Bedtime Ritual For Better Sleep

There are many ways to enhance your sleep and fragrance is one

 

" Fill the room with soothing fragrances" - Sleep Foundation

36% of UK adults struggle to get to sleep at least on a weekly basis; Nearly half of the UK have trouble falling asleep at least once a month. That’s a lot of sleepless nights! Whether you have the occasional night of bad sleep or chronic sleep issues, sleep scents promote relaxation helping you to gently drift off to sleep.

How scents can affect sleep

Fragrances can reduce stress and anxiety which in turn helps you sleep better. However, it’s important to choose the right scents to help you sleep. Some scents such as citrus have an energizing rather than a calming effect, and they will wake you up instead of helping you drift off. Feeling relaxed before bedtime is such an important factor in getting a great night's sleep. The process of relaxing should start before you actually get into bed.

How to use fragrance for a good night's sleep

Our sense of smell is so closely linked to our emotions. Using scent in our surroundings enables you to change the ambience in your home with a fragrance to suit your mood. 

1. Light a scented candle in the evening as you begin to wind down. Make sure to extinguish it fully before going to sleep.
2. Set up a reed diffuser in a room where you are relaxing before you retire to bed. 
3. Draw yourself a warm bath and breath in the aroma from either a sleep candle or diffuser while you enjoy a long soak.

What fragrance helps you sleep? Here are some scents for relaxation & sleep.

Lavender
This soothing, calming scent will help to relax your body and mind and help you fall asleep. Lavender is perhaps the best-studied of all essential oils, and it can also help with anxiety and pain relief–two things that often keep people up at night. For some sleepers this fragrance can be over powering. 

Vanilla
The sweet, light scent of vanilla is another fragrance that will help you fall asleep. If you love the smell of warm baked goods, you can recreate the scent with a vanilla-scented candle—minus the mess of actually getting in the kitchen. Whether you’re looking to soothe nervous tension or calm down after a tough day, a vanilla fragrance can help you do just that and prepare for a restful night of sleep.

Jasmine
If you’d prefer a more traditional floral scent, jasmine is an excellent choice when it comes to scents that help you sleep. Jasmine can both boost daytime alertness and reduce restless sleep at night, a one-two combo that can make a big difference for your sleep.

Sweet Marjoram
If floral isn’t your preferred fragrance family, you can try sweet marjoram instead. Sweet marjoram is actually an herb that has more of a woody, spicy undertone. It smells a bit like oregano, though less pungent. Sweet marjoram can help you relax at night and make it easier for you to fall asleep. 

Chamomile
This fragrance can help soothe nervous tension, reduce pain and digestive upset and help you chill out before bed.

Smelling perfume while sleeping 

The researchers at Wheeling University in West Virginia exposed participants to one of three conditions over the course of three nights: the scent of jasmine, the scent of lavender and no scent at all. They found that jasmine led to better quality sleep, with less tossing and turning, as well as lower levels of anxiety and improved focus the following morning.

Smell and sleep

 

Try the Serenity candle infused with the scent of jasmine or the luxury Serenity diffuser to help tackle your insomnia and disrupted sleep. Also has notes of freesia, peach and pineapple.
Enrich your bedroom or bathroom with this sleep enhancing scent before you retire and breath in the calmness. 

For other tips on how to improve your sleep visit www.sleepcouncil.org.uk