Summer survival guide part 1: sleeping tips for hot summer nights

Summer is my favourite of the seasons, and I look forward to it every year. But just like winter where you have to buy certain types of gear to keep warm or cozy up your home, summer comes with it’s own unique set of challenges—cooking in a hot kitchen, getting through the days when the temperature hits the mid 30’s, and for me the most challenging, getting a good night’s sleep when you’re house is hot and humid.

A restful night’s sleep is so important if your days are as busy as mine, and if the temperature in the bedroom is just as warm as it outside at night, you’re going to spend the evening tossing and turning. Thankfully, there are easy ways to keep cool when you want to go to sleep. Here are a few of my tried and true sleeping solutions for summer.

Turn on the air

Some people avoid air conditioning because they think they have to add a heat pump or central air conditioner unit to keep their room cool, but that’s not the case anymore.

Having a portable air conditioner units means you can literally move your air conditioner around your home and use it wherever you need it at that moment. Pull it into the kitchen when you want to cook or living room when you’re hanging out, then move it to your bedroom at night so you get a cool and restful nights sleep.

There are a lot of portable air conditioners to choose from, with 8000 BTU for a small room up to 14,000 BTU for any room in your home. If you like you can add a window air conditioner instead, and because it’s mounted in your window, it will stay right in your room to keep you cool.

Flip on the fan

If you don’t want to use an air conditioner unit in your bedroom, you may want to invest in a really great fan. The difference between a basic fan and the newest fans from companies like Dyson are like night and day. Take the Dyson Hot+Cool fan for example—it uses air multipler technology to produce the coolest breeze possible in a hot bedroom, and it has no spinner blades so you don’t have to worry about having it around children.

If you’d like a cooling fan with a more traditional look, the Lasko Wind Machine is a great choice. It provides a cool breeze plus the soothing sounds of white noise.

Want a cool tip for using your fan? You can make your room feel extra chilly if you put a dish of ice cubes right underneath the breeze of the fan.

Choose a cool set of sheets

When the temperatures outside are blistering, you don’t want to crawl into your bed and be confronted with a set of flannel sheets. They’re great for winter, but summer requires a sheet set that’s breathable to wick away moisture and keep you cool and comfortable.

When summer comes, I put away my cozy flannels and pull out my favourite Pierre Home Fashion Collection Egyptian cotton bed sheets. They’re 400-thread count, super soft, and will be icy cool when you’re ready to go to sleep.

For extra icy cool sheets on a hot night, stick your bed sheets in the freezer for 15 minutes before you’re going to go to sleep.

Kick off the blankets

Just like you’d change your sheets during the steamy summer months, you might want to swap out your duvet out too. I have a winter duvet that’s extra fluffy to keep me warm and a summer duvet that feels light and airy. A summer duvet is the perfect blanket when you’ve got an air conditioner in your room, because it keeps you warm if the temperature goes down and you want to snuggle under the blanket.
The difference between a winter or 4-season duvet and a summer duvet comes down to breathability and weight. Take a look at Lucy’s great post Duvets 101 for the low down on all things duvet.

Dunk your feet

After a long, hot day running around, your feet will feel like they’re on fire. Cool down your toes by throwing some ice water in the HoMedics Hydro-Therapy foot massager. It will rub the pressure points on your feet and cool you down before you go to sleep.

Cool your skin with lotion

Let’s face it, sunburns happen despite our best intentions, and I don’t know anyone who can sleep comfortably with a sunburn. If you want to cool your skin before bed, try the Aloe & Linden Flower After Sun Soother by Burt’s Bees. It soothes and calms your skin, and combined with the cool breeze of your fan or air conditioner, will help you sleep better after a burn.

Water with lemon anyone?

I have an aunt who swears by this summer sleeping trick—pick up a large glass pitcher like the Brilliant Glass Drink Dispenser and fill it with lemon slices and ice. If you wake up hot in the middle of the night, just grab a quick drink and it will refresh you and cool you right down.

Don’t forget about summer allergies

At my house, just as the temperatures get warmer the kids get sicker. I have two kids and a husband allergic to pollen, and when it’s hot in the house and they’re suffering from nasal congestion? Well let’s just say no one is going to sleep at night.

The only solution I’ve found to help on a hot summer night is a humidifier. It really helps to add moisture to the air and keep the nasal congestion at bay.

I do love summer, but it’s definitely a time of the year when everyone loses sleep because it just gets too hot in the house. When it gets cooking in the summer and your house is an oven, you’ll be glad you’ve got this Summer Survival guide handy.

Keep a look out for the Summer Survival series every week right here on Plug In. We’ll have tips for everything from hot kitchen recipes to using your PC to keep your kids out of trouble during the long summer days.

A frosty drink is just the ticket when you want to cool off before you go to sleep. Take a look at Leila’s cool beverage recipes.

What’s the difference between a summer and winter duvet? Read Duvet 101

When the temperatures soar, the kitchen gets too hot to cook. You can still have dessert if you check out Hot Kitchen Treats.

Main image from express.co.uk

Check out these other posts in the Summer Survival Guide series:

• Summer survival guide part 2: cool eating
• Summer survival guide Part 3: keeping baby happy
• Summer survival guide part 4: relaxing and entertaining on the patio