This frozen pillow trick helps you sleep in the UK heatwave – here’s how to do it properly
Feeling the heat? Try freezing your pillow!
If you’re struggling to sleep in the UK heatwave, you must try this easy frozen pillow trick. However, there’s a way to do it right and a way to do it very wrong – here’s how to try it properly.
I hardly need to tell you that the weather has been scorching this week. I love the heat, but the thing I’ve hated most about this current heatwave is how hard it is to fall asleep. I’m left lying on top of my duvet with two fans blasting at me, and I’m still struggling to get a good night’s rest.
As T3’s resident sleep expert, I’ve tried plenty of heatwave sleep hacks but I haven’t found all of them to be that effective. The one I found to actually give some cooling relief was placing a frozen water bottle in my bed before I got in it. Doing this brings the temperature of your bed down quickly and offers some cooling relief and comfort.
Along the same vein, a recent sleep hack that’s come out during this current UK heatwave is the frozen pillow trick. Yes, you read that right – freezing your pillow could be the solution to helping you sleep better in the heat. Here’s how to do it properly and why it’s effective.
How to do the frozen pillow trick
Now, when I say to freeze your pillow, I don’t mean put your entire pillow in your fridge or freezer. For most, there isn’t enough room to put the whole pillow in there, so instead, place your pillow in a sealed bag and freeze it shortly before you go to bed.
According to Natalie Pennicotte-Collier, sleep therapist at MattressNextDay, this frozen pillow trick works best when the fabric of your pillow case feels cool against the skin rather than being damp or ice cold. As she states, “You’re not trying to shock your skin with freezing temperatures. The goal is simply to make getting into bed feel cooler and more comfortable during those first few minutes of trying to fall asleep.”
Timing is crucial with this trick. You should be putting your pillowcase or even your bed sheet in the freezer a few minutes before bedtime. Material is also important, with Pennicotte-Collier recommending breathable cotton as the natural fibres release heat and moisture throughout the night rather than trapping it like other fabrics do.
Now, the most important question – does the frozen pillow trick actually work? Yes, but it won’t be an all-night solution. The cool chill of your pillow will likely last up to 10 minutes but this timing targets the moment when your body is trying to fall asleep and can help speed up the process.
As Pennicotte-Collier explains “Your brain is constantly checking whether your sleep environment feels cool enough and comfortable enough to switch into sleep mode. A cooler pillow surface helps send that signal faster.”
