How To Hack Your Suboptimal Holiday Sleeping Arrangements

featured recently on MindBodyGreen by Lindsay Kellner

There's no place like home for the holidays, and yet, if you're like most people, you're traveling. While it can be wonderful to travel, getting out of our regular routines can shock our bodies, making it more difficult to eat healthfully, stay regular, and, perhaps most importantly, to sleep well. We spoke to our experts Anjie Cho, a feng shui specialist, and Ellen Vora, M.D., mbg class instructor who specializes in anxiety and is a board-certified psychiatrist, licensed medical acupuncturist, and certified yoga teacher. Both provided tips on how to ready your space and body to get your best sleep ever no matter where you are. Here are their pro tips:

1. Clear the space.

Whether it's a hotel room, sofa, or your childhood bedroom—a space that's been used by someone else or left dormant for weeks (or months) needs clearing. "There can be residual energies from the people that have stayed there before or just from the people you're staying with," Cho said. The holidays in particular can make you feel more sensitive than usual to "foreign energy," she warned. "By clearing the space, you're just giving the place a little perk to provide a restful and spacious sleeping situation while traveling."

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Q&A Sunday: Pregnancy and Feng Shui

We bought crystals from the Holistic Spaces Store recently to hang one each above main entrance door, study and bedroom (as my bed in line with the door). My husband and I lost a lot of pregnancies without any medical explanation. Could you please suggest the changes we need to make to our bedroom? Also I want to move up in my career with higher education, and my husband needs to start his training/career/job. I feel like for the seven years we've lived in our current house, things have been stressful, creating anxiety and stagnant in addition to pregnancy losses and the loss of my dad (he doesn't live with us). Any feng shui help or suggestions are appreciated!

Arjun S., Muncie, IN

Hi Arjun,

Thanks so much for shopping with us! It sounds like you have put the feng shui crystal balls (available at the Holistic Spaces store here) to good use, and in appropriate locations (good job!)

I'm also very sorry to hear about your pregnancy difficulties. A couple of general feng shui suggestions for pregnancy are the following: first, be sure to halt any sort of renovations in the home. Any sort of disturbances in your home can affect a pregnancy. Second, refrain from cleaning under your bed. I know this sounds odd, but in BTB feng shui, this is a big no-no. If you want to conceive, it's best to avoid cleaning or dusting under the bed.

And while we're talking about the bed, be sure that you have a sturdy headboard with plenty of space and good air flow under the bed. Many people have platform beds or no bed frames, which can affect health and stability.

Check in next week and we'll respond the the second part of your question 😃

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday".  We will be answering questions submitted by our readers. Click here to submit any Feng Shui or Green Design questions!

Q&A Sunday: Bed Direction and Entry Mirrors

I've just moved into a new condo. Should my bed face the door? And is a mirror bad to have in an entry way?

Patricia G., Buffalo, NY

Hi Patricia

Congratulations on your new home! Hope you're loving it. 

Question one, should your bed face the door? In BTB feng shui, we use the "commanding position" for important furniture placement, such as a bed. Essentially, this question is about what is a good direction to face when you're spending many hours in one spot. The bed ideally faces the door, meaning that when you are laying in bed, or sitting up in bed, you can clearly see the door. However, it's not about placement right in front of, or in line with, the door. Diagonal from the door is the best position for a bed, so when you're in bed, you can see anyone that may be coming into the room with ease, not having to turn around. We have more posts about the commanding position here, here and here.

Onto the second question, is a mirror bad to have in an entry way? It's definitely not bad! It actually depends on they layout of your entry and your home, where exactly you want to place the mirror, etc., etc. But mirrors can expand a space, so if you have a small foyer, a mirror can be very helpful from a feng shui perspective. It can also be very functional. 

As you likely know from reading the blog and listening in on podcasts, feng shui can be a great way to get started in a new space. I'm excited for your new adventure and happy to hear that feng shui is a concern for you. Good luck in your condo, and please reach out with any additional questions!

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday".  We will be answering questions submitted by our readers. Click here to submit any Feng Shui or Green Design questions!