How important is sleep to your personal daily life?
I think it is a lot more important than I give it credit for. I am one of those people that thinks they can run off little to no sleep but I’ve started noticing patterns that when I am really tired I get very emotional and find it harder to make decisions – not good when you a run a start up.
What does a typical sleep routine look like to you?
My sleep routine is all over the place at the moment as my 8-month old baby is still getting up twice a night for milk. Therefore, after a very quick wash of my face, I tend to feed him at around 10.30 then head to bed. If my head is buzzing with thoughts and ideas (which is often the case at night) I have a notebook by my bed that I jot them all down in. When I wake up I will have a look at the notes – and realise that most of them are utter rubbish!
What is your bedroom like?
We have just moved our bedroom to the top of the house (away from the kids) and we have an amazing view of the city. We always sleep with the window that overlooks the garden open so that we get fresh air. We sleep under a beautiful duvet and faux fur rug that keeps us warm, and I often have a hotty in there too just to make sure I’m extra toasty!
What is your sleep position?
On my side always facing away from my husband, knees bent, hands under pillow.
Do you follow any rituals to help you sleep better?
I love to have one of Pukka’s night time teas and a bowl of muesli – otherwise when I wake to feed the baby I am ravenous!
Why is sleep so important to you?
We are only at the beginning of discovering the powerful benefits of a good night’s sleep. Studies have shown that not getting enough sleep can be even more detrimental to our health and mental wellbeing then the food we eat or how much we exercise. Often we find ourselves sacrificing sleep in the name of productivity, when in actual fact, our loss of sleep causes us to be much less effective and productive meaning that things take longer, mistakes get made and we end up having to cover old ground. It's a viscous cycle. We should just all sleep more and be at the top of our game. Also – I look about 100 years old when I don’t sleep well.
What are your top “sleep well” tips?
Keep the phone out of the bedroom. Wear comfortable pyjamas. But most of all – make sure that you transition from your work to your sleep. When you get in from work, or after the kids have gone to bed, or whatever you have dealt with during the day – you need to acclimiatise again. (I am very hypocritically writing this at 10pm at night!).
Have you read any good bedtime books lately?
I don’t read fiction. I’m currently reading Gabby Bernstein’s “The Universe Has Your Back” which is lovely. Before that it was a book called “The Miracle Morning”. But if you’re into learning about why we should all be sleeping more then Arianna Huffington’s “The Sleep Revolution” is an absolute must. Also Michelle Obama’s book is waiting by my bedside to be read – can’t wait to get stuck into that!
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