Millbrook Contract Beds – Can’t sleep, won’t sleep
We could all recite the bad night’s sleep we have had at some point during our lifetime – whether it’s a new baby or a new house and unfamiliar noises. We’ve all been there haven’t we? Well perhaps there are a lucky few who haven’t but if you’re not one of those then you may want to discover just why we can’t sleep or won’t sleep.
The potential causes of lost sleep or lack of it can range from financial worries (a very common anxiety), stress from work or personal life, poor health, eating too close to bedtime and even snoring from their partner. However, very few people ever really consider that the cause of a bad night’s sleep could be their old bed.
There are literally hundreds of thousands of people suffering in silence from their uncomfortable beds having no idea that the primary cause for all their discomfort is down to the fact their bed is way past its prime. It’s down to the fact we don’t really look at or consider our beds nearly enough. Some people only see a bed as an aesthetic element of their bedroom, not a practical piece of furniture that has a significant function to play in our sleeping and waking lives. The same commonality can be found in hotel rooms – a fundamental lack of understanding regarding the importance of good sleep has been lost.
A degraded, past its sell-by-date bed can lead to physical ailments such as neck ache or back ache or even worse – needles and pins in the morning! So why do so many people avoid getting a new bed when it is clear the old one just ain’t working for them no more?
Here at Millbrook Contract Beds, we believe the biggest concern with bed buyers is that when they come to the end of the road with their bed, they worry about the cost of buying a new one. That’s a huge part of the problem – and then that worrying leads to another sleepless night in the same bad bed. It’s a self perpetuating nightmare.
Sleep deprivation due to the torturous contours and lumps of an old bed is actually a very common occurrence; 1 in 5 people in the UK reveal that they suffer with sleep issues.
Dr Chris Idzikowski, a leading sleep expert, conducted a very interesting study back in the tail end of the late 1980’s. Through rigorous tests over some time he discovered and concluded that by simply swapping an old, uncomfortable bed for a quality new bed the results produced an average extra sleep time of 42 minutes per night. This experiment was a good indicator that beds contribute to a brighter, better feeling the next morning.
Lost sleep leads to bigger affects in your daily life. Anyone who has ever gone to work after only a few hours sleep will know just how much that statement is true. You don’t have to spend a fortune to get a good, quality bed either. We are proof of that.
Contact Us for further information at Millbrook Contract Beds or follow us on Twitter and Facebook for daily sleep tips and advice.
Tips on how to de-stress before sleep
Through our years of studying the science of sleep we here at Millbrook Contract Beds have come to understand that one of the major hindrances to a good night’s sleep is stress.
It’s very easy these days to become overwhelmed by the stresses and burdens of daily living from life at work to life at home, from managing finances to meeting obligations, and so forth. Surveys conducted last year revealed that people were more stressed and worried about their living situations than ever before, in part because of the recession and poor economic outlook while the cost of living slowly rises around them.
Stress is essentially triggered by a biochemical reaction in the brain releasing hormones that provoke a call to action to the body (much in the same way how fear is experienced) leading to increased heart rate, adrenaline flow and muscle tension. Stress inhibits the ability to be ready for sleep. If you are not relaxed, you cannot fall asleep. It’s as simple as that.
Here are some of the best tips for how to de-stress yourself before sleep:
The first thing to understand is that medications are not the answer to the problem. People seem to think that if they take pills to unburden their pressures and stresses that it will do the trick. Medication can be an inhibitor for anxiety and depression but it does not prevent nor cure the causes behind them.
Are you stressed about work? Money? Relationships? Do you feel pressures from those around you? Are you worried about your future? Do you have concerns for your own health?
Once you establish the root causes of your worry and stress you can do something about it. The struggle is to identify what it is that is making you unhappy. It’s not always obvious or easy.
Start tasking breathing exercises for yourself in the lead-up to bedtime. Regulating your breathing patterns go a long way to easing tension in your body. Your breathing cycles eventually take on a slower exhalation pattern making sleep more viable. Fast breathing raises alertness in the body and makes sleeping a difficult proposition while breathing too slow the brain becomes restless because it is not getting enough oxygen. Breathe in and out with deep inhalation and exhalation and you will feel your stress levels reduce almost immediately. Try to count the seconds as you breathe in and out so you can focus your mind on the timing between each breath. It takes a while to regulate your breathing so do this for at least 10-15 minutes.
