Ever dragged yourself to bed exhausted, only to lie awake for hours? You're yawning all afternoon and struggling to stay awake during Netflix, yet sleep evades you. Dr. Philip Gehrman, a psychiatry professor and sleep specialist at the University of Pennsylvania, explains to Time that your brain has begun associating bed with wakefulness. This common issue has a clear solution.
Common culprits include scrolling on your smartphone in bed, working late, reading, or hitting the hay stressed—leaving you tossing and turning for tens of minutes. These habits train your brain to link bed with alertness, so retraining is essential. Dr. Ronald Chervin, director of the Sleep Disorders Center at the University of Michigan, emphasizes that effective insomnia treatment starts with reserving bed for sleep. Sex and cuddling? Absolutely fine—just keep other activities elsewhere.
Sleep experts advise a cool bedroom, skipping late caffeine and alcohol, and dimming lights before bed. If you're tossing for over 20 minutes, get up and do something relaxing until drowsiness returns. Honor your chronotype—night owls forcing a 10 p.m. bedtime often fare worse. Maintain a consistent wake-up time daily (even weekends around 7 a.m.), and practice patience. Quality sleep takes time to cultivate.
Sweet dreams tonight!
