CoolDownYourRoom
“Ahotbathwillincreaseyourskin
temperature, whicheventually
decreasesyourcorebodytempera-
ture.Dothesamethingforyourself
thatyou’ddofora youngchild– make
sureyoutakea batha halfhourorso
beforebedtime.” RobertOexman
TampDownHotFlashes
“Ifyouwakeupwithhotf lashes,of
courseyoushouldkeeptheroom
coolandwearlayeredsleepcloth-
ing.Butalsokeepa glassoficewater
bythebed;sippingit willhelplower
yourbodytemperature so you can
get back to sleep.”
DrBeckyWang-Cheng,
coeditorofMenopause
GotoBedAngry
“Theclassiclineisthatyoushouldn’t
gotobedangry,butthat’ssome-
timesimpossible.Ifyou’relyingin
thesamebedbutmentallythrow-
ingdartsateachother, go to sleep
on thecouch.”
PsychotherapistJeffreySumber
BeSmartAboutAllergies
“Pillows and bed coveringsad-
vertisedas‘hypoallergenic’aren’t
necessarilyworthbuying.Thatjust
meansaproductismadeoutofa
substanceyoucan’tbeallergicto,not
thatitpreventsallergies.Instead,get
dustmite-proofcoversforyourpillow,
mattress,andboxspring.”
Allergist Dr Jacqueline Eghari-Sabet
LearntoShare
“Ifyoulikeafirmermattressand
[yourpartner]likesasofterone,
youdon’thavetocompromise.Get
twosinglebeds,pushthemtogeth-
er,andusekingsheets.Oryoucan
buya strapthatattachesthesingle
mattresses to each other.”
AlanHedge,
professor of ergonomics“Oneofthebiggestdisruptersof
sleepisthepullingandtuggingof
sheetsandblankets.I tellcouples
thateachpersonshouldhavea sheet
andblanket.Ifyoupulla bigcom-
forterorduvetoverthetopwhenyou
makethebed,youreallycan’ttell.
CouplescallmeafterI suggestthat
andsay,‘Wow – you changed our
marriage.’”
Chiropractorandsleepexpert
RobertOexmanAvoid‘Anti-Sleeping’Pills
“Alotofpeopletakebedtimepain
relieversthatcontaincaffeineand
don’tevenrealiseit.Checkthelabel:
caffeineisalways listed as an active
ingredient.”
Jan Engle, professor of pharmacy“Anoraldecongestantmighthelp
youbreathebetter,butitcanin-
creaseyourheartrate,whichmakes
ithardtosleep.Anasaldecongest-
antcanrevyouuptoo.Atnight,try
a salinesprayorwashinstead.”
Pharmacist Eric Alvarez105