Other techniques to relax yourself for sleep include progressive relaxation where you work your way up your body to relax starting from the feet along the legs and then the torso and arms reaching the neck and shoulders until you reach your head.
There are other de-stressing methods that involve warm baths and exercises that help to stretch the body and relax the muscles. Try out one of these techniques to see if it helps.
The important thing is getting the sleep you need for the day ahead. Millbrook Contract Beds believes that the beds themselves make a big difference too. Quality beds are designed (or at least should be) to relax the sleeper and put them in a state of peace and comfort so they may fall into a deep sleep.
Parasomnia – Millbrook Contract Beds follows the path of the sleepwalker
Most people will have the odd vivid dream or intense nightmare over the course of their sleeping lives, but every now and then people will drift into the realm of parasomnia. Millbrook Contract Beds has already explored the subject in some detail in our previous blogs on parasomnia and night terrors. This week we are following the path of the sleepwalker. Continue reading »
Battles at bedtime – parental advice from Millbrook Contract Beds
Whether you are at home, staying at a hotel or at someone else’s house, every parent knows the experience of the bedtime battle to get their child or children into bed. Millbrook Contract Beds sympathises with this situation. Sometimes it can feel less like a daily battle each evening and more like an ongoing war between adult and child. Continue reading »
The ultimate sleep guide – advice from Millbrook Contract Beds part one – The Domino Effect
As we come into a New Year, we thought it would be a good time to get back to basics with optimising your quality of sleep. You don’t have to be a science expert to do this stuff, you just need to adjust routines and lifestyle choices. Sometimes it doesn’t even take much effort, just discipline.
Millbrook Contract Beds would like to start the 1st part of a 3 part blog series by establishing our feelings about beds. Beds are not only our business but our passion too. We really BELIEVE in better living through beds. It’s a philosophy and a way of life. It may sound funny, but it’s actually a thing we assure you! Continue reading »
Millbrook Contract Beds goes undercover!
This week, we’re going deep undercover to investigate… bedding.
Okay, so it’s not the most exciting undercover mission there has ever been, but its value and importance to the world of sleep is indisputable.
Last week we explained what exactly constitutes and comprises ‘comfort’ in contract beds and commercial beds. We established and explained that it was all down to mattress quality (and type) plus bed base quality (and type).
This week we want to explore just how much bedding brings to the comfort experience on top of commercial beds.
What does bedding consist of?
–Duvets
–Quilts
–Sheets
–Blankets
–Pillows
–Cushions
Now if you’re a business brand that uses commercial beds then your bedding will not be chosen at complete random. It will need to keep with the aesthetic of your rooms, contract bedroom furniture and overall brand. Colours, patterns, design, and material – all need to be considered.
Bu above all else the most essential factor is comfort.
Duvets/Quilts/Blankets
These items are often confused for one another, even though they are entirely different. Blankets and duvets are often interchangeable terms and most households and hotels merely refer to them as “sheets.”
Blankets are essentially large pieces of cloth and can be distinguished from sheets through thickness. Sheets are for general hygiene purposes where as blankets are for warmth.
Duvets are blankets that are filled with down, feathers or other soft packing materials to give them a greater degree of comfort and warmth than a normal blanket. Consider duvets as the best type of insulator, particularly in the winter months.
Cutting through to the chase here; bed bases and mattresses are the main source of comfort where as duvets and blankets are the primary source of warmth. The properties of different types of duvets, covers and blankets can range from down, feathers, fleece, cotton, wool and electric. With the selection available these days there is something to suit everyone that should be ideal for both comfort and appearance.
Pillows/Cushions
Pillows are one of the defining characteristics that come to mind when you think about beds and sleep. Why… because pillows take care of the most important part of your body while you sleep… your head!
Pillows determine the quality of a person’s sleep as much as any other part of the bed. One thing that is definitely a necessity of pillow maintenance is that they are replaced regularly! Most people don’t realise that pillows deteriorate faster than anything else – replacement should come every 2 to 3 years. If you want to know whether a pillow has had it all you need do is test its bounce. If the bounce has gone so too have its benefits to you.
The suitability of a pillow depends on personal needs – for example soft, flat pillows are attributed to the cause of neck ache, while firm, stiff pillows are attributed to causing back pain. It’s all about getting the right size and firmness right. If you’re a business operating within the hospitality sector then you need to ensure you have a choice of pillow options for your guests.
