Sleep is vital to our health and well-being. Good, quality sleep is key to living a healthy, active, and more productive life. But, if you share your bed with a partner, you may not always feel as if you're getting the best sleep possible.
Your partner may snore or kick in their sleep. Perhaps they suffer from sleep apnea and have to use a CPAP machine. Maybe they talk in their sleep and don't know it. While a few things might annoy you about sleeping with your significant other, there are many benefits of sleeping with someone. And, yes, we mean actually sleeping (although we'll talk about non-sleep activities a little, too).
Benefits of sleeping together
Sleep is vital to our health and well-being. Good, quality sleep is key to living a healthy, active, and more productive life. But, if you share your bed with a partner, you may not always feel as if you're getting the best sleep possible.
Your partner may snore or kick in their sleep. Perhaps they suffer from sleep apnea and have to use a CPAP machine. Maybe they talk in their sleep and don't know it. While a few things might annoy you about sleeping with your significant other, there are many benefits of sleeping with someone. And, yes, we mean actually sleeping (although we'll talk about non-sleep activities a little, too).
Benefits of sleeping together
Here are some little-known benefits of sharing a bed with a partner. (Psst! Some of these things even apply to sleeping with a furry friend.)
1. Health benefits
While sharing a bed can be intimate and romantic, there are some major health benefits to sleeping together, too.
- Sleeping together can lower your blood pressure (because of oxytocin, which we'll talk about a little later).
- Sleeping together can reduce inflammation. This is because of lower levels of cortisol, the stress hormone. Cortisol is released by the adrenal glands in response to stress, fear, or danger. When you're sleeping with someone, you feel safer, so your body isn't triggered to release cortisol. (This goes for sleeping with a furry friend, too.)
- Sleeping together can strengthen your immune system. (Some non-sleep activities have been found to make you more resistant to getting a cold or the flu.)
2. Schedule syncing
When you share a bed with a partner, if your schedules allow, you'll likely go to bed and wake up at the same time. Being on the same sleep schedule can help you maximize your awake time together and also spend some quality time in bed before you fall asleep.
Having the same sleep schedule means that your circadian rhythms (internal clocks) are in sync, which can also help bring harmony to your relationship.
3. Increased happiness & energy
When you sleep with the person you love every night, your body releases dopamine, which makes you feel pleasure (when released in large quantities), and serotonin, which is known as the "happy chemical." So, sharing a bed literally makes you a happier person.
If you're happy, love who you're sleeping next to, and, of course, have the right mattress and pillows for good sleep, you're going to have good sleep quality, which also means you'll wake up refreshed and ready to conquer the day.
Research has conclusively proven the benefits of sleeping with someone for women in a solid committed relationship. Going to bed next to someone they love improved sleep quality and gave them a better night's rest.
4. Fall asleep faster
Sometimes, when you're alone, it's easy to get lost in your own thoughts. And we've all been there—getting lost in your thoughts often leads to overthinking (and not sleeping!). When you sleep with a partner, you're less likely to get caught up in your inner monologue and more likely to relax and fall asleep.
When you're sleeping next to a partner, you may also feel a level of safety and security you might not feel when sleeping alone. This is good for mental health. As previously mentioned, feeling safe lowers your body's cortisol levels, which can help you fall asleep faster, experience better rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, and stay asleep all night long.
5. Find the perfect sleeping temperature
Sleep experts recommended that the best sleeping environment is about 67 degrees Fahrenheit. Apparently, a cooler temperature helps promote sleep. But 67 degrees can sometimes feel chilly, especially when it's windy and cold outside. Sharing a bed with a partner can help combat this issue. It may be a cool 67 in the room, but cuddling up with your partner while falling asleep can help you both fall asleep faster.
If it gets a little too toasty under the covers, stick a foot or arm out into the cooler air. Exposing your pressure points to the cool temperature should cool you right off. Or, if your feet still feel cold, you can always warm them on your partner. Mean, but hey, it's real.
Is your partner putting off a little too much heat? Nothing's worse than waking up covered in sweat, especially if it's someone else's. Read our tips for hot sleepers.
6. Get more restorative sleep and better sleep quality
Mostly, we've been talking about snoozing, but we know that your bed is more than just where you catch zzz's. You fold laundry, snuggle with your furry friends and spend quality time with your significant other in bed, too. And whether that quality time with your partner is talking about your day, reading, or something a little different, spending time in bed with someone you love and are attracted to can be great for quality sleep.
The time you and your partner spend in bed not sleeping can promote restorative sleep by:
- Boosting estrogen levels in women, which helps promote deeper sleep.
- Being physically close to the one you love means your brain will release oxytocin, the "love hormone" and serotonin, the "happy hormone."
- For men, sex can release a cocktail of brain chemicals, including the hormone prolactin, norepinephrine, serotonin, oxytocin, vasopressin, and heart-healthy nitric oxide (NO). Prolactin induces sleep and is probably why many men fall deeply asleep after sex.
And it's not just that certain non-sleep-related activity we're all thinking of that can be beneficial. Even something as simple as holding hands or cuddling can trigger your body to release oxytocin and serotonin, helping you both get a good night's sleep.
7. Experience a strengthened connection
Sleeping together can help strengthen your connection with your partner, whether you've been happily married for 20 years, have just started living together, or are waiting to define the relationship. Spending time in bed with your partner (both snoozing and doing non-sleep-related activities) is important to creating and maintaining a healthy relationship. The close physical contact created by sleeping next to someone not only impacts your emotions, but also ups your immune system, lowers your blood pressure, and may even lengthen your life.
How can Leesa help?
There are many important benefits of sleeping next to someone, especially someone you love. The physical advantages include lowered blood pressure, a stronger immune system, and reduced inflammation. Sleeping next to someone can also help promote deep REM sleep. Emotionally, sleeping next to someone means reduced anxiety, a sense of safety, improved sleep quality, and increased happiness. Sleeping next to someone can also create a stronger relationship bond.
So, what if you and your partner don't sleep that well together? First, don't stress! We're here to help. After all, at Leesa, sleep is kind of our thing.
Maybe your mattress is old and creaky, causing frequent wake-ups and tossing and turning. Or maybe the two of you have outgrown your mattress and are ready for an upgrade. Whatever the case, Leesa's got your back—literally. Our new Sapira Hybrid mattress combines the benefits of our advanced hybrid memory foam with more than 1,000 individually wrapped springs, providing advanced support and unbeatable comfort. Maybe that's why the Sapira is the New York Times Wirecutter mattress choice of 2022! Find out for yourself—shop Leesa.
FAQs
How can I make it feel like someone is sleeping next to me?
If you don't have a partner, or a furry friend, one thing to consider is getting a body pillow or grabbing one of Leesa's hybrid pillows. Snuggling up against one is an ok stand-in for a pet or real person.
Which is better, sleeping alone or sleeping with someone?
Physically, psychologically, and emotionally, sleeping with someone you love is key to a good night's rest. There's something profoundly comforting and intimate about going to sleep and waking up with the one you love.
Does sleeping next to someone you love make you live longer?
As a matter of fact, the research points to "yes!" The University of South Carolina completed a study proving that women who were frequently hugged by their husbands had lower blood pressure and a slower heart rate than those who weren't.
