My sleep has been haywire for years. Whether it’s children waking me up, hormones all over the place or stress, getting a good night’s rest has felt elusive for a while. I figured this was just how life looked as a woman in midlife with quite a lot to juggle. While magnesium oil on my feet, putting my phone down earlier, and other healthy habits have helped me sleep better, I know there are plenty more things I could try.
Determined to get stuck into the latest trends in sleep health and experience them for myself, I headed off to the adults-only Verdala Wellness Hotel, which specialises in helping people with their fitness, nutrition, sleep, and general wellness, leaving them with tools to replicate the feeling at home. The Verdala, in the town of Rabat, only opened in August, but it’s a stunning environment with a spa, food and spectacular views.
Acupressure for sleep
Acupressure is a form of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) which involves using your fingertips on pressure points on your body. I’ve had acupuncture, another form of TCM, before, but had never tried acupressure. A study in the journal Phytomedicine found that acupressure could “improve sleep and related daytime impairment and mood problems in individuals with insomnia disorder”. I was keen to find out more.
I sat down with Verdala’s therapist, Maria, in the hotel’s serene yoga and meditation studio. She told me about the hundreds of acupressure points across our bodies, which can help blood flow, relaxation and pain reduction. When I explained some of my sleeping issues, she gave me a short routine I could try at bedtime.
Maria started by showing me the SP6 point. This is four finger-widths above your inner ankle bone. She said I should use two fingers to apply pressure here for 5 to 10 seconds. This pressure point is thought to help with insomnia, irregular periods, and bloating.
Maria then moved through four other pressure points to focus on for a short bedtime routine. These points were on the base of my feet, wrists and behind my ears, close to the vagus nerve. “The vagus nerve can help regulate a lot of bodily functions and is a major part of the parasympathetic nervous system,” she told me. This is the part of our body responsible for calming us down and stimulating our digestive system.
I put what Maria had taught me into practice each night during my stay. I found that my breathing slowed down, and I couldn’t think of anything else apart from how soothing the pressure was. It was incredibly relaxing – and I have no doubt it really helped me drift off.
Maria also suggested putting my feet in warm water. In TCM, it’s believed that this “calms the fire in your brain, which is what keeps you awake and causes night-time stress”, something I’m certainly planning on trying at home.
Kat continues to do the vagus nerve acupressure in bed, since returning from the Verdala Wellness Hotel.
(Image credit: Future / Verdala Wellness Hotel)
Immersive sleep therapy
Trying out these different sleep therapies without the distractions of home was the stuff of dreams (no pun intended). The only thing I had to think about was where I needed to be for my next spa treatment or meal. But I knew I needed to take some of the tools I learnt and tips I received home with me for when challenges of regular life picked up again.
One of the treatments which was organised for me was an immersive sleep therapy massage. This was planned for late in the day with the idea that it would send me off into a restful final night’s sleep. My therapist, Anita, had a calm and kind nature (which always helps!), and she reassured me that this was going to be a really positive experience. Anita asked me about my sleep issues and what I hoped to get out of the treatment. She explained that the session involved a sound bath, where she would place a singing bowl on and around my body. This is a metal bowl which produces deep sounds and vibrations. Anita explained that these can “target brainwave stimulation to help with sleep problems like insomnia” and also “help you relax and rebalance”.
The 90-minute treatment also included a full-body massage and a hot oil scalp massage. I had never experienced anything like this before. Usually, I find it hard to relax during massages because my brain whirs with thoughts of things I need to do, friends I need to reply to, and bigger life worries. This didn’t happen in this treatment – in fact, I fell asleep and embarrassingly woke myself up with a tiny snore.
While I know I can’t have a massage like this or do immersive sleep therapy every time I have sleep problems, I can take away some tips from Anita. She reminded me that worrying about not sleeping has the very obvious effect of stopping you from actually sleeping. The anticipation of another bad night’s sleep can cause more stress and anxiety, so learning how to take time to focus on myself and relax needs to be more of a priority.
Full sound bath sessions are held in my neighbourhood, and in many major cities and towns around the UK, but I’d always been unsure about going until now. After the effect this one had on me and my sleep that night, I’m definitely going to book myself onto the next one in my area.
Cold plunging
Verdala has a fantastic spa you can spend all day in, with a sauna, jacuzzi, infrared sauna, hammam and more. But, when it came to trying out the best therapies for sleep, it was the warm and cold plunge pools that the advisors recommended.
I’ve been hearing about cold water therapy and cold plunges over the last few years (arguably a little too often). Compared to the option of a 90-minute massage and sound bath, dunking myself in freezing water had zero appeal. However, in the interest of research, I put on a brave face and did it. Three times – one contrast plunge each day – and all of them were awful. I knew I wasn’t going to like it before I got in, and I was right. It sent me into what felt like ‘fight or flight’ mode rather than any kind of zen, meditative state, and all I wanted to do was get back out again.
(Image credit: Verdala Wellness Hotel)
Cold plunges have cropped up repeatedly in advice for women in perimenopause, with evidence suggesting they can help regulate the body’s temperature response and reduce hot flashes and night sweats, which naturally negatively impact sleep.
I know these things get easier the more you do them, but I’m not sure I’d want to do any more contrast therapy – and there is some evidence that they are not nearly as good for women as they are for men. Some experts suggest that they can actually have the opposite effect for women, and to avoid ice baths completely.
What I learnt from exploring these sleep trends
From these experiences, I learnt that I need to focus as much on what my body needs at night as it does during the day. I spend so much time thinking about how to improve my health by exercising regularly and eating well that by the time the end of the day rolls around, I’ve run out of energy. That’s when bad habits creep in.
A trip like this one is a luxury I definitely can’t afford often, but the impact of these sleep experiences, which I can translate into my everyday life at home, has undoubtedly stuck with me over the last few weeks. I’m better at shutting off my brain at night, and it’s made me take time to appreciate the stillness that being in bed before going to sleep brings if I’m not looking at my phone.
I think my feelings about contrast therapy are clear. It’s not for me, but I appreciate that some women find it eases their symptoms. When it comes to acupressure, I’ve been allocating 10 minutes at the end of the day to do this to unwind and ease any stress. The vagus nerve pressure point and the one on my hand have been the most effective at helping me relax and prepare for sleep. It’s on my goal list for 2026 to learn more about acupressure and how I can use it more during stressful times – and to only ever dunk myself in warm water.
