Three Good Reasons to Sleep in Total Darkness
- Darkness promotes the production of melatonin, which is the hormone that promotes sleep. Even the slightest glow of a night light can have an inhibiting effect on melatonin production. Less melatonin = bad sleep/wake cycles = more stress + elevated blood pressure
- Reduced melatonin production has been proposed as a likely factor in the significantly higher cancer rates in night shift workers.
- Save energy by using less electricity. (kinda obvious, sorry)
There are always a couple of unwanted light sources that I deal with:
- The light that comes through the bottom of the doorway from the hallway
- The light from outside beaming in around the edges of the drapes.
The first one is an easy fix. Simply take a towel and roll it up and place it at the base of the door. The second can be tricky, depending on the style of drapes. I will take standard items typically found in a hotel room (ironing board, deskchair, chair cusions, waste baskets, extra blankets, etc...) and use them to press the drapes against the wall to block out unwanted light. I remember on one project where I worked the night shift (therefore slept during the day), I used duct tape to tape the drapes to the wall. This works the best but housekeeping doesn't really like it. Come to think of it I bet they probably don't like the other method either.
