What time do you sleep

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Mattresses for Side Sleepers

Finding the right mattress for side sleeping comes down to mattress firmness, types of materials, and budget.

How Much Sleep Do I Need?

The amount of sleep you need varies based on your age, lifestyle, and other factors. Are you getting enough sleep?

Mattresses for Back Sleepers

Back pain can decrease sleep quality. We selected mattresses that accommodate most sleepers suffering from back pain.

Advice from Top Sleep Experts

We connected with some of the world’s top sleep experts to identify over 30 tips meant to improve your sleep quality.

How to Use Our Sleep Calculator

Use our sleep cycle calculator to estimate the best time for you to wake up and go to bed. You will be given multiple results based on your age as well as your goal wake time or bedtime. The results are broken down to optimize your REM and non-REM sleep cycles.

If you have any questions about this sleep calculator or would like to reach out to one of our experts, please don’t hesitate to send us a message. We look forward to hearing from you.

Next Steps

If you find yourself struggling with falling asleep or staying asleep, making some simple adjustments to light exposure, activity levels, stress, and your environment will support you in finding a long-term solution. We break these tips down on our comprehensive sleep advice page.

Sleep Calculator FAQ

Here are the answers to our most frequently asked questions about calculating sleep times.

What time should I wake up and go to bed?

Everyone has a different circadian rhythm. Some people are better off going to bed early and waking up early (early birds), while others feel better going to sleep later and waking up later.

Does your need for sleep change with age?

Yes. As we age, the number of hours of sleep needed daily decreases. For example, newborns need 14-17 hours/day, while adults aged 65 and over need 7-8 hours/day.

What time should I go to bed if I wake up at 6am?

If you wake up at 6am, to get 7-9 hours of sleep you should be going to bed between 9pm and 11pm.

Why am I still tired after sleeping for 8 hours?

You may need 8.5 hours or 9 hours of sleep/night. If that doesn’t help, you should focus on improving the quality of your sleep by understanding basic sleep hygiene guidelines.

Is it healthy to sleep in the morning?

Our circadian rhythm determines our sleep/wake cycles. These are determined principally by heat and light, making it natural to sleep when it’s colder and darker, and wake when it’s lighter and warmer.

How do I stop waking up tired?

Understanding basic sleep hygiene will give you insight into what things you may be doing that cause you to have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, and waking up tired.

Does It Matter What Time You Sleep? Yes, With One Caveat

In the grand scheme of life, timing is everything — from the right moment to broach a promotion with your boss to the exact date you pop the question to your significant other. Our society is so attuned to time that every activity in our daily life heeds the ticking of the clock on our smartphone, laptop, car dashboard, and so forth. The same goes for sleep.

But your specific bedtime may not echo that of others. Perhaps you’re a morning person who prefers an early-to-bed, early-to-rise sleep schedule. Meanwhile, your teenage son only hits the sack at three in the morning but insists because he sleeps until mid-morning that’s fine. This gets you thinking, “Does it matter what time you sleep?”

Here’s the long and short of it: Your sleep time does matter — if you want to keep your sleep debt low and your circadian rhythm aligned. With that said, there’s one caveat to look out for. Keep reading to find out more.

The Two Laws of Sleep Dictate the Ideal Sleep Timing

Does it matter what time you sleep? To answer the question satisfactorily, the Two Laws of Sleep (based on the two-process model of sleep regulation first established by Alexander BorbГ©ly in the 1980s) is key to understanding sleep and its ideal timing.

First Law: Sleep Homeostasis — And Its Link to Sleep Debt

Sleep homeostasis refers to the daily buildup and nighttime depletion of sleep pressure. This regulation of sleeping and waking is mediated by the drowsiness-inducing compound adenosine.

Over a roughly 24-hr period, adenosine waxes and wanes in your brain to help you fall asleep at night and stay asleep till morning. While you sleep, your brain purges accumulated adenosine to reset the sleep homeostat.

