Why Do I Get So Hot When I Sleep?

Without it, productivity decreases in addition to our physical health and mental stamina, all because we sleep hot at night. You may be asking yourself, “Why do I get so hot when I sleep,” and “what can we do to prevent it from continuing?”

Below is our guide on how to stay cool at night if you’re sleeping hot. We dig into the real reasons you are a hot sleeper and give you tips and solutions for a better night’s sleep.

• Why Do I Get Hot When I Sleep?
• How to Stay Cool At Night
• How Does Body Temperature Affect Sleep?
• Sleep Cool With Layla Sleep

Why Do I Get Hot When I Sleep?

Why do I get so hot when I sleep? This is a common question asked by many who are tossing and turning throughout the night due to being uncomfortably warm. By knowing the causes of sleeping hot at night, you’ll be able to find solutions to get the rest you deserve. Why do you get hot when you sleep? Take a look at some of the reasons you sleep hot at night below:

Medical Conditions

One of the most common reasons for hot sleeping is menopause. While women are more likely to feel colder at night, according to ActiveBeat.com, they are also likely to have night sweats due to the natural aging process. Certain conditions that affect the hypothalamus may be to blame as well. Your hypothalamus, located in the brain, controls your body temperature; if you’re feeling very hot during the night, it may be due to a condition causing this region to malfunction.

Finally, medications, particularly antidepressants, have been known to cause hot sleeping. WebMD.com says that “From 8% to 22% of people taking antidepressant drugs have night sweats.” If you’re taking these or other over-the-counter drugs like aspirin or acetaminophen, then you may be experiencing hot sleeping as a result. Consult your doctor to determine if any of these, or other medical causes, are the reason you’re unable to cool down during the night.

Sleeping Environmental

Your environment plays a huge role in how you sleep. For example, if your clothes are too dense, they can generate heat. If the temperature of your room is too hot, it can cause a poor night’s sleep. And lastly, if the sheets you are sleeping in are too thick, it can cause you to generate unwanted heat. The temperature is one of the leading reasons why you might be sleeping hot at night, and if you don’t have systems in place to keep you cool, such as an AC or the right bedding, this issue can continue to keep you up at night.

Poor Sleep Hygiene

Your sleep hygiene, which consists of the routine and activities you do before going to bed, can be one of the reasons you’re hot at night. Some activities that can cause you to sleep hot include:

• Exercise: While exercising before bed can help promote sleep, if done too closely to bedtime, typically 1-2 hours, you might find yourself too warm to sleep. This is because when you exercise, your body temperature rises. To keep cool, try exercising at least a few hours before bed.
• Stress: Stress can impact many areas of your life, including sleep. When you’re stressed, your core body temperature rises due to your blood levels constricting. To reduce stress before bed, practice calming exercises, such as journaling, yoga, or meditation.
• Caffeine: A cup of Joe not only can keep you up at night due to increased energy levels, but caffeine before sleep can make you sleep hot at night because it can raise your core body temperature, according to research.

Sleeping With a Partner

Whether you’re sleeping with a partner, your pet, or having a sleepover with a friend, they can be the reason you’re sleeping hot at night. All day, our bodies give off heat due to our metabolisms working to give us energy. When we sleep, our body heat can get trapped under the sheets and blankets, causing us to get warm. When sleeping with a partner, that doubles the amount of heat getting expended, which can make it difficult to cool down at night.

Illness

When you get sick from an illness or infection, your body will raise its temperature to kill off any bacteria or viruses. So, if you’re sleeping hot at night, it can be because you have some type of illness, such as the flu, a bacterial infection, or the common cold.

How to Stay Cool at Night

When it comes to hot sleeper solutions, we have a couple of tips to help you stay cool at night. There are three main environmental factors you can adjust to improve your night of sleep and have you feeling cool and refreshed — your bed, clothes, and room temperature.

Make your bed more comfortable

What we sleep on often determines how hot we are during the night. Fabrics like wool and satin are less breathable than cotton, for instance. For naturally cool bedding, look for sheets for hot sleepers, such as Layla Sleep’s bamboo sheets. Our sheets run three degrees cooler than cotton, which can make a big difference when you sleep.

When shopping for a mattress, many experts say not to invest in a foam mattress since they conform to the body and thus preserves heat. At Layla, we’ve fixed this problem and created a highly comfortable, yet cool foam mattress. Among many other benefits of a copper-infused mattress, copper in our copper mattresses pulls in heat and transfers it away from your body so you’ll remain cooler into the night.

Lastly, look for summer bedding that’s breathable and lightweight. Down comforters for hot sleepers, such as Layla’s down alternative comforter, provide all-season comfort to help regulate your body temperature and keep you cool throughout the night.

Sleep in lighter clothes

In general, stay away from wool and fleece as they’re known to cause warmer body temperatures overall. Moisture-wicking fabrics possess the ability to draw away moisture, consequently leaving your body cooler. These fabrics are often made from polyester, so be aware of the material when searching for particular brands. Sleep.org recommends wearing clothes that raise your body temperature one degree Celsius, as this has been shown to cause sounder, deeper sleep. Just like taking a hot shower to cool down before going to bed, it may seem counter-intuitive, but it alters your body temperature for improved sleep.

Adjust your room temperature

During the day, our temperature lies between 98.6 and 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Essentially, our body cools to regulate our sleep in a process called thermoregulation. Different phases of the sleep cycle increase or decrease our temperature, causing it to fluctuate throughout the night. If your internal temperatures aren’t cool enough to sleep, then it may be time to adjust the external temperature in your room.

For rooms with AC, alter the temperature slightly to see if that makes a difference. For rooms without AC, create a cross-breeze by opening your window and placing a fan on the sill. The mixture of outside air and the fan’s breeze will have a comforting, cooling effect in your room. No one really knows exactly what temperature their optimum sleep level is, though it’s been found that the best temperature for sleep is somewhere between 60 – 67 degrees Fahrenheit.

How Does Body Temperature Affect Sleep?

Our circadian rhythm not only dictates when we sleep and wake up but also helps regulate our body temperature. Our body temperature follows the same 24-hour cycle, with your body temperature rising in the morning, hitting its peak during the day, and cooling down at night.

If your body temperature fails to cool down at night, it not only makes it more difficult to fall asleep, but it can disrupt your sleep quality for the entire night, preventing you from reaching the restorative deep sleep and REM sleep cycles. Finding ways to cool down at night is essential for a good night’s rest, and Layla Sleep can help with our cooling bedding and copper-infused mattresses that help regulate body temperature.

Sleep Cool With Layla Sleep

Our hot sleeper tip: Keep adjusting what you sleep on and what you sleep in to get the results you desire. It may take a little effort, but getting a better night’s sleep is worth it in the end. And we are all about the best night’s sleep.

At Layla, our goal is to help you get the quality sleep you deserve. Hot sleeper or not, browse our copper memory foam and hybrid mattresses, along with our cooling pillows today, to start beating the heat and sleeping through the night.