Winter’s long dark nights and short cold days can affect your daytime mood and energy levels, as well as your sleep. During the long dark winter, people tend to feel sleepier during the daytime and feel less happy, compared to the summer.
However, there are a number of things that you can do to make sure you can enjoy all of the great things about winter, without any negative effects. In this blog, Dr Lindsay Browning explores winter and sleep.
Cold temperatures and sleep
Getting your bedroom temperature right
You might hate going out in the cold, but the colder temperatures of winter can actually be good for your sleep! As we fall asleep, our body temperature drops, so we actually need the bedroom to be slightly colder. This is why we struggle to sleep during a summer heatwave. In contrast, being too cold can also make sleep difficult.
Ideally, our bedrooms should be around 18 degrees Celsius, as we sleep, so make sure you turn the heating down overnight. Also, be aware of having too many layers of duvets and throws which could make you overheat in bed.
Daylight and sleep in winter
During winter there is not as much daylight, especially in the evening when the clocks go back. This lack of sunshine exposure during the day can leave people feeling sluggish and lethargic during the day and affect their sleep.
Unfortunately, it is important to remember that there is less intense light during the winter as it is lower in the sky. When we don’t get as much natural sunlight as we do in the summer, this can make us feel more sleepy and also less happy. Bright light helps to make you feel more alert as it suppresses a hormone called melatonin – the sleepy hormone. So, when you don’t get enough sunlight your brain produces more melatonin and you feel more sleepy.
To combat this, open your curtains as soon as you wake up. Also, try to get outside every day to boost your energy levels and mood, and this will also help your sleep at night. Going for a walk on a cloudy day can still be really helpful, as you will still get benefits from the light even when the sun is behind a cloud. Get out as much as you can.
In terms of mood, sunlight helps us to feel happy. This reduction of bright light during winter is linked to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which is a kind of depression. To try to help support this and if you can’t physically get outside, you can use a light box in the morning to mimic the effects of bright sunlight. This can be helpful to make you feel more alert, as well as happier. However, don’t use it too late in the day or else you will struggle to get to sleep at night.
Christmas parties, food, alcohol and sleep
Adults should aim to get between 7 and 9 hours sleep per night for optimal health and wellbeing benefits, including a reduced risk of cancer, dementia, obesity and diabetes. However, with the festive season, people tend to have an irregular sleep schedule, staying up late at parties and gathering, plus drinking a lot more alcohol than usual.
Alcohol has a negative impact on your sleep. Even though it is a sedative and helps you fall asleep quickly, the quality of your sleep is disrupted and it is likely to leave you feeling unrefreshed.
Also consider the food you are consuming at this time of year. Difficult to digest foods, like cheese and mince pies, when eaten too close to bedtime can upset your sleep. These high-fat and high-sugar foods can be difficult to digest and may disrupt your sleep due to indigestion.
When you can, try to give yourself time to get enough sleep, keep to a regular sleep and wake schedule, in between the must-attend parties, and consume alcohol in moderation.
Exercise and winter
With the cold dark winter evenings, exercise may be the last thing you want to do. However, exercising can actually boost your energy levels with increased endorphins, and also improves your sleep and your mood.
If going for a run in the cold rain doesn’t appeal, you could embrace some winter activities, such as ice skating at an outdoor rink, or play some indoor sports, such as tennis or swimming.
If vigorous physical activity doesn’t sound right for you, at the very least you could walk around some of the many beautiful Christmas markets in the UK to get your step count up or walking around beautifully decorated houses, local to you. Exercise whilst enjoying all the festive season has to offer.
Winter wind down time
Another problem with this time of year is how busy and pressured we can feel. Whether it’s nativity play preparation, presents to buy, Christmas food shopping and organising the holiday break…it can feel never ending. And when do we commonly stop to have a chance to think about all of the reams of things we feel we should do? …at bed time.
Therefore, if you can have a dedicated wind down time before getting in to bed or going to sleep, which helps your brain relax and get into a sleepy frame of mind. This will make falling asleep easier.
Making time during the day to do a “brain dump” can be a fantastic way of helping to clear your mind, and help you feel more in control. A brain dump is simply making some time to write down all the to-dos and worries that are whirling around your head on a piece of paper. By dumping all of these thoughts onto a piece of paper, it can leave you feeling calmer and with a clearer mind when you try to go to sleep.
You can embrace the dark winter nights by snuggling inside by candlelight with a good book and spend some time reading before deciding to sleep. When you get into bed, don’t have your phone next to you as it is a distraction from sleep. If possible, leave your phone outside of your bedroom altogether.
Need further help with your sleep this winter?
If your mood is very low during the winter, consult your GP to see if you may have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which could require treatment.
Also, if you are suffering from chronic sleep problems such as insomnia, it is important that, beyond these lifestyle changes, you speak directly with your GP for advice. They may recommend that you speak to a qualified sleep expert such as myself, Dr Lindsay Browning, for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). If you have been struggling with sleep for a while, let’s see if we can get that improved for you in 2024.