But what if you go to bed later than usual and don’t meet your sleep need? For reference, that’s the genetically determined amount of sleep your body needs to feel and function at its best the next day (we don’t all need the much touted 8 hours; most of us fall on a spectrum somewhere between 7.5 and 9).

A shorter-than-your-biological-need sleep duration inevitably means less time for the adenosine to fully dissipate before you wake. Consequently, you wake up feeling drowsier than you should, courtesy of the leftover adenosine in your system.

Not meeting your sleep need means you rack up sleep debt, the amount of sleep you’ve missed out on in the past 14 days relative to your sleep need. Because sleep debt dampens your daytime energy potential (think: flatter energy peaks and deeper energy dips), it does matter what time you sleep, as you’ll see later. To complicate matters, everyone’s sleep need is genetically unique to them, so it can be difficult to track whether you’ve had enough sleep on a nightly basis.

That’s why a tool like the RISE app is profoundly useful in helping you determine your sleep need and then your sleep debt. It uses sleep-science-based models and the past 365 nights of sleep data tracked by your phone to learn your unique sleep biology and calculate your sleep need in hours and minutes. From there, RISE helps you keep on top of your sleep debt, which you can view on the Sleep screen.

Second Law: Circadian Rhythm

Ideally, your circadian rhythm — the internal body clock that dictates your energy peaks and dips over a roughly 24-hour cycle — works synergistically in relation to sleep homeostasis to govern your sleep-wake cycle. Its end goal is to help you get the naturalistic, healthy sleep your body needs. Not only does your internal clock guide the daily fluctuations in your energy levels, but it also determines your ideal sleep and wake times to give you the best chance of meeting your sleep need.

Before you assume that everyone’s ideal sleep-wake schedule is one and the same, your chronotype dictates your biological bedtime and rise time in relation to your circadian rhythm (amongst other biological processes like eating and exercising). Chronotypes are mainly classified into early birds, night owls, and intermediate types (somewhere in between). To learn more about chronotypes and how you can make the most of yours, check out our in-depth guide on the subject.

To help you stay on the same wavelength as your circadian rhythm, the RISE app tells you the best windows during which to sleep and wake, as well as the times of your energy peaks and dips on your Energy Schedule. It follows a predictable pattern like this:

Keep in mind that the timing and length of the circadian activities vary from individual to individual. To illustrate, research points out that the internal body clock «programs a longer biological night in long sleepers than in short sleepers.»

Does It Matter What Time You Sleep? Yes, With One Caveat

So, does it matter what time you sleep? For the most part, the answer is yes. The only exception is when you have high sleep debt, as you’ll see below.

While minimal sleep loss is relatively normal and acceptable, more than five hours of sleep debt means you’re more sleep-deprived than is good for you. Perhaps you often engage in sleep procrastination (like Netflix binge-watching and Instagram scrolling). Or maybe your long to-do list makes you think you can survive on less sleep than recommended. (Spoiler alert: You can’t.)

If that sounds like you, prioritize catching up on sleep when you can rather than fixate on your ideal sleep timing. There are four ways you can pay down sleep debt with only minimal circadian misalignment (if any):В

Pro tip: The Energy Schedule in the RISE app can help you structure your day in a way that gives you more shuteye to lower your sleep debt.

When You Risk Your Personal Safety (And Others’)

Even though we’re advocates of bringing down sleep debt, and whenever you can if you’re truly sleep deprived, there are a few scenarios when it does matter what time you sleep.

For instance, falling asleep while driving is a very real yet injurious scenario that can happen to any of us. It usually occurs when your sleep pressure is so high during the day that you unknowingly succumb to microsleeps, a phenomenon in which your brain goes offline while your eyelids are partially or fully closed.

The danger of microsleeping is that it can happen anywhere, anytime — at your work desk, in the grocery store, or during your yoga class. It’s a no-brainer then that nodding off at the wrong time can cost you your job, your social relationships, and even your life (as well as endangering those around you).

