As the summer heat intensifies, achieving a restful night's sleep can prove to be quite a challenge. The discomfort caused by hot weather often disrupts our sleep patterns, leaving many individuals tossing and turning throughout the night.

This struggle becomes even more pronounced for those who already experience sleep problems and are peri-menopausal or menopausal.

In this blog post, I will be sharing ten invaluable tips that I have  discovered to be immensely helpful in improving your sleep quality.

One of the main steps to take is to cool down your body.

Our bodies naturally initiate sleep when the temperature drops a few degrees, which explains why many people find it difficult to fall asleep in hot weather. Thankfully, there are a few tactics that can aid in this regard.

1. Invest in a good, quiet fan and use it to cool yourself before going to bed. If you're watching television in the evening, position the fan to blow directly on you. Personally, I recently acquired an amazing fan that I highly recommend.

It's portable, lightweight, lasts for hours after being charged with a USB port, and most importantly, it operates almost silently. You can find it on Amazon uk HERE (I have no affiliation with amazon)

LBSTP Portable Standing Fan with Remote Control

2. Avoid engaging in strenuous exercise in the evening before bedtime, as it raises your body temperature and hinders sleep.

3. Take a cool shower to help lower your body temperature before bed.

4. If you have long hair, tying it up on top of your head, away from your neck, can make a significant difference. Just make sure your ponytail doesn't interfere with your head resting comfortably on the pillow.

5. Choose loose-fitting sleepwear, such as a large cotton T-shirt, to promote better airflow and heat dissipation.

6. Use a fan near your bed until you feel sleepy. While some individuals prefer a very quiet sleeping environment, others find the gentle hum of a fan soothing. Determine what works best for you.

7. If you opt to use a fan, try placing a bowl of ice in front of it to create a makeshift air conditioning effect. If your budget allows, investing in an actual air conditioning unit can help cool down your room before bedtime. However, in my experience, these units tend to be quite loud and may disrupt sleep if left running throughout the night. Nonetheless, they can be quite effective for cooling down a room in preparation for sleep.

8. Some menopausal women with longer hair have found relief by shaving the back of their heads underneath their hair. Although the shaved part is not visible, it assists in keeping them cool.

9. Use cool cotton sheets and temporarily replace your duvet with layers of cotton sheets for  a cooler sleep environment.

10. I don't recommend sleeping naked unless this is something you are used to.  Taking off your night wear may cause you to feel less secure in bed. 

If you are really struggling to sleep despite trying all these strategies, try to accept that you are not the only one with poor sleep, try to get out and about during the day and accept that sleep will be better again when the weather cools down.

If you have a persistent problem with insomnia,  consider enrolling in my sleep programme which uses principles of CBTi to re-programme your brain & your behaviour so that you can start to sleep well again, usually in less than three weeks. You can find out more HERE