WHAT YOUR SLEEP SAYS ABOUT YOU

The sleep theme made a comeback into my life because my dear Holland’s Next Top Model colleague Fred van Leer hardly got any shuteye during the filming and I, the best sleeper ever, turned into a perky person during my flight back home, I didn’t even blink. Therefore I put on my tightrope shoes and carefully stepped onto the Worldwide Web. I collected some great fun facts if I may say so myself.

Morning people are happier than evening people

As it happens I’m a morning person. Just like Anna Wintour (who always gets up at 5:00 am so she has a head start on the rest of the world). Morning people are apparently better rested because their ‘sleep schedule’ is more balanced than that of evening people who prefer to stay in their beds in the mornings because of ‘social jet lag’.

Evening people take more risks

I’m not making this up, it’s all scientific proven and researched by the Pediatric Sleep and Research Center of Saint Louis University. Evening people are more creative and more drawn to adventure, sensation and are on the look out for new things. Maybe because a drink gives you that extra push in the right direction. Evening people tend to live off liquor and ciggies instead of sandwiches and milk.

Worriers don’t sleep

Easy one, I know as they’re the ones tossing and turning all night. People who can’t shut off their brains have trouble falling asleep.

Extrovert people sleep better

It must have something to do with getting everything out in the open because (extrovert) people worry less and therefore sleep better.

How?

For the first time in my life I finally understood what it was like to want to sleep but not be able to, this happened during my long flight home. You go nuts. Thanks to my friends at the Huffingtonpost.com I found some great tips I’d personally ever heard of.

Get out of your room

If you are lying awake for more than 20 minutes you have to get out of bed. Otherwise your head will stop associating your bed with sleeping and it will become a self fulfilling prophecy. You don’t want that. So out to go to drink a cup of tea so you can try again later. And DON’T look at your mobile or laptop because the light will wake you up completely and take you out of your sleepy mode.

Cold and dark

That’s what your bedroom should be like. Make sure your room is cool, preferably around the 18 degrees and invest in heavy curtains that block out all light. This will also soundproof your room from outside noises.

Do something boring

The Baking Powder Controversy (one of the most boring books in the world) is a very good way to calm down and get sleepy thanks to the high dosage of boredom.

Find your sleep rhythm

Sounds terribly boring but it is really much, much, much better if you have a set bedtime ritual before you go to sleep. Like taking a bath, burning a candle, reading, making love and then it’s night, night.

Or you take a tiny sleeping pill that will ensure one good night’s sleep and with strengthen your confidence for sleep adventures to come. This last one is mine of course; the high gents at the Huff didn’t puff this one out.