The Pernicious Nature of Circadian Misalignment

Not heeding your body’s biological inclination toward sleep and wake times that match your chronotype is not the only thing to look out for when determining what time to sleep is best for you. Irregular sleep patterns can rattle your circadian rhythm, leading to circadian misalignment.В

Most commonly, this takes the form of social jetlag, in which your social and biological clocks are out of sync. Case in point: You sleep and get up late on the weekends (or your days off) and revert back to the 6 a.m. wake-up calls when your work week resumes. Consequently, you struggle with more intense sleep inertia when you awake on Monday morning, with excessive daytime drowsiness dogging your footsteps throughout the day.

For a fair percentage of the population that works the night shift, circadian misalignment also manifests as shift work disorder (SWD). Trying to be conscious and productive during the graveyard shift when your brain is primed to be asleep is trying in and of itself. Your body pays for it in the form of an out-of-whack body clock. A 2018 study noted that just four days of night shift is enough to steer your circadian rhythm off-course.

Sleep deprivation — and the accompanying daytime sleepiness, reduced attention span, slower reaction time, increased moodiness, poorer immunity, and greater risk of accidents — is often the most direct and immediate repercussion shift workers struggle with. But the train wreck of circadian misalignment doesn’t stop there.

A recent small-scale study analyzed what happens when you work a night shift or day shift schedule for at least five years. Night shift workers had deregulated clock genes (which governed the internal clock), suggesting circadian misalignment. Compared to day shift workers, night shift workers exhibited more worrying health symptoms, like higher blood sugar levels and greater weight gain. This means they are now at a greater risk of developing metabolic diseases like obesity and Type 2 diabetes.

Aside from sleep problems, SWD is also closely associated with a greater prevalence of heart disease, mental health issues like depression, and even certain types of cancer (for example, breast cancer and prostate cancer). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), recent updates by the The National Toxicology Program (NTP) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) surmised that night shift work is “probably carcinogenic to humans,” meaning that it functions as a cancer-causing activity.

If You Have Little to No Sleep Debt.

Healthy sleep habits are the secret formula to less than five hours of sleep debt. But if your sleep hygiene isn’t tied to your circadian rhythm, you’re not immune to an off-kilter body clock. You’re just as vulnerable to circadian misalignment as those suffering from a lack of sleep. Unfortunately, even if you have little sleep debt, circadian misalignment is enough to give rise to suboptimal energy levels.

That’s why the answer to «Does it matter what time you sleep when you have minimal sleep debt?» is a clear, resounding yes. The next question to ask yourself is, «When’s the best time for you to go to bed to keep your circadian rhythm aligned?» Two words: Melatonin Window.

Melatonin Window = Prime Time for Bed

Two to three hours before your biological bedtime, your brain starts secreting melatonin in earnest. Scientifically known as the dim light melatonin onset (DLMO), it marks the start of your Melatonin Window, when your body produces peak levels of melatonin. But why do we place so much emphasis on your Melatonin Window in the context of circadian alignment?

The scientific literature explains that DLMO (and, by extension, your Melatonin Window) is a vital time cue that regulates your circadian rhythm. For that reason, your Melatonin Window is a «measure of circadian alignment.»

In the name of better sleep and a well-tuned body clock, turn in within this window of time. If you’re trying to pay down sleep debt, go to bed at the start of your Melatonin Window to give yourself extra snooze time. With the rare exception of paying down colossal amounts of sleep debt (in which case, sleep as early as you can per our earlier recommendation), avoid an earlier bedtime of more than an hour before your Melatonin Window. It can be counterproductive and even frustrating to lay in bed when your body isn’t prepared to sleep yet.

If You Aren’t Sure When You Should Sleep, RISE Can Help

For the most part, it does matter what time you sleep to keep your circadian rhythm aligned for minimal sleep deprivation and optimal energy levels. The only caveat is when you’re saddled with significant sleep debt. In which case, prioritize getting the sleep you need without tripping up your internal clock, if possible.

Because it can be confusing to know the specific times you should sleep relative to your circadian rhythm, the RISE app is infinitely helpful in taking the guesswork out of your ideal sleep timing. This is especially so if you identify as a poor sleeper or have an irregular sleep schedule due to social and work obligations. Our app’s Smart Schedule feature comes in handy here. It suggests a bedtime that gently trains your body to meet your sleep need and still be aligned.

