– Feng Shui consultant Sarah McAllister reveals 5 most common bedroom faux pas
– Homeowners are warned not to have too much blue light in their bedroom
– While not having a headboard at the end of your bed can cause restlessness
If you’re still struggling to get a good night’s sleep, despite investing in an expensive mattress, stylish lamp and other items to make your bedroom standout, it may be because your feng shui is out of sync.
The ancient Chinese art looks at how harmonising ‘good energy’ can affect your mood and wellbeing – and consultant Sarah McAllister claims a few simple changes to your bedroom layout can help you nod off faster.
Speaking ahead of the launch of her new book The Dreams Architect, which comes out in January, McAllister told how feng shui is increasingly being applied to homes and how ‘spatial energy’ affects their sleep.
Sarah, who is the founder of FengShuiAgency.com highlights the five things that might be stopping you from sleeping – and how to fix them.
1. HAVING NO HEADBOARD ON THE BED
‘It always amazes me how people can forget to purchase a headboard and muddle through with big pillows instead’, says Sarah. ‘This is really bad feng shui and causes restlessness.
‘The bed needs to feel like a haven of security, not a makeshift environment. You absolutely need a nice high padded headboard that is comfortable and secure and has no gaps through to the wall.
‘This stablises the energy there and stops energy leaking away. Avoid slatted headboards and metal ones.’
2. HAVING TOO MUCH ELECTROMAGNETIC STRESS IN THE ROOM
‘Avoid having a radio alarm clock near your head or mobile phone charging stations and large metal items,’ Sarah warns.
‘Natural materials like wood, cotton, wool, silk, linen, cotton and velvet are preferable to polyester/artificial fabrics which can collect static.
‘TVs are not ideal, but if you must have one then make sure you can close it off in a cupboard and switch off completely. Magnetic mattresses and duvets really help to counteract the large amount of invisible energy polluting our homes these days.
Sarah recommends using Japanese wellbeing technologies to help ‘enhance the energy of a space’ – from air filters and ionisers to magnetic mattresses.
‘All these help to keep the natural energy of the body protected from modern day stresses,’ she explains.
3. POOR CIRCULATION IN THE ROOM
‘Some people keep the windows closed all the time and rely only on air conditioning. This makes the room very yin – while yin (restful) is good for sleep, excessive yin energy means that sleep is poor quality as there is no vitality in the room.
‘Keep even a small window open a small amount and it will make a big difference.’
4. HAVING TOO MANY PATTERNS
‘Avoid too many patterns in the bedroom, especially geometric ones, which are too much fire element and over stimulating,’ says Sarah.
‘Ideally you want the right colours (given in a bespoke consultation) and softer patterns like florals or gentle swirls.’
5. TOO MUCH LIGHT
‘Artificial or natural, blue light from phones and tablet screens interferes with the melatonin levels in your body which govern your natural biorhythms.
‘When you read at night on a tablet or phone your body registers the blue light emitted and thinks it is daylight hours, so it doesn’t get ready for sleep.
‘Use the candlelight setting on your device between hours of 7pm and 7am so that the screen emits less blue light during those times, or ideally switch them off completely.’
WHAT IS FENG SHUI?
Based on the teachings of Traditional Chinese Medicine, feng shui (meaning wind and water) is dubbed ‘acupuncture for the home’ because it benefits your health through opening up channels in your environment where energy can flow.
