What side of the bed do you sleep on?
Me, I’m a right-side girl, at home or when sleeping over at a friend's or family member's house. I need to score that right-hand-side because I’m also a right-side sleeper who prefers to face out of the bed rather than into it. I don’t know why but I also don’t question it—it just works.
But perhaps my right-hand status is costing me some happiness. So reports an article in The Daily Mail that says those who sleep on the left-side of the bed are happier than us right-hand-side sleepers. Wait—what?
As The Daily Mail reports, the study of 3,000 adults commissioned by U.K. hotel chain Premier Inn discovered that those who doze on the left-side are more cheerful and optimistic than their right-side counterparts. This finding made me pause and scrutinize my husband. He's by far the more optimistic half of our relationship, though I do tend to sport a healthy dose of cheeriness (which we recently rediscovered when debating what we would do as parents while watching The Road.)
The study also reported that while those on the left tend to love their jobs more than their partners on the right (31 percent of respondents reported so), right-side sleepers tend to earn more. Left-side sleepers were also reportedly calmer than their right partners in a crisis—definitely the case in our household.
It’s an interesting report and there’s possibly something to it. But I also have to wonder if there is a bit of truth-stretching involved? I’m sure that while these reports are accurate, happiness comes down to so much more than where in the bed you sleep. In fact, how much you sleep has a significant impact on how happy you are, as numerous studies have shown (and any sleep-deprived parent will tell you).
So I won’t be shoving my husband over and staking my claim on his left-side position any time soon. Instead, I’m going to focus on other sleep-related ways to boost my happiness, namely keeping my phone out of my bed (no Twitter surfing!) and avoiding those ever-alluring late night Seinfeld reruns.
Want more happiness news? Follow me on Twitter @AstridVanDenB
p.s. Have you started your Gratitude Adjustment yet? If so, I’d love to hear what you’re doing and how it’s working for you, which I may share in an upcoming post. Drop me a line below or on Twitter at @AstridVanDenB to let me know.
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