The best part about RISE is that it’s all taken care of for you in the app. All you have to do is turn on your notifications for the habits on your Energy Schedule — think: «Peaks & Dips,» «Evening Routine,» and «Melatonin Window,» to name a few. This way, you’ll receive well-timed reminders pegged to your unique chronobiology for better sleep and better days.

Sleep Calculator! What time do you want to wake up?

September 3, 2021 | By Pavel Ufimtsev | Blog

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Written by Pavel Ufimtsev Sleep Researcher Writer
Reviewed by Pavel Ufimtsev Sleep Science Coach

Figuring out how much sleep you need actually takes a lot of consideration. The first step is to consider your age.

Putting a sleep calculator to work also means studying just how active you are and whether or not you’re pregnant.

Infants need more sleep than anyone, and growing children require quite a lot of sleep as well.

Adolescents need more than the average of 8 hours.

Older adults may spend as much time in bed as they once did but their quality of sleep is often less effective, so a nap for a retired person may be a necessity.

The main step in finding out if you’re getting enough sleep is to ask yourself if you’re tired.

How Much Sleep Do I Need?

Your body and brain are actually quite busy while you sleep. For growing children, the body is putting nutrients ingested to work building bones, connective tissues, and muscles. Until a child is age 6 and above, at least 12 hours of sleep a day is a good idea. If you need to get your child up and moving at 7 a.m., a 7 p.m. bedtime may be necessary.

Younger children can require up to 17 hours a day within the first three months of their life. If you are concerned that a child is sleeping too much, discuss your worries with your pediatrician. As your children get older, they may need less sleep through adolescents, though 9 hours a day is a health target for teens.

From infancy to adulthood, we need

Pregnant women, particularly in the first three months of carrying a baby, should sleep whenever they’re tired.

Sleep hygiene is a critical consideration for children. Light exposure can keep the brain activity elevated as though the child is standing in bright daylight. Controlling screen time as the day winds down, dimming lights in the child’s sleeping area, and maintaining a sleep schedule is critical to an effective bedtime routine. A go-to bed meme, song, or routine can be extremely helpful.
There are several warning signs that you’re not getting enough sleep. You may be

Signing up for a sleep study may be necessary. Conditions such as sleep apnea can cause long-term damage to your body and brain if not addressed quickly. Another consideration is whether or not your wake-up time is disrupting a sleep cycle. Using a sleep cycle calculator can be extremely effective. Because the sleep cycle is about 90 minutes, the question of what time should I wake up may need calculating for best results.

Why is Sleep Important?

What Happens During Sleep?

In childhood, our cells are growing. Hormones are released in sleep that help us to grow taller and to develop sexually. As adults, any cell damage is done during the day, such as during a hard workout, is repaired overnight.

As we age, getting enough quality sleep is also critical for brain health. Our glymphatic system is actually busy cleansing the neuron pathways in the brain. If you don’t give your brain enough time to cleanse away the toxins that build up in these tissues, you can face neurocognitive decline over time. Getting enough sleep is critical to brain health.

Sleep Deprivation

For a day or two, sleep deprivation may just make you cranky and give you the munchies. Over time, a state of constant sleep deprivation can damage every cell in your body. As your body takes strength from the foods that you eat (or has to find a way to function on unhealthy foods) your tissues, from your brain to your toes, need the refreshing and cleansing that happens during sleep.

Those who struggle with a constant state of poor sleep may struggle with high levels of cortisol, which can cause weight gain and contribute to diabetes. Additionally, poor sleep can lead to anxiety and depression. Depression can be fatal.

It should also be said that sleep deprivation has a history as a method of torture.

Sleep Cycles and Sleep Stages

A sleep cycle lasts about 90 minutes. Your body and brain take about 15 minutes to wind down. If you find that your brain takes more than 15 minutes to wind down when you get into bed, pay special attention to your light exposure. Get out into the sun during the day. At the end of the day, put away screens at least 30 minutes before bed for adults and at least an hour for children.

