According to the CDC, around a third of adults don’t get enough sleep. This is compared to the recommended guidelines of a minimum of 7 hours of sleep per night, and teens and young women are the groups that face particularly severe sleep deprivation.
Everyone knows that feeling when they wake up a bit groggy and wish they had another hour or four to go back to sleep, or they witness the clock hitting the hour, every hour through the night. And while for the most part, the odd one or two nights of poor sleep don’t do all that much, ongoing sleep deprivation can have huge impacts on your health and wellbeing.
But what exactly is it that is impacting your sleep? Outside of health conditions — perimenopause, menopause, chronic pain, fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, to name a few — there are a few lifestyle circumstances that are absolutely wreaking havoc on your sleeping habits and contributing to your poor sleep.
If getting more sleep and feeling rested is on your bingo card for 2026, here are some factors in your life to look at and how you can change things so they don’t cause too many issues where sleep is concerned in 2026.
Busy Schedules…
Let’s start with the most obvious one. A busy schedule. It’s classic and a little cliché, but it’s true for the majority of people. If you’re running around all day, be it working, looking after family, doing chores, helping others, etc., you’re automatically going to leave yourself with less time to sleep than if you don’t have to do so much each day.
Let’s say you get up at 6 am to get the kids ready for school, then once they leave, you head to work. On your way home, you pick up some groceries, get in, make dinner, do chores, homework, bath time, organize things for the next day, clean up again, and then head to bed. Are you realistically going to bed — never mind falling asleep — before 9 pm? Chances are probably not.
But what if your life has a more irregular pattern? Shift changes, nights out, dogs disrupting your nights to go outside for bathroom breaks, etc.? This too can impact your sleep and cause your patterns to shift out of a regular schedule, making it harder to not only get to sleep but stay asleep too.
The trick isn’t to aim for a perfect sleep schedule but to make small adjustments to improve things so eventually you can get yourself on an even keel.
- Keep wake-up times roughly the same Monday to Friday, even if bedtime varies slightly
- Protect a short amount of time before bed to relax and unwind — even 20 minutes helps
- Watch out for too much late-evening caffeine. This is coffee, energy drinks, sodas, pre-workout, etc.
- Avoid more mentally or physically demanding tasks before bedtime
Obviously, I usually have the obvious pleasure of ignoring most of these tips. But, with my new schedule (which is extremely flexible) as a docent, I do have to go to sleep at a more regular time. I also have to get up in order to take Jack out for his morning constitutional. But, we also have the option of snuggling under the covers for a bit!
Sleep Regression or Parenting in General…
Luckily, we haven’t dealt with this in a long time. But, when our daughter lived with us during her husband’s deployment, it was heart breaking watching her trying to sleep train her babies. Sleep disruption is all too common for many households with young children. Infant sleep patterns change regularly, toddlers miss their naps, and before you know it, you’re running on fumes, Googling “why won’t my child sleep” at 4 am. It’s no fun for anyone.
And the reality of situations like this is that sleep deprivation doesn’t just impact the child struggling to sleep. It impacts everyone and life around them too. Parents who are fatigued start to struggle, babies who aren’t sleeping properly become stressed or irritable more easily, and it’s a melting pot of exhaustion and tears.
There are a few things parents can do to limit the disruption of sleep, and it will likely include prolonged periods and much trial and error. Things like transitioning baby to their own room can help so the baby and parents aren’t disturbing each other, using tools or tech to help create the right sleeping environment, and creating routines that encourage babies and toddlers to sleep better, easier, and more importantly, longer. Getting your baby to sleep well isn’t always the easiest of tasks, but if you manage to crack the code, your body will thank you for it.
Stress and Mental Overload…
This one shows up as “I’m tired, but I can’t shut my brain off.”
The mind doesn’t always race in a dramatic way. It’s often less obvious than that. It’s that moment when you finally slow down, close your eyes, and wait to drift off that things kick off. You’re planning for the next day, you’re worrying about a hospital appointment, you’re stressed over our ages and health, etc., etc. The body will be ready and willing to sleep, but the mind has other ideas. There are nights I lie there and wonder how much time we each have left. That does not make it easy to fall asleep, wanting to make the most of every moment.
Forcing relaxation at this point is futile; it’s not going to happen, and if you’re nodding along, you’re likely wondering what the cure is. There’s no one-size-fits-all cure; you simply need to assess what is worrying you. Let’s say your mind is running through the million and one things you need to do tomorrow. Get up, write down a list of what needs to be done (we all know I love a good list) and when, map out a quick flow of how your day needs to go, and try to go to sleep again. The same can work with worries or stress: get up, write down the issue and what you can do tomorrow to resolve it. Usually, when your brain recognizes a fix, it can stop worrying and get some rest.
If this doesn’t work?
- Try deep breathing exercises
- Use white noise to give your brain something else to focus on
- Try getting out of bed, moving away from the bedroom, performing some tasks that can help ease the mental load, i.e., journaling, and then try again
- Try a Himalayan pink salt lamp…I had one and loved it. Then, the bulb burned out. Instead of just replacing it, I gave it to my son!! Am I a goof or what?
Too Much Screen Time…
It’s not just kids that can be on their screens too much; many adults are prone to this problem too. If you take your phone with you to bed to relax, chances are you’re going to be doomscrolling TikTok till 3 am and you’re up for work at 7 am. Or you put on a new show, and suddenly you’re 10 episodes deep and the sun is coming up. It’s easy to do and even easier to make this your routine. Try to remove all screens from the bedroom. Don’t scroll on your phone in bed. Get into bed, set the phone down out of reach, turn it over if you need to, and focus on sleep. Other tips that can help include:
- Using a physical alarm over your phone
- Turning off notifications or setting a sleep mode or “do not disturb” between certain times
- Pick a non-screen wind-down option that doesn’t require motivation (a crossword puzzle, reading a book, etc.)
There are likely going to be times when things don’t feel like they’re coming together, and fixing sleep issues requires more than just a night to see if it worked. Make small changes, be consistent, and suddenly you’ll find you’re sleeping much better.
Wrap it up, Marsha!
I remember, when I was teaching, lying in bed, trying absolutely everything to fall asleep. There were some nights, I’d just give up and walk around for a bit. And, I didn’t even have a phone or iPad to distract me. I wish I’d had a post like this one to help. So, can we talk? Are you someone who drops off to sleep the minute your head hits the pillow? What other hints do you have for falling asleep easily? Have you ever used a Himalayan pink salt lamp? Please leave me a comment or two, and we can talk. I promise to respond as quickly as I can.
Thank you!
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