5 tips for creating a stress-free bedroom

Reducing stress when you have diabetes is important because it helps reduce high blood sugar, since stress blocks the release of insulin. Here are a few tips to help you transform your bedroom into a soothing refuge.

Smooth, clean surfaces act as balm to your brain, so clean off the dresser surface, put away all the clothes strewn on your bedroom chair, and buy a bookshelf for that stack of books collecting dust.

• Put fresh flowers on your dresser or nightstand.

A study at Kansas State University found that female office employees felt more relaxed when they were working near a vase of flowers. Just imagine how nice it would feel to sleep near one.

In aromatherapy, a number of scents are recognized as particularly useful for reducing stress.

There are several easy ways to introduce these scents into your bedroom.

• One is to buy a light bulb ring (a device that you set onto a cold light bulb), add a couple of drops of essential oil, and turn on the lamp to let the oil warm and scent the air.
• Another is to buy or make potpourri, a collection of dried herbs treated with essential oils.
• Or mix in a spray bottle 60 millilitres (two ounces) of water, plus a drop or two of your favorite oils, and use the scent as an air freshener.

Relaxing scents include bergamot, chamomile, lavender, lemon, marjoram, neroli, opopanax, orange, sandalwood, valerian and ylang ylang.

Scientists say that the colour blue affects the autonomic nervous system — the part that operates without your conscious control — to lower heart rate and blood pressure and slow breathing.

• Proponents of colour therapy say that blue has a calming, relaxing effect and helps lull you to sleep.
• If the room is due for a fresh coat of paint, go azure.
• If not, sprucing the room up with sky-coloured blankets, pillows, and rugs will also do the trick.

Feng shui aims to achieve harmony between your spiritual self and your physical environment.

In this ancient discipline, proper positioning of elements of a room creates the desired energy flow and balance of forces.

• Practitioners recommend that you position your bed on the opposite side of the room from the bedroom door — not directly in front of the door, but diagonally across the room from it; position the bed so that when you lie in it, a window is to your right (to feed you positive energy when you wake up).
• Keep desks and computers, along with their work-related energy, out of the bedroom.

You spend about a third of your life in the bedroom, so why not use these tips to make it a stress-free atmosphere?