How can we get more sleep?
OK. We admit it – we’re curious. How many of our readers suffer from insomnia?
Given that it’s January, it won’t be too much of a surprise to learn that health and fitness and ‘looking after myself better’ have been common themes during coaching conversations this month. We can all control how much (or how little!) we make healthy life choices – and the number of people in our local gym this month suggests that resolutions are alive and well – but lying awake at night feeling that sleep is far from possible has got to be one of the most frustrating things in the world. Especially because we all know that lack of sleep impacts our mood, our recovery, our performance at work, and our resolve to make healthy choices. Here at Team Cool, we find ourselves comparing sleep data from our wearables more often than we probably should…
We read an interesting article in Personnel Today recently which reported a disturbing statistic: that UK workers are only getting an average of three nights of good quality sleep per week. The article went on to say:
“The survey of 2,000 adults by the Mental Health Foundation found that 33% felt that poor sleep was making it harder for them to concentrate at work, while 22% worried they were making more mistakes than usual as a result. A total of 13% even reported having fallen asleep at work.”
What can we do to try to better control our sleep quality?
There’s no single fix, but we have found that small commitments often make a difference. Creating clearer boundaries around sleep can help — going to bed and waking up at roughly the same time, even at weekends, gives the body a rhythm it can rely on. Equally important, creating space to mentally “power down” before bed matters. That might mean putting devices away earlier than feels comfortable, writing down tomorrow’s to-do list so it’s not spinning around your head, or building a short wind-down routine that signals the day is done. One of our friends has a rule about devices in the bedroom – if you need to look at your device in the bedroom, you have to stand up to do so…
There have been lots of reports over the years about how closely sleep is linked to how safe and settled we feel. Stress, uncertainty and constant mental noise don’t switch off when the lights are turned off. In fact, the Mental Health Foundation survey reported that 13% of their respondents blamed their work for negatively impacting their sleep in the past month. Coaching can help here — by creating space to process what’s sitting under the surface, clarify priorities, and challenge the belief that rest has to be earned. When people feel more in control of their days, sleep often improves as a by-product.
Crucially, we can really help ourselves by taking the pressure off “sleeping perfectly”. How many times have you been lying awake, worrying about not sleeping? Chasing sleep can be as disruptive as poor habits themselves. Focusing instead on recovery, rest, and compassion for ourselves on the tougher nights can be a surprisingly powerful starting point.
Let us know what techniques you have used to get to sleep. You’re In Cool Company.