Electronics have developed faster than our brains have evolved. Your body and brain want to be awake when the sun is out. Screen exposure tells your brain that it’s daylight and it should be awake. Dim the lights in your home as the day winds down. Consider turning off all electronics and functioning by candlelight, handled safely by an adult, for the last 30 minutes if insomnia is a challenge.

No matter how much electronic gear we have, sleep comes in stages throughout the night. Waking up to an alarm in the middle of one of these stages can leave you tired all day. This is one of the reasons that hitting the snooze on your alarm is such a bad habit.

The sleep stages are:

N1: After 15 minutes of winding down, this is when we drift to sleep. To effectively get into N1, you need a room that is dark and quiet. You may hear things going on around you, but your brain is moving into deeper sleep.

N2: Your body temperature drops during N2. A warm bath before bed can relax your muscles, but a hot bath is not a good idea as getting into bath that is too hot can elevate core temp and leave you feeling sweaty and agitated. A cool bedroom is crucial for a successful move into N2. You lose touch with light, noise and awareness of your surroundings in this stage.

N3: During N3, your body goes through the crucial cleansing steps necessary for best health. Hormone release occurs, your blood pressure drops and your breathing slows. If you are woken during N3, you will likely feel exhausted all day.

N4: REM or rapid eye movement occurs during N4. It’s usually about 1/4 of your sleeping cycle and the last part of the natural 90-minute progression. This is why using a sleep calculator is so important. Your brain will do better if you can structure your sleep so that you can fully complete the 90-minute cycle each time you lay down.

Tips for Better Sleep

Your sleeping space needs to be cool, quiet, and dark. Your bed should be firm enough to support you but soft enough to snuggle in. Bedding needs to be warm enough to comfort your body. If your feet are always cold, a fleece cover directly against the skin can help. If you’re a hot sleeper, cotton bedding may provide the most comfort.

Sleeping for Parents with Babies

If you’re home with a new baby, sleep when the baby sleeps. If guests want to come and visit, they will likely offer to help. Let them. If they want to hold the baby, enjoy a little time to enjoy a shower or get some exercise. If they offer to cook and clean, put them to work. If they expect you to be an excellent host or hostess, don’t let them in.

Parents with tiny babies are facing a lot of change. It can be very unsettling. Rest when baby rests so you can be alert and aware when baby wakes. As your child gets older and you get back into your pre-baby routine, use a sleep calculator for adults to help them complete 90-minute cycles whenever possible.

Sleeping Tips for Pre-Teens

Small children will need more cycles. Keep an eye on their hand-eye coordination, mood, and tendency to rub their eyes. Naps are critical for children and anything under an hour may leave your child crankier and groggier than before.

Once your child is in school, naps will be harder to come by. If your child gets home from school exhausted, you may want to allow them a nap. However, this can make bedtime tough if they sleep for longer than one sleep cycle. You may have better luck building an afterschool habit of

Unless your child needs a bedtime snack, getting them in the habit of cleaning up their teeth right after dinner can make the whole bedtime routine easier. Mirror good screen behaviors for your child so their brains can wind down before bed.

Sleeping Tips for Teenagers

Teens need a great deal of deep sleep because they’re swimming through deep hormonal waters. Consider setting up a charging station far from their bedroom to avoid screen access late into the night. Again, if you can mirror this behavior for your younger child, your adolescent may be less resistant to giving up their phone in the evening.

Because adolescents are often facing really tough schedules when combining school, activities, and work, do your best to carefully police their sleeping space. Light-blocking drapes, a quiet room, and temperature-appropriate bedding are critical for adolescents.

Sleeping Tips for Adults

If you struggle to fall asleep when you first lay down or struggle to stay asleep after waking in the night, you are likely suffering from insomnia. Insomnia is debilitating and can lead to conditions including anxiety and depression. Sleep hygiene can help, as can guarding your intake.

Do you use caffeine in the afternoon? As possible, wean yourself off of this habit, especially if your caffeine is from soda. Get outside in the light or close to a window that is letting in natural light to try to perk up your brain. Move, take a short walk around the office and shake your hands out.

