The Sleep Thread

[alywin]

I have no problems sleeping through the summer when it can be warm at night - but rather, can experience some trouble if not getting to sleep, then waking in the middle of the night during very cold nights in the winter.

Bedsocks! But seriously, it appears that having cold feet is a major obstacle to getting (back) to sleep in the winter (perhaps especially for women). I've frequently got up, put on a pair of cotton socks from somewhere, and fallen asleep within a short space of time.

[oddoneout]

Bedsocks! But seriously, it appears that having cold feet is a major obstacle to getting (back) to sleep in the winter (perhaps especially for women). I've frequently got up, put on a pair of cotton socks from somewhere, and fallen asleep within a short space of time.

Absolutely. I realised this by accident quite a few years ago, and hadn't appreciated the extent to which having cold feet (even if I didn't think they were that cold) stopped me getting to sleep and, when I woke during the night, stopped me getting back to sleep. It's the last bit of seasonal change to bed routine to be changed - it isn't until I've woken up several nights with hot feet and have to take the socks off that I leave them off full time. In recent years I've backed them up with a hotwater bottle to create a patch of warmth at the bottom of the bed to help the relaxation process - I think it's the tenseness from being cold that is a factor in the cold feet preventing sleep.