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Ever have those days where, no matter how tired you are, you simply can’t get to sleep? Me too. It is the absolute worst to find yourself tossing and turning knowing that the next day you’re going to be tired as hell, especially when you feel like there’s nothing you can do to help the situation. It’s the stuff of nightmares, but fret not my lovelies because I have a whole host of tricks up my sleeve that will get you snoozing in no time (and a few that will give you that little boost you need after a tricky night). Ready to hack your sleep? Let’s go!
Miaroma Relaxing Lavender Sleep Mist
Lavender is one of my favourite scents and as soon as I get a whiff I am instantly relaxed and calm, and it’s no wonder given lavender is one of the most effective essential oils for sleep! It works as an anxiety reliever to reduce calm by interacting with the neurotransmitter GABA to help calm the nervous system and brain which in turn reduces agitation and restlessness to help you drift off for a lovely night’s sleep.
Miaroma Relaxing Lavender Sleep Mist is a 100% natural sleep mist that helps creates a calming atmosphere perfect for a great night’s sleep. Either spray it around your bedroom or, for a more intense experience, on to your pillow and enjoy drifting off to dreamland.
Available online with an RRP of £10
RESCUE Dream Balm with CBD
The HLL team are big fans of CBD, particularly because of its potential to improve sleep quality. It’s been suggested that cannabidiols (CBD) can help decrease the time it takes to doze off and increase the amount of deep, restful sleep by reducing factors that interrupt the sleep cycle. Sounds pretty dreamy to us!
RESCUE Dream Balm with CBD contains 100mg of high purity CBD fused with lavender, camomile and RESCUE flower essences to help ease the day’s physical and mental tensions and aid a good night’s sleep. Simply massage it into your muscles wherever they feel tight and stiff and feel the tension fade away. It’s the perfect way to relax after an intense workout or stressful day.
Available online with an RRP of £22.99
H&B Expert Sleep from Holland & Barrett
Looking for supplements to help you doze off? H&B Expert Sleep has everything you need to drift off to dreamland.
Developed by experts, the H&B Expert Sleep range is the perfect solution if you need to take back control of your sleep routine naturally. The range includes four products – Unwind Drink (1), Unwind Tonic (2), Good Day (3) and Good Night (4) – which you can either use together or alone depending on your sleep needs.
Struggling to drift off or stay asleep? Good Night tablets have been formulated with clinical levels of DailyZz – a blend of spearmint and green tea extracts plus magnesium and montmorency cherry – and work in harmony with your body to help you relax, sleep well and wake up ready to take on the day.
If you find it hard to unwind, Unwind Tonic might be the right choice for you. It works in harmony with your body to help you relax and prepare for a great night’s sleep and has been formulated with l-theanine – which is purported to interact with a number of nerogenic receptors in the body, leading to relaxation and improved sleep quality – as well as lavender and montmorency cherry. Alternatively Unwind Drink, which contains ashwagandha – a plant that contributes to emotional balance and relaxation – could be just what you need, plus it’s deliciously chocolatey and soothing, perfect for before bed.
Sometimes a bad night’s sleep is unavoidable, but it doesn’t mean you have to struggle through the next day. Good Day capsules work are formulated with Neumentix (a spearmint extract) along with bacopa, ginseng and vitamin B compact to support all day energy, memory, attention and focus just when you need it most.
Available online with RRPs ranging from £16.99 to £25.99
MenoCool Black Cohosh
Menopause can have a devastating impact on your sleep. According to the Sleep Foundation, sleep disorders affect 39 to 47 percent of perimenopausal women and 35 to 60 percent of postmenopausal women and the most common problems include hot flashes, insomnia and mood changes. It’s not what you need when your body is already going through a whole lot of changes.
MenoCool Black Cohosh is a traditional herbal product for the relief of uncomfortable menopause symptoms like hot flushes, night sweats, irritability and restlessness which can get in the way of a good night’s sleep.
Available online with an RRP of £18.99
Hatch Restore
I’m sure you’ve heard about the benefits of playing background sounds like gentle rain, pink noise or even a pug snoring (true story, those doggy snuffles helped me through a few tricky nights in Delhi once) when it comes to getting a good night’s sleep. While you could play a sleep track from YouTube or Spotify, a device like the Hatch Restore offers so much more. From curated channels to help you unwind, to sounds that help you tune out distractions and stay asleep longer and being awoken by bird song and a gradual sunrise, this device really is made to help you sleep better. The results add up too, according to an IRB-reviewed clinical trial after using Restore for just 2 weeks 50% of trial participants reported exercising more, 59% said they felt less stressed and 24% had more energy than before.
Available online with an RRP of $129.99
Morphee
The Morphee is one of the most beautiful sleep aids we’ve ever seen to hack your sleep. Resembling Lyra’s alethiometer from His Dark Materials, it combines relaxation and sophrology (a relaxation method which resembles hypnotherapy) allowing you to choose from over 200 combinations of guided meditations. It comes with a wooden shell which protects the main interface. There’s 3 keys which you can turn to firstly set it one of eight themed sessions (e.g. breathing, cardiac coherence – where you help slow the heart rate), napping, visualisations and nature sounds). Then you can choose which one of the eight sessions you want for that theme, and the last key adjusts the length of each session; eight or twenty minutes.
The highlight is that there’s nothing digital about it – no screens or wifi needed. It’s self-sufficient in itself and while it can be plugged in, it can also be charged up and carried about. If you find it hard to unwind before bed, this could be the answer you’re looking for.
The Morphee is £89.95 and comes with a 100 night free trial
There’s also a kids’ version too – the My Little Morphee – which looks like a little radio – again, it’s digital-free and meditations are adapted for young minds.
How do you sleep?
What do you struggle with when getting to sleep? Is it actually falling asleep? Staying asleep? Or waking up too early? If you’re looking for more info on sleeping then Matthew Walker’s Why We Sleep is jam-packed with the latest research and science on the importance of sleep, as well as ticks on how to hack your sleep.
If you’re the kind of person who likes sleep tech and data, then also check out the Withings Sleep Analyzer – while it won’t help you get a better night’s sleep, it can tell you how you slept. You might surprise yourself and sleep better than you think!
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