If you’re ingesting caffeine all day, feeling groggy, and still falling asleep within 15 minutes, it’s time to get a sleep study done as you are likely sleep-deprived.

Sleeping Tips for the Elderly

One of the challenges to quality sleep when we’re older is that we naturally spend less time in N3 or the deepest level of sleep in each cycle. As possible, take more cycles. If you need a nap, make it at least 90 minutes to protect your brain.

Sleep Calculator: How it Works

A sleep calculator breaks your sleeping time down into 90-minute cycles. It also allows 15 minutes to sink into sleep and 15 minutes to wake up.

How to Use the Calculator

Base your sleep cycle start time on the time you need to be up. Do your best to avoid getting fewer than 4 cycles, or 6 hours of sleep.

Be ready to adjust the calculator. If you are one of the lucky few who regularly gets enough sleep and falls asleep easily within 5 minutes of lying down, work that into your calculations.

The key to using a sleep calculator is to avoid being woken during N3 stage.

Do whatever it takes to break the snooze habit. When you hit snooze, your conscious mind knows that you have 10 minutes. Your sleeping brain, however, needs 90. Snoozing is a good way to set yourself up for frustration and exhaustion, as is keeping your phone within reach of your sleeping area. If your phone is your alarm clock, charge it across the room so you have to get up to turn it off. Once you’re up and moving, you’re less likely to fall back asleep.

If you only have 7 hours free to sleep, cut it back to 6 plus 30 minutes to see how you feel. If you’re still tired, push to find 7.5 hours for 5 cycles, and make sure you leave room for those 30 minutes to sink into sleep and wake slowly.

It depends on your age. For an adult, shoot for 7.5 or 9.

Aim for five to six 90 minute cycles plus a 15-minute window at each end to drop off and wake up.

As long as you get some daylight at some point, there’s nothing wrong with sleeping in the morning. It’s healthiest to sleep during the darkest hours.

Generally no more than 20 minutes.

If you complete 4 cycles, that may be enough for you.

For some people, yes.

To get 6 cycles, 8:45. For 5 cycles, 10:15.

To determine how much sleep you need, try functioning without electric lights. Wind down as the day winds down, go to bed when you’re tired, and see what time you naturally wake up.

During a 90-minute sleep cycle, you will rotate through N1, N2, N3, and N4. N3 is the deepest level, while N4 is when you dream.

N3, though some who have vivid dreams can have a bad fear reaction if they wake during N4.

Try timing with a sleep calculator for a month. If you can’t find a sleep cycle pattern that works, you may have apnea or another challenge. A sleep study may be necessary.

Yes, because your circadian rhythms change. You may need a nap to get in another sleep cycle to get the necessary restorative sleep.

Because you started another cycle and didn’t get to complete it. Aim for 7.5 or 7 hours to see how you feel, and review your sleep calculator numbers to be precise.

Alcohol is a depressant. It will limit your ability to move into N3, the deepest and most restorative state. Your sleep calculator tracking can be knocked off track with alcohol in your system.

Ugh, More Math! Why Do I Need a Sleep Calculator?

Frankly, because it works. If you’re tired of being tired and more sleep isn’t helping, timing your falling asleep time to your waking up time to allow for 5 or 6 90 minute sleep cycles may be the ticket to feeling fully rested.

What Time Should You Go to Sleep Based on Your Age?

Elizabeth Molina Ortiz, MD, MPH, is a board-certified specialist in family medicine and is the former medical director of a community health center.

The amount of sleep you need each night changes over the course of your life. In fact, your sleep needs are closely connected to your age.

This article explores how much sleep you need and what your target bedtimes should be at every age. It also discusses some common problems that keep people from getting to bed on time and falling asleep easily.

How Much Sleep You Need

To decide what your bedtime should be, it’s important to think about how much sleep it takes to leave you feeling refreshed. That’s called your sleep need.

Some experts calculate your sleep need according to your age. Your genes, environment, and health conditions can also affect how much sleep you need.

