Cinderella’s Hearth: Clearing the Air at Night, by Kate Wolford
- Fairy Tale Magazine
- Jul 14
- 2 min read
I imagine things were pretty smoky when Cinderella was sleeping in the ashes. I mean, it had to have smelled like old fire, not to mention the disgusting refuse that people tended to toss into the hearth back in the day. And the soot particles must have affected her ability to sleep at night.
Luckily, none of us are sleeping in the ashes, at least I hope not, but that doesn’t mean our air quality doesn’t affect our sleep. Allergens have a major effect on sleep—especially dust mites. Pollen is also a huge problem, which I know from personal experience. Tree and grass pollen make my face itch horribly and turn it a fiery red. The night time scratching makes sleep even more difficult than usual.
Clearing the air in your bedroom is the only answer. That means dusting frequently, keeping windows closed when your allergies are at their worst, and changing the air filter for your house. These things are a drag—especially closing windows, because I’m a fresh air fiend, and fresh air absolutely promotes sleep.
Once you’ve done all that, get a HEPA air purifier for your room. I swear my sleep improved by at least 20 percent after I bought one. Mine was pretty cheap and it works great. We liked it so much that we have one in our family room as well, and Todd and I are both bothered less by allergies. We did buy it from Amazon, and I get why people don’t want to buy there, but here's a link to learn more about this cheap and effective air cleaner.
There’s one more important element to healthy air for healthy sleep: A fan. Not only do fans cool and freshen the air, which they very effectively do, they also provide the white noise that many of us need for a good night’s rest. Like many other fan fanatics, I love the Vornado, which really moves the air and cools the room. No other fan comes close, in my experience. It’s well worth investing in.
That’s all for now. Next time, I’ll be discussing meditation and other tricks for slipping into your dreams. Until then, rest easy.
Kate Wolford was the publisher and editor of The Fairy Tale Magazine for many years. She’s now enjoying being Resident Fairy Godmother.
Image from Pixabay.
