When entering the rapid eye movement cycle, your body loses its ability to sweat causing the body to align with the room temperature. When too warm or hot, your body wakes you up and it is hard to fall back asleep. Equally hard is creating a colder temperature in a room when you do not have an air conditioning unit.
Programmable thermostats can alleviate the costs of a cooler home or a cooler room while sleeping so it does not economically drain you. And let’s be honest. Sleeping naked is the last thing anyone wants to do in the winter just to get a few more winks.
According to the Sleep Foundation, your body temperature decreases in the early evening. A normal sleep cycle is “tied to circadian rhythm, which regulates your sleep, appetite, mood, and other bodily functions.”
The Circadian Clock & Sleep
Another interesting factor during the day that differs from night is how retinas perceive natural light. The circadian clock receives a signal when it is brighter that you should be awake. Normal body temperatures of 98.6 Fahrenheit remain due to the cortisol your body produces in this natural rhythm.
“In preparation for sleep at night, the body pushes heat to the extremities. Blood vessels on the skin become larger in order to release heat. These physiological changes work to lower your core body temperature. With that drop in body temperature comes feelings of drowsiness, and eventually, sleep itself.”
Prior to falling asleep, it helps to take a warm bath with essential oils to shift your body to the evening cycle. In the time leading up to bedtime, lowlights and distractions from the blue light of a cell phone also preps your body. Eye masks can also help your retinas relax your body for sleep while laying down in bed.
“When the sun goes down, your eyes will perceive darkness [triggering] the release of melatonin, the hormone that induces feelings of tiredness and relaxation. This also causes your core temperature to dip.”
