The Science of Sleep! (How to Slay at Slumber)
Having trouble falling asleep? Waking up in the middle of the night? Fear not! Science has solutions!
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How much sleep do I actually need each night?
Researchers aren’t completely certain why we sleep. Adding to the mystery is that sleep varies wildly among species: Newborn dolphins barely sleep at all. Giraffes sleep in 5-minute bursts throughout the day. Elephants only sleep about two hours a night, while koalas sleep for 22 hours and sea otters hold hands while they doze. (Which isn’t really germane, but is insanely cute.)
How much you should sleep varies by biology and age. For most people, however, getting less than 7 hours of sleep per night is one of the strongest predictors of shorter life expectancy. (Insufficient sleep has a bigger impact on longevity than poor diet, social isolation and lack of physical activity. Only smoking is more dangerous.)
Just as important is the timing of your sleep: One study found that students with irregular bedtimes do worse in class than those with consistent sleep schedules, even if everyone gets the same amount of ZZZs. For adults, irregular sleep schedules have been linked to dementia, insulin resistance and mental health problems.
So, how much sleep do you need? The best test is keeping track of how you feel when you wake up: Are you refreshed or tired? Do you nod off in the afternoon? If so, slightly increase your sleep — and, more important, get in bed at the same time each night. (There are lots of devices to help.)
Okay, smart guy, so I need more sleep. But how do I actually do that?
Paradoxically, the most impactful thing you can do is get into the sunlight as soon as you wake up. The key here is to go outside — window glass disrupts the relevant light wavelengths — and start walking. When your optic nerve is exposed to sunlight and you start to move, it resets your circadian clock, which determines cortisol and melatonin levels later in the day and makes nighttime slumber easier. (There are also sunrise alarm clocks if you can’t get outside.)
Other things that might help:
Some supplements help us fall asleep — but they don’t necessarily impact how long we stay in dreamland. (Every night I take Magnesium L-Threonate, as well as Apigenin and L-Theanine, and it seems to work.)
Set your thermostat to the mid-60s, which studies say is the optimal slumber temperature. (If bedmates need different temperatures, there are lots of options, including AC systems for just one side of the bed and cooling mattress toppers.)
There’s also evidence that weighted blankets, fancy eye masks, whispering white noise machines and crazy headbands that ‘hack’ your sleeping brain may help you drift off. (Or maybe it’s a placebo effect? Whatever it takes!)
And lavender oil aromatherapy before bed, according to studies, actually works.
Things that definitely don’t help (but were once popular):
Putting a cold apple on your head, leaving a bowl of sliced onions next to your bed, or applying vinegar-soaked bread loaves to your feet.
Cutting a pigeon in half and taping it over your ears. (It also makes side-sleeping messy.)
Drinking poisons like nightshade (makes you sleepy! maybe forever!), Mrs. Winslow’s Soothing Syrup (which contained a lot of morphine) and quaaludes (which might make you sleepy, but also cause your stereo to start playing funk and your pants to grow bell bottoms).
Finally, if you are really having trouble, you should check out cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), which studies say is the best method for overhauling disordered sleep patterns. It’s intense, however: It involves strict sleep restrictions, significant diet changes, stimulus control and, usually, working with a therapist to re-design your basic sleep habits. That said, it’s the most effective therapy according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
But what about when I’m traveling? Or camping? Or my spouse keeps snoring? Or I really love late-night TV?
For traveling: We often have trouble sleeping on a plane because we’re slightly anxious. Airline captain (and therapist) Tom Bunn created the SOAR method to help you ease into dreamland. Also, having the right gear can help. (People on Reddit love this sleep pillow.) In a hotel room, we often suffer from “first-night effect,” which is real and measurable, but can be combatted by traveling with things you associate with home. (Like lavender oil. Or morphine.)
For camping (and other challenging sleep settings): Meta-analyses show Progressive Muscle Relaxation can be effective. (Starting with your face, deliberately tense your muscles for five seconds, then let them go slack; work your way down the rest of your body.) There are also practices — meditation, guided breath work, body scanning, self-hypnosis — that can induce deep physical and mental relaxation. (You can find some guides by googling “Non-Sleep Deep Rest“ or NSDR.)
For snoring spouses: Consider a ‘sleep divorce’ by using separate bedrooms. Or, just use separate mattresses side-by-side, also known as the ‘Scandinavian sleep arrangement’. (Sometimes it’s movement, not sound, that wakes us up.) Or, tell them that the sound of a C-PAP machine makes you feel sexy.
For exercise: All forms of exercise help us sleep, and studies show that Pilates is particularly effective for slumber. However! Timing matters here: Exercising at high intensity four times per week, in sessions of 30 minutes or less, earlier in the day (at least four hours before bed) best improves sleep.
For people who love late-night TV: Trashy TV (and social media) will keep you up. But reading that same delicious trash in book form will actually help you fall asleep. (I personally recommend Dungeon Crawler Carl as the perfect way to drift off. It also works as an audiobook!)
How do you fall asleep? Has anything made a big difference in your bedtime ritual? Have you tried that pigeon thing? (I hope not.) Hit reply or let me know in the comments!
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Gloria S
I have struggled with sleep for decades and have stumbled across "cognitive shuffling" which I believe comes from CBTi. You think of a boring word and then, starting with the first letter, think of as many words as you can that start with each letter. I couldn't believe it when the first night I used it I was asleep after the first 2 letters!! I was amazed because I have tried dozens of techniques without success. I hope it helps others, too!
I used to have a very stressful job where I worked 50+ hours per week and could never finish everything I needed to get done. I slept horribly, always thinking about my to-do list, company politics, my boss, my team, etc. I left that job and found a much simpler role that still pays well and I sleep like a baby.