It turns out that getting up on the wrong side of the bed is a very real thing. And for some unlucky sleepers, that “wrong side” is their preferred side of the bed. According to several studies on the connection between mood and which side of the bed a person sleeps on, left-hand sleepers are generally happier.
A 2011 study conducted by researchers for Premier Inn surveyed 3,000 U.K. adults about their sleeping habits and general morning mood. Data showed that those who sleep on the left side of the bed are “generally more cheerful,” and are “more positive and capable of tackling heavy workloads and a stressful day ahead.” Plus, over a quarter of lefty sleepers thought they had a positive outlook on life in comparison to 18% of righty sleepers who thought the same.
The Premier Inn study even found that lefties are more confident in their employment positions and 31% of them love their job. One in ten righties, however, admitted they hate their job, yet they often earn more than their left counterparts.
In 2015, Sealy U.K. commissioned a similar study that echoed the findings of Premier Inn. Sealy U.K. also found that of the 1,000 adults surveyed, righties are 5% more likely to be pessimistic than lefties.
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So what are right-side sleepers to do? If you don’t have to share your bed, try switching sides — although this can prove to be difficult. Premier Inn found that “75% of Brits are so stuck in their sleeping routine that they would find it strange to sleep on the other side of the bed.”
Perhaps righties (and everyone who has to deal with them) will just have to learn to live with their bad temperaments.
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Changing your sleeping habits is a hard thing to do, but science shows that it might just be the answer to a happier life.