In times like these, it’s normal if you’re struggling to sleep. Stress and anxiety can have a huge impact on the quality of our sleep, which is why it’s important we take the time to wind down before bed.

“It is of vital importance that we value our need for good, restorative sleep particularly in today’s fast paced and technologically-driven world,” explains Dr Nerina Ramlakhan, sleep expert at Silentnight. She stresses that we need sleep, both quality and quantity, to recover from the endeavours of our day and to give ourselves the resilience to tackle whatever life throws at us – something that is more important than ever given the current situation.

“Winding down properly and getting five or six hours of deep, uninterrupted sleep is far better than seven or eight hours of broken sleep,” says Dr Ramlakhan. To help you relax, she suggests looking into relaxing essential oils, such as lavender (“lavender is proven to slow the activity of the nervous system, improve sleep quality and promote relaxation”), yoga or having a bicarbonate of soda bath.

How to sleep better: what the Stylist team does to wind down before bed