For many people, getting sufficient sleep can be their most difficult task to achieve. Without sleep, your body cannot effectively perform many of the functions it needs to be healthy. In the short term, you may have trouble with concentration and thinking, increasing your risk of harmful accidents. In the longer term, this may affect your mental health and also cause adverse effects to your immune system.
To help with sleep, some people choose to take sleep aids, however despite their effectiveness they also come with side effects which aren’t particularly good for our bodies in the longer term. Fortunately, there’s another alternative for sleepless nights. The answer is MUSIC!
Relaxing music can help stimulate our parasympathetic system, which helps our body to relax and get ready to sleep at night. According to the U.S. National Sleep Foundation, older adults who listen to 45 minutes of relaxing music before bed fall asleep faster, sleep longer and are less likely to wake up in the middle of the night. Moreover, they would rate their sleep quality higher compared to nights when they did not listen to music before sleeping. Similarly, this also works with younger adults if they are given the option to listen to soothing music or audio books before sleep to relax their minds.
Why do we feel relaxed when we listen to music?
According to studies from MedicineNet, listening to relaxing music can improve sleep quality as it helps reduce stress hormones and lower your breathing rates and blood pressure, allowing you to sleep more easily. Music can also distract you from troubling or anxious thoughts and encourage the physical and mental relaxation needed to wind down and fall asleep. On the other hand, if you watch a horror movie or listen to fast-paced music just before bed, your brain wouldn’t be able to relax, resulting in a night of poor sleep.
What type of music should we listen to fall asleep quicker?
In past studies, listening to classical music for 30-45 minutes before bed can help people fall asleep. But what if we aren’t a fan of classical music? Any music with a slow rhythm that matches our resting heart rate, i.e. between 60-80 beats per minute (BPM) can yield similar results. (You can find many of these playlists on your favourite music platforms to help you sleep better :) )
Should we wear earbuds or headphones when we sleep?
We don’t recommend wearing earbuds or headphones when we sleep as they tend to be uncomfortable over long periods of time. Worse still, we might even hurt our ear canals as our ears roll over them while we sleep! Instead of earbuds and headphones, using a small but good quality speaker in your bedroom would be a much better choice.
It's time to go to bed!
Still experiencing restless sleep? Why don’t you start your musical journey and enjoy blissful sleep tonight!