Like duvets, pillow fillings can vary between different materials, natural or synthetic. Memory Foam is actually a good option for pillows as it moulds to suit your position, especially if you sleep on your side.
Pillow cases are the only other consideration – which are ultimately for aesthetic and style to match your sheet covers more than anything.
And there you have it. Comfort and warmth can be optimised through bedding as long as you know what works best for the individual.
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The importance of a good night’s sleep with Millbrook Contract Beds
Since Millbrook Contract Beds started blogging last year there has been a variety of issues (both current and ongoing) explored from topics like;
Maintaining your contract beds
The hospitality industry’s preparations for the 2012 Olympics
Interior design advice and options
In that time we have covered a lot of ground, but we also want to remind our readers that we consider the number one principle in everything we do to be getting a good night’s sleep. Period.
It’s the most important part of our job – making that happen.
So we’re getting back to basics this week with a new series of blogs on the importance of a good night’s sleep, why it matters and how to get it…
Sleep is crucially important to a person’s health and well-being, but there are plenty of obstacles between the average Joe and a good night’s rest. It’s funny, when you ask most people about why they can’t sleep very well they rarely ever blame their contract beds and mattresses. It’s always something else! From work stresses, kids driving you mad, unsurpassable workloads, heavy financial burdens, relationship troubles, but never the bed! While all these factors do contribute to a bad night in bed, a large majority of the time it really is the bed that is the issue.
It is the essential element of sleep as we all know.
However, with that said, there are a variety of factors that determine whether or not you have a good sleep. Most of these factors are within your control to change and relatively easy to prevent.
So what should you take into consideration when trying to get to sleep?
1. Background noise
Living in built-up areas or near busy main streets means that you will frequently hear noises from outside such as traffic, car horns, sirens, neighbourhood parties, dogs barking, voices shouting, loud music and various other bangs and crashes. The best way to tackle this problem is by closing your windows at night. Yes, even on those hot summer nights. If noise in your area is keeping you up, you need to shut it out. If it is hot in your room get yourself an automatic fan or install an air conditioning system to keep the room temperature cool while you drift off. Alternatively, you can invest in some ear plugs to muffle the bustling sounds from outside of a city or town that never seems to sleep.
2. Midnight munchies
Don’t under any circumstances eat or snack before you go to bed even if you feel the rumblings of hunger in your stomach. Don’t actually eat while you’re in your bed either! Eating food, especially carbohydrates and especially late at night, will increase your body fat stores. The consumption of food can give the impression to your body that you are not ready to sleep and it will re-energise you for another couple of hours. This only serves to keep you awake for longer periods. Also, while we’re on the subject of eating, don’t eat in bed. Snacking on food leads to crumbs. Those crumbs will end up scattered across the mattress sheet and go on to irritate your skin causing you to toss and turn during the night.
3. Insomniac
If you just simply cannot sleep, avoid laying in bed. The very act of not sleeping makes you restless. The real cure for this mild form of insomnia is to actually get out of bed and do something relaxing before getting back in. Read a book or a newspaper, or watch a bit of television for a while until you feel sleepy again. Have a bath or shower before bed to help relax your muscles.
4. Comfort quality
The comfort and quality of your bed can be the difference between blissful sleep and torturous nights of tossing and turning. Check your mattress and bed frame. There will be blogs that go into detail on this subject later on. If the mattress is old and lumpy, you need to think about getting a new one. The worst thing for your body, particularly your back, is a worn-down, uneven mattress and rickety frame that hasn’t been flipped or maintained for a long time. A good way of knowing if your bed has really passed its sell-by-date is if you can hear the squeak of the springs when you shift around. Beds should not be torture devices, they should make you feel relaxed, comfortable and most importantly of all, sleepy. And remember, if you buy a new bed, it’s always best to buy a new frame AND mattress, rather than make the mistake of buying a new mattress on its own! A new frame is crucial to the support of your body – so just replacing one of them won’t necessarily give you long-term comfort when it comes to sleep!
5. Sleep environment
One final tip; try your best to make sure that your bedroom is an environment fit for sleep (complete with a nice new bed if necessary) where the sounds of the world are drowned out by the calm. Get rid of the televisions and computer consoles and all the distractions that should not be in a bedroom.
We hope you find your comfort zone, if you would like more advice on getting a good night’s sleep or finding the right bed, please feel free to contact us at Millbrook.