Sleep experts say adults should get seven to nine hours of sleep, or an average of eight hours, to optimize their health.

Some people are short sleepers or long sleepers. A short sleeper may be just fine with less than seven hours of sleep. Long sleepers need more than nine hours to feel well-rested.

Children need more sleep than adults to feel adequately rested. For young adults and people recovering from sleep debt, sleeping more than nine hours a night might be helpful.

Sleep deprivation, or not getting enough sleep, is associated with depression, heart disease, obesity, weight gain, and other health issues.

Recommendations by Age

The National Sleep Foundation recommends the following: 

Setting a Bedtime

To set a target bedtime, decide when you need to wake up. Then count backwards the number of hours of sleep you need.

For instance, if the desired wake-up time is between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m.:

If your school or work schedule requires you to be up between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m., these are the suggested bedtimes:

Schedules, wake times, and even sleep needs can shift, so it helps to remain flexible. What one person needs may not be the same as someone else, even if their circumstances are similar. Individual needs vary.

Despite age and sleep need, having a consistent wake time, even on the weekends, is important for better sleep.

Difficulties Meeting Bedtime

It is normal not to meet your target bedtime or not to fall right to sleep from time to time. If trouble falling asleep becomes a pattern, you could be dealing with insomnia.

Insomnia in Children

Children who have a hard time falling asleep may be experiencing behavioral insomnia. There are two types of behavioral insomnia—sleep-onset and limit-setting. Some children may have both types.

Sleep-onset Insomnia in Children

Sleep-onset insomnia usually means a child has become dependent on certain soothing routines or objects and «needs» them to fall asleep. They may also need these routines if they wake in the middle of the night.

One way to help your child with sleep-onset insomnia is to build your child’s ability to self-soothe. Some experts say you could try letting your child «cry it out.» There are two ways to do this. One way is to put your child to bed and ignore your child’s cries until morning. (It’s okay to check on their well-being.)

The other way is to gradually increase the intervals when you comfort your child. For example, parents can comfort a crying child every five minutes, then gradually extend the period to ten minutes, then fifteen, and so on.

It’s important to note that experts don’t all agree about the best way to help a child fall asleep independently. Some evidence shows that when children «cry it out,» the stress hormone cortisol goes up and stays up in their bodies days afterward. Some parents also find the «cry it out» technique too stressful.

At least one study showed that, five years after the «cry it out» phase, there were no differences in sleep measures between children whose parents let them «cry it out» and those who didn’t.

Limit-setting Insomnia in Children

Limit-setting insomnia most commonly happens when a caregiver doesn’t set consistent bedtime rules and keep a regular bedtime. The problem can get worse if the child begins to oppose or fight against bedtime routines.

Resetting boundaries is the best way to help limit-setting insomnia. It can be a good idea to follow strategies like these:

Teens and Sleep

About 75% of teens don’t get enough sleep. Early school start times, late night social activities, digital device use, and sleep cycle shifts all play a role. Neighborhoods where there are not enough trees and too much noise can also delay sleep, researchers have found.

Insomnia in Adults

For adults, insomnia can be due to your genetics. It can also be related to sleep disorders like sleep apnea or to psychological conditions such as anxiety and depression.

Insomnia can cause fatigue, daytime sleepiness, poor attention and concentration, low energy and motivation, and even increased suicide risk.

The good news is that there are several ways to treat insomnia in adults. Medications can be useful as a temporary solution. If you want to avoid medications, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI) is an effective option.

Older Adults and Sleep

Insomnia can become more of a problem as you age. The National Institutes on Aging reports that menopause, restless leg syndrome, dementia, and sleep apnea can all keep you awake or disrupt your sleep after age 60. If you think a health condition may be keeping you up, talk to a healthcare professional or sleep specialist.

Tips and Tricks

You can make it easier to go to bed and fall asleep on time. Here are some strategies that may help.

A Good Sleep Environment

Your bedroom can help you fall asleep and sleep more soundly. For most people, it’s a good idea to start with a quiet, cool, and dark room. You should also consider whether your mattress and bedding are hurting or helping your quest for a steady bedtime.

