My Journey to a Good Night’s Sleep

Another night of waking up at 4am. While I lay there in a pool of sweat, wishing that I could enter some semblance of sleep again, my husband lies there cozily under a duvet, sleeping softly. With every breath, I try my hardest to be grateful that he’s sleeping like a baby, but deep down, I’m jealous.

I’ve read so much about setting up routines to sleep better. I’ve tried it all. I don’t sleep with my phone in the room, I have no caffeine after 2pm, I read before bed, I exercise regularly… and the list goes on. I even go as far as lowering the temperature in the house and increasing the speed on our ceiling fan, much to my husband’s irritation.

While it feels like eons ago, I remember a time when I could sleep anywhere, under a swath of covers, and I always slept like a baby. Where did those blissful sleeps go? I know that having kids had something to do with it, but now at 46, I’ve come to accept that I’m officially entering menopause and my sleep is going downhill, fast. I know that I’m not the only one who is experiencing this, and I would even go as far as saying that lack of sleep is a worldwide epidemic among women.

On a particularly frustrating morning, when I was running on little to no sleep, I decided that it was time to embark on a research project to figure out a solution to my night time sweats and sleep woes. First, I would delve in the world of sheets and bedding to find ones that actually help me sleep by keeping me cool. Of course, I would share my findings with the internet, hoping to help someone else who was experiencing the same sleep issues.

I’ve always loved a beautiful bed. Euro and standard pillows, fluffy duvets, toss cushions and throws are some of my favourite bed accessories. While I still love all the bedding bells and whistle, I recognize at this stage in my life the importance of function when pulling together the ideal bed. To add another layer, sustainability is paramount, too.

There are so many types of sheets out there — Egyptian Cotton, sateen, linen, flannel, silk, bamboo and the list goes on. After picking some of my favourites,  I started to dig down and do some research into each fabric. I soon learned that some sheets are more sweat absorbent than others, like linen. Sleep experts also recommend that the sheets should be made of 100 percent natural fabrics for a cooler sleep, which means they are also 100 percent biodegradable, thereby more sustainable. Perfect!

On my trip to High Point Market back in the Sprint, I had the opportunity to go even deeper with sustainable suppliers. I knew that I wanted to look for ones who offered fabrics that are OEKO-Tex certified to ensure that they were chemical-free. I scoured the market for days until I found my the perfect set for my sleep test, that met all of my criteria — a bamboo sheet set, with a mulberry silk duvet insert, topped with a linen duvet cover.  I wanted to sample products that I wasn’t familiar with and I hadn’t slept in, but through my research, I knew that they could very well be my golden ticket to a good sleep. Bamboo seemed to be the most cooling alternative for sheets, plus I was intrigued by those mulberry silk inserts, and having an absorbent duvet cover was also a bonus.

Two months later, with well over 60 sleeps under my belt, I can say that bamboo sheets are it for me, and I will never look back! They are the only sheets that I’ve ever slept in that are cozy, yet cooling. When it’s cold outside, they’re cozy, but when I’m hot at night, they keep me cool. Plus, they are super soft! The set that I purchased are premium, certified OEKO-TEX 100% Bamboo Lyocell, and they were well worth the investment. It took me some time to get over the fact that they wrinkle after you sleep in them, but once you make the bed, they flatten out again. The mulberry silk duvet is amazing, too, because even though it's thin and fully breathable, it feels heavy, which also can help with sleep. These functional components of my bed are A-plus!

While for some, the wrinkled nature of both linen and bamboo is problematic, I’ve instead chosen to embrace the more relaxed look. I’ve still managed to adorn our bed with lots of pillows and throws, much to my husband’s dismay when he has to take them all off when it’s time for bed. As my mother would say, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. I’m always going to decorate our bed, but now I’m a whole lot more intentional because we all need a good night's sleep.