The primary purpose of your bedroom is to be a haven for sleep and relaxation, without loud noises, bright lighting, or other distracting items. Sometimes, however, our sleep sanctuaries can harbor objects, devices, and even living things that disrupt our sleep or decrease our comfort. Here are 18 such things you should banish from your bedroom right now!
Smartphones & Tablets
According to The Sleep Foundation, “The screens of electronic devices such as smartphones, computers, tablets, and televisions can emit blue light that disrupts our natural sleep cycles.” If you use your phone as an alarm, place it outside your bedroom and set the volume to loud. This will help ensure you get enough high-quality sleep and make it easier for you to drift off.
Dirty Dishes
Leaving dirty dishes and uneaten food around your bedroom will quickly attract unwelcome guests, such as bacteria, mold, flies, ants, and even cockroaches. They also make the space look unclean and unsightly, which isn’t conducive to relaxing sleep. Avoid eating in your bedroom entirely, or ensure you remove any food or containers as soon as you’ve eaten.
Work Materials
Bringing work into the bedroom blurs the line between professional and personal life, making it harder to ‘switch your brain off’ and fall asleep. Put things like work files, laptops, lists, and items related to work tasks away or in a different room so the atmosphere is peaceful, and there are no stressful reminders of what you did today or have to do tomorrow!
Uncomfortable Bedding
The average person spends one-third of their life asleep—that’s around 26 years in total! Make sure your mattress, pillows, and sheets are comfortable and of good quality, with adequate support and fabrics that don’t make you itch or irritate any allergies. Buy a pillow that’s the right height for your neck and sleeping position, and have bedding that keeps you at the right temperature.
Paint
Even if you’re an artist or are currently redecorating, remove all paint, paintbrushes, rollers, and other paint-covered items from your bedroom before going to sleep. The Healthy says fresh, drying paint contains toxic compounds that can cause allergic reactions or irritate the eyes or respiratory tract. Always aerate newly painted rooms, and never sleep in a room with wet, freshly painted walls.
Clutter
A clean, tidy bedroom will help you maintain an uncluttered mind—essential for falling asleep and getting enough rest. Avoid the visual mess and mental burden of stacks of clothes, overflowing drawers, and too many trinkets or wall decorations. You don’t need to keep your bedroom sterile and barren, just calming and practical with everything neatly stored away.
Pets (Sometimes)
This really depends on you and your pet. Some dogs or cats are quiet, clean, and calm enough to make excellent sleeping buddies. However, if your pet smells bad, has fleas or ticks, or likes to get active in the middle of the night, consider giving them their own separate sleeping space. This will ensure minimal allergens, bacteria, noise, and distracting behavior.
Excessive Furniture
Falling asleep is more difficult if you are crowded in by towering bookshelves and dressers, and navigating your way to the bathroom in the dark can also be a hazardous experience! If you have a small bedroom, stick to necessary and multifunctional furniture like ottomans and beds with storage underneath. This will improve practicality and stop you from feeling cramped.
Harsh Lighting
Even if you turn all the lights off before bedtime, harsh, overly bright white light can be jarring and not conducive to sleep preparation. If you can’t change your main light fitting, get a yellow-bulb side lamp with a dimmer switch. This will help create a relaxing, dimly lit ambiance before bed and prevent you from being blinded if you need the bathroom after midnight!
Workout Equipment
Although daily exercise helps with sleep, Organized Interiors gives several reasons why workout equipment shouldn’t be kept in the bedroom. These include taking up space, adding clutter, and making it harder to fall asleep after an active bedtime workout or subconsciously associating the equipment with activity, making it harder to wind down.
TVs
Like smartphones and smaller electronic devices, TVs’ flickering blue light and stimulating content can interfere with sleep. If you can, keep your television in your living room or den, and don’t watch TV directly before bed. The mere presence of a TV in your sleeping space can make it more tempting to stay up late or resort to watching screens if you can’t sleep.
Mirrors Facing the Bed
According to Feng Shui principles, mirrors facing the bed disrupt sleep. Whether you believe in such ideas or not, a reflective surface can be distracting, reflecting images or light while you try to sleep. Try to place mirrors so they are facing away from your bed, or at least at an angle, and ensure that no light source (however small) can be reflected from it toward your bed.
Cut Flowers
If you have a pollen allergy, cut flowers are a big no-no anywhere in your home, but especially in your sleeping space. Even if you don’t have an allergy, the strong scent from certain blooms can be overwhelming and disrupt sleep. They also add clutter and can drop petals or leaves, creating a mess and potentially introducing bacteria or molds to your bedroom.
Dirty Clothes
It might be tempting to toss sweaty workout clothes onto a chair or leave your work attire on the floor after a busy day, but this isn’t conducive to sleep. Homes & Gardens says dirty laundry harbors bacteria and can produce unpleasant odors that interfere with good sleep. Instead, use a dedicated laundry basket or hamper kept separately, like in a bathroom or utility room.
Cleaning Products
Even though the lemon or pine scent of cleaning products may be ‘clean,’ strong aromas are distracting and can interfere with getting enough sleep. It is also hazardous to keep irritants or toxic chemicals like bleach in or around where you sleep and change clothes. Use essential oils to freshen the air, and keep all cleaning products in a locked kitchen cabinet or utility room.
Holiday Decorations
Festive decorations like Christmas trees, lights, ornaments, and greeting cards don’t belong in your bedroom. They create a visual mess, attract dust, and even make noise or emit light that can be disruptive while you’re trying to drift off and stay asleep. While holiday decorations are fun and cheerful, they stimulate your brain rather than relax it—not good for resting!
Mini Refrigerators
Don’t keep a beer fridge or chilled snacks next to your bed. Not only do refrigerators emit a low hum and other electronic noises, but they’re also distracting when you’re trying to sleep, especially for anyone prone to thinking about food or drink before bedtime. Additionally, they create heat, which can raise the temperature in your bedroom, making it too warm for restful sleep.
Stacks of Magazines and Books
Reading before bed is an acceptable way to unwind and relax, but avoid keeping large stacks of reading material around your bedroom. Piles of magazines or overflowing bookshelves add visual clutter, making the space crowded and impractical. Have a single shelf or small bookshelf, and limit the number of books you hold onto.
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