Who knew?
A good night’s sleep is essential, helping to reduce stress, boost your mood and start your day right. But even after a long sleep, sometimes we all wake up feeling down.
There’s nothing more annoying than someone saying “you must have got out on the wrong side of the bed” when you’re feeling a bit grumpy. But it turns out there may actually be some truth in the phrase.
According to research conducted by bed manufacturer Sealy, those who get out of bed on the left are more likely to be in a good mood, have more friends and love their job.
Could it really be as simple as that?
The study questioned 1,000 people from across the UK, contrasting the impact of getting out of bed on either side with factors including mood, success and world outlook.
Surprisingly, the research found that “lefties” were consistently more likely than “righties” to be in a good mood in the morning, to love their job, to have more really good friends and to have a more positive outlook on life – while “righties” were likelier to be grouchy in the morning and prefer their own company.
The figures speak for themselves – lefties were 95% more likely to have a positive world outlook and 8% more likely to love their job, while righties were 9% more likely to prefer their own company, and 7% more likely to be in a bad mood in the morning.
“While the margins are small, the research certainly highlights an interesting trend; could it be possible that the left side of bed is the ‘right’ side?” said Neil Robinson, Sealy’s sleep expert. “For many co-habiting couples this may prove problematic – with each side of the bed a fiercely guarded territory, changing from right to left may not be that easy. The good news is, for those ‘righties’ without a choice, the real way to waking up in a good mood each morning is less about which side you sleep on, and more about getting 7.5 – 8 hours’ sleep each a night on a supportive, comfortable mattress.”
Well, this explains a lot. Could there be any truth to it?
