Now if you’re anything like us, your PJ’s will be on and a herbal tea will be brewing within 5 minutes of getting home, however not everyone finds it so easy to switch off. Stress, anxiety and too much technology all hinder being able to slow things down at night, but we’ve found getting yourself into a regular evening routine can really help your sleep pattern. Take a look below at our top 5 tips for getting the perfect night’s sleep – including our favourite teas to help you sleep.
technology free zone
It can be all too tempting to have your phone / iPad / TV on before bed – something we’re incredibly guilty of. But to get a solid night’s sleep it’s always best to keep light to a minimum at night time. A 10 minute phone update before bed and then make sure you pop your phone across the other side of the room so you won’t be tempted - this a great idea for all you recurrent snooze hitters! If your phone is across the room you have to physically get up to turn it off, meaning you’ll be less likely to head back to bed… or so they say.
bath and pamper
A quick poll of the office saw at least 80% of people say a hot bath and their evening skincare routine was a must have step in their sleep routine. Granted, our office is majority female, but even the boys agreed that there’s nothing more relaxing than unwinding in the tub and getting yourself squeaky clean for bed. A full on, over the top bubble bath might be a little too much for every evening, but try to indulge at least twice a week – morning you will thank you for it!
bedtime tea
Nothing quite beats a naturally caffeine free, herbal tea before bed. So, If you've ever asked yourself "does tea make you sleep better?"... simply, yes it can! There are a variety of blends that can help aid a healthy sleep cycle. From our sleepy tea to traditional herbals, we love them all.
Chamomile is one of the old favourites among garden herbs and its reputation as a medicinal plant that makes you snooze is well known around the world. Lavender is another one widely known for aiding slumber, helping make you more relaxed and ready to switch off for the night.
Chamomile and lavender are undoubtedly a force to be reckoned with when it comes to bedtime – so we combined them along with some sweet apple to really round off the blend, making snooze our new must have bedtime brew. One soothing mug a night sends us off to the land of nod faster than our head can hit the pillow. You can find out more about our chamomile, apple and lavender tea, snooze here.
Even our relaxing tea, calm can help you drift off at night. It's a delicate blend of chamomile, lemongrass, lemon balm, and valerian root - designed to help take the edge off stressful days & restless nights. Of course, chamomile & lemon balm are widely known for their calming and uplifting qualities, but did you know that people have been using valerian tea for sleep since the days of ancient Greece?
A truly calming tea, packed with flavour - what's not to love?
Pro tip: Reducing your caffeine intake throughout the day can really help you drift off quicker at night. If you're a black tea drinker, we now have a decaf option available as well as delicious naturally caffeine-free blends such as honeybush & rooibos, which is a popular herbal alternative to black tea.
Joining snooze & calm from our feel-good range, is the mood enhancing tea, happy. It's a smooth caffeine-free blend of uplifting lemon balm, turmeric, apple and other warming herbs & spices - here to refresh and revive you throughout the day.
happiness is... crawling into a bed with fresh sheets
We’ve always thought clean sheets were key to getting a great night’s kip, but with our expertise firmly lying in the tea realm, we thought we’d call on experts in all things bedding related, Secret Linen Store for a second opinion:
"Fresh bedding 100% helps with a bedtime routine. Especially changing your bedding on the same day every week… it gives you a little treat to look forward too. If changing the bedding always feels like a chore, then strip the bed in the morning, give your bed the day to air and then you won’t be able to put it off in the evening. We always recommend 100% cotton or 100% linen as they are naturally regulating your body temperature all night, which will stop any tossing and turning. Plus if your bedding feels amazing you’ll be tempted to head to bed early every night."
sleep sprays
We LOVE a good sleep spray and can’t recommend them enough to help create a bedtime routine. Getting yourself into the routine of spraying your pillow every night is enough to make you feel ready for bed. Some of our favourites are the This Works - deep sleep pillow spray, and REN's & Now to Sleep pillow spray. Just don't do a teapig Leonie and let yours roll away under the bed to the place of no return... ha!
