Tweak your sleeping environment

We sleep best when we do it in a dark place – this helps us produce melatonin, one of the hormones regulating our circadian rhythm (the sleep-wake cycle). This is partly why the white nights period can be so hard: our body’s internal clock goes haywire with the light outside telling it to stay awake – even when we really need to sleep. Hence, for this time, it is best to have thick curtains or, better, a blackout curtain to keep your room dark. An alternative is getting a sleep mask.

After the dark night you’ve created for your body, in the morning, it can be good to look at the sun (or even an overcast sky) shortly after you wake up. This will also help the body to adjust its internal clock.

Additionally, the city’s streets can get a bit noisier during the white nights, so it can also be a wise choice to invest in some earplugs. 

Stick to the schedule

It’s always best to go to bed and wake up around roughly the same time – and it’s particularly important when the usual triggers of sleepiness like sunset aren’t really available. This is the time of the year when it can be good to set evening alarms as well: so as not to miss 10 pm because it looks like midday.

Unfortunately, this one really comes down to discipline: making sure you finish your to-dos and avoid screens for at least 20-30 minutes before bed (many recommendations say an hour or two, but let’s keep it realistic), creating a little night routine, even if it’s just brushing your teeth and reading for a few minutes, and the hardest one – not snoozing your alarm in the morning. 

However, we do have something that can help: earlier, we tested popular tips for falling asleep and waking up in the morning, so now you can pick the best ones based on our experience!

Eating habits

Our diet can also have a great effect on our overall well-being, including sleep. For instance, did you know that kiwifruit is one of the rare few naturally occurring sources of melatonin? In a study with elite athletes, eating kiwi an hour before bed was found to have a positive impact on sleep quality and quantity. Other options are foods rich in tryptophan, an amino acid used in our body to produce melatonin and serotonin; these foods are poultry, seafood, dairy, legumes, and nuts. 

Spending a white night out? We have tips for that, too

Naturally, staying up to explore the city during a white night is a wonderful option, too – especially if you know you can rest the next day. Here are several popular pastimes: 

• Watching the drawbridges open – from the shore or from a boat;
• Attending a free Palace Square classical concert – typically with opera stars and renowned orchestras;
• Walking the familiar streets in the city center, marvelling at how light it still is and surrounded by other white night admirers. 

Don’t forget to account for the bridges being open for several hours during the night when planning your route. 

We hope this white night season will be one to enjoy! To learn about other unofficial symbols of St. Petersburg, go here.

Title image credit: Kora27 / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0