5 Simple Changes You Can Make To Your Child’s Room To Help Them Sleep Better

Night of disturbed sleep are hard, not just for your child but also for you.

If you find that your child is routinely struggling to sleep through the night then here are 5 tips to try which will help to turn your child’s bedroom into a haven where they will sleep more peacefully:

1. Stop Background Noise From Waking Them Up

If your child is a light sleeper then putting measures in place to stop sound disturbing them can make a huge difference.sou

Fully soundproofing their entire bedroom may not be possible (and probably isn’t a good idea anyway!) however there are several things you can do to make minor improvements which will help them enjoy an undisturbed nights sleep.

• Fitting heavier & thicker curtains can make a big difference against low-level background sounds such as road noise. The extra curtain fabric helps deaden sound vibrations as they pass through the curtain thereby muffling the sound and reducing the chances of your child waking up when a noisy motorbike goes by or a dog barks!

• In most homes internal doors are the number one culprit when it comes to sound leakage. They are completely hollow and often don’t fit their frame perfectly meaning they offer little sound resistance. A cheap and surprisingly effective solution to this is to buy some weatherstripping and fit it inside the door jamb (where the door touches the frame). Weatherstripping is designed to seal doors and windows from wind and rain but it also does a great job against sound
• If your child sleeps above your lounge then fitting thick rugs in their room will help muffle sound from a conversation or the T.V downstairs, again it won’t completely block the sound but a good rug will do enough to take the edge off the noise
• If all else fails a white noise machine can do wonders for your child’s sleep, white noise is background noise such as TV static or running water which it is easy to fall asleep to. The noise drowns out other noises. You can download free apps to do this.

2. Keep The Bedroom Cool

Your body temperature drops by 1-2 degrees in preparation for sleep, so keeping your child’s room cool is a good idea.

While the idea of a nice warm cozy room with a hot water bottle is nice the reality is that it will take them longer to fall asleep than it would in a colder room and they are more likely to wake up through the night in a room that is warmer.

The room certainly shouldn’t be freezing but if you can then lower the temperature by a couple of degrees less than other rooms in your home.

Alternatively, you could use a fan to keep air circulating and keep your child feeling a bit cooler, using a fan also has the added benefit of providing white noise too!

3. Keep It Dark

Light also disturbs sleep, trying to get your child to sleep in the middle of summer when it’s still glorious sunshine outside can be a challenge.

Fortunately an obvious solution is to buy blackout blinds or curtains. You can kill two birds with one stone here by investing in the aforementioned extra-thick curtains as these are more often than not thick enough to block all light too.

4. Decorate Their Room

This may seem like a strange suggestion but there are studies which prove that the colour you use in a bedroom can have a big impact on behaviour.

Painting your child’s bedroom blue is a good idea because blue is said to lower blood pressure and heart rate as well as feelings of anxiety or anger, being calm and relaxed before bed will help your child fall asleep quickly and have a more peaceful nights sleep.

5. Don’t Forget The Bed

The bed, of course, is the most important tool to use to help your child sleep well. A hard uncomfortable bed will not do them any favours.

Make sure their bed lump-free, with a supportive but soft mattress. Crucially make sure you change their sheets frequently as clean sheets allow your children to relax and sleep more peacefully.

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We hope you found these tips useful and that your child has a great night sleep tonight!