If your work space is in your bedroom, try to minimize any visual stressors.

A Nighttime Routine

Consistent bedtime routines and relaxation techniques can also be helpful. A night routine prepares your mind and body for sleep, helping you unwind before you rest.

Some people have had success with reading, listening to music, stretching, or taking a bath. It is best to avoid over-stimulating activities before bed, like watching television or exercising.

Cell phones and electronics should be avoided as much as possible. The artificial light from the screen can shift your sleep timing and make it harder to fall asleep.

Good Sleep Hygiene

Good sleep hygiene starts during the day. Avoid daytime naps. They reduce your overall sleep debt, but they also reduce the drive to go to sleep.

You can also spend time outdoors, in sunlight, if possible. Studies show outside light exposure during the day can prevent a delay in falling asleep. Of course, there’s such a thing as too much daylight exposure. This is especially true in Arctic regions where it’s light at night during summer.

It’s a good idea to limit caffeine and alcohol, both of which can disrupt sleep.

Once you’re in bed, limit brain-stimulating activities as much as possible. You want to associate your bed with sleep, not wakefulness. You’re trying to train your body that bed means sleep.

Summary

Just as your dietary needs change at different ages, your need for sleep changes throughout your life. The need for sleep is greatest for babies and young children. Teens need extra sleep, too. Most adults need seven to nine hours daily.

If you’re not getting the recommended amount of sleep for your age, you may want to build a better set of sleep habits to make it easier to meet a target bedtime. Short term sleep aids might help, but if you think you might have insomnia, talk to a healthcare provider. It’s important for your overall health.

A Word From Verywell

Staying consistent with bedtimes and wake times can be a challenge. It may help to create a healthy sleep environment, stick to a relaxing nighttime routine, and practice good sleep hygiene.

If you want to know more about optimal bedtimes for you, consult a board-certified sleep medicine physician. The problem may be an underlying health condition, not your routines.

Frequently Asked Questions

Most adults are recommended to get seven to nine hours of sleep every day. However, these are just general guidelines, and some people may need more or less amounts of sleep to feel well-rested.

To go to bed earlier, create and follow a routine each night. Meditation, reading a book, and a warm shower or bath can make you relaxed and ready for sleep. Try to avoid using your phone or computer for at least 30 minutes before going to sleep, since blue light emitted from an electronic device can make falling asleep more difficult. Avoid taking a nap during the afternoon. When you are about to go to sleep, turn off every light in the room, be sure the room temperature is slightly cool, block external noise using earplugs or a white noise machine, and only use your bed for sleeping.

The time that you should wake up will depend on your schedule and how many hours of sleep you require to feel well-rested. If you need to be awake at 8 a.m. to leave for work at 9 a.m., the ideal time to go to sleep is likely around 11 p.m. This amount can differ from one person to another.

Children between the ages of 12 to 35 months (toddlers) should get 11 to 14 hours of sleep including naps during the day. Preschoolers between the ages of three to five should have 10 to 13 hours of sleep each day. School-age children ages six to 13 years old should get around 10 or 11 hours of sleep every day.

What time do you sleep

«What time do you normally go to sleep?» is more natural. If someone works a lot, you might say as light humor, «When do you sleep?» (as to say, «do you sleep?)

I would say either, there’s not much difference.

‘you go to sleep’ only asks about the beginning of sleep. ‘I go to sleep at 9:00.’
‘you sleep’ could be asking about the whole sleeping time. ‘I sleep from 9:00 to 5:00 and sometimes take a nap.’

Символ показывает уровень знания интересующего вас языка и вашу подготовку. Выбирая ваш уровень знания языка, вы говорите пользователям как им нужно писать, чтобы вы могли их понять.

Мне трудно понимать даже короткие ответы на данном языке.

Могу задавать простые вопросы и понимаю простые ответы.

Могу формулировать все виды общих вопросов. Понимаю ответы средней длины и сложности.

Понимаю ответы любой длины и сложности.

Решайте свои проблемы проще в приложении!

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