out.
Holliday Bell also recommends keeping pets out of the bedroom completely if allergies are an issue.
7. Clean up the clutter
She suggests using storage solutions like under-bed containers and closet organizers to keep surfaces clean and establishing a simple nightly routine to put things away before bed.
“A clean, tidy bedroom sends a signal to your brain that this is a place to rest, not work or stress,” she says.
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- Your bedroom environment is essential for quality sleep, as it plays an important role in both how easily you fall asleep and the depth and length of your sleep.
- Sleep experts recommend keeping your space dark, cool, quiet, and free of electronics and clutter to support melatonin production and strengthen your natural circadian rhythm.
- Improving factors such as lighting, temperature, bedding, air quality, and noise control can reduce interruptions and promote deeper, more restorative sleep.
