Exclusive | I have no AC in the NYC heatwave 3 tools that are keeping me cool while I sleep

Fireworks won’t be the only thing keeping people awake this Fourth of July weekend.As temperatures across the Big Apple soar into the triple digits, a staggering 850,000 New Yorkers are expected to sweat through America’s 250th birthday without air conditioning — and this Postie is one of them.To be fair, I’m a terrible hot sleeper year-round.I toss, I turn, I flip my pillow to the “cool side” 37 times a night, and I still wake up with my blankets tangled at the foot of the bed and my pajamas drenched in sweat.I’m not alone.

About 14% of American adults say they’re too hot while sleeping “always” or “most of the time,” according to a 2023 Casper and Gallup survey of nearly 4,000 people.Compared with people who sleep cooler, these overheated snoozers take longer to fall asleep, get poorer-quality rest and are nearly twice as likely to have been diagnosed with anxiety or depression.They also report having less energy and lower productivity during the day.And when summer rolls around, everything gets worse.In my Astoria apartment, that means sticky, sleepless nights followed by cranky mornings spent asking myself the same question: Is it finally time to surrender and buy a window unit?Roughly 11% of New York City residents live without air conditioning, whether because of environmental concerns, old buildings or cooling bills that have skyrocketed more than 50% over the past decade.Unfortunately, the forecast isn’t exactly encouraging.

Research suggests that by 2028, the concrete jungle could see as many as 10 heat waves every summer and six times as many days topping 90 degrees.Staring down a future of sweat-soaked nights, I started wondering whether anything besides AC could keep me cool enough to actually sleep.My fans certainly weren’t cutting it.So I went hunting for alternatives.

Here are the three cooling gadgets that have helped me survive the summer so far.I’ll admit it: I was skeptical this would work.Of all the gadgets I te...