4x Sleeping on vacation

You are ready for it, have worked hard, the alarm stays off, you have found a perfect hotel with crisp linen, your head touches the pillow and… you lie awake. Not strange at all, because sleeping on vacation is simply different than at home. I read a fascinating article in Volkskrant Magazine on the subject and immersed myself in the world of sleep.

The first night you sleep poorly

During your first night in a strange bed, your right hemisphere sleeps as if nothing is wrong, but your left hemisphere is alert. Scientists compare our first night during vacation to how birds sleep. They always keep one eye open and one hemisphere on alert so they can spring into action immediately if danger threatens. We do not feel safe in the new place yet, need to get used to sounds, and therefore remain alert even in our sleep.

Except…

Poor sleepers, on the other hand, often have a good first night. They have such low expectations for their first night that it turns out to be better than expected. Being able to sleep well is very much related to sleep rituals and associations. Poor sleepers have a negative sleep association with their own bed. With that hotel bed, they do not have that and often sleep much better, even during that first night.

Wild dreams

Do you know that feeling, that you dream much more intensely during your vacation than usual? That’s because you sleep as long as you want. At least, unless three overly enthusiastic children are tugging at you because they want to go to a water park. Your REM sleep is the sleep in which dreams occur. Those who can sleep in have a higher chance of dreaming neurologically and also remember them better.

Tip

Bring your own pillow. According to scientists, a tried-and-true method to help you sleep your best. And I also find it a pleasant thought from a hygiene perspective. That will mean an extra suitcase this summer…