The Healing Power of Darkness

We recently spent a wonderful long weekend in the peaceful country setting of the South Burnett Region near Kingaroy in Queensland, about four hours northwest of the Gold Coast. We enjoyed a farm stay at Taabinga Station in “Jack’s Cottage” which dates back to 1909. People were friendly and relaxed, and it was quiet and peaceful. We cooked outside in the wood fired pizza over and gazed up at a dark night sky with planets, stars and the great sweeping arc of the Milky Way. The orange glow of the fire was so relaxing and we didn’t once turn on the TV.

At night it was dark and I slept really well. Our bodies need the healing power of darkness to sleep deeply, rest and repair, yet in our modern world of bright lights, computer screens and smartphones, this can be hard to find. When I came home to the city, I noticed how much light pollution we have and how few stars I could see. Even with my thick curtains closed, light was seeping in. What to do? Returning to the country is very tempting but many of us need to live and work in towns or cities.

I think that darkness and the transition from day to night are very important for our bodies to prepare for sleep. At night, try to prepare your body for sleep by using softer lamp light with orange rather than blue light, limiting the use of computers and smart phones, using the night time setting on your devices, getting blackout curtains or blinds,  and trying our Luxury Sleep Mask. We love this comfortable sleep mask because it  cuts out all light. It is especially wonderful when travelling, when trying to get some extra sleep if woken by early morning light and for shift workers trying to get some daytime rest.

We are planning to return to this lovely part of Queensland again which is a bit of a hidden gem. We highly recommend it for anyone who wants a relaxing and recharging get away. The wineries are also excellent!

Sweet dreams,

Karen