Are you mono, bi, or poly? No, we’re not talking about your love life. We’re talking about your sleep patterns — how often you wake at night and nap during the day, and whether you are a monophasic, biphasic or a polyphasic sleeper. And, even more importantly, how do you perceive your 

? Are you a merry midnight waker, or do bouts of sleeplessness in the early morning make you feel anxious and tense?

If you are the type of person who puts down your head at ten and wakes up at six with no recollection of waking up in-between, you’re definitely a monophasic sleeper — the scientific term for people who get eight hours of solid shut-eye every night without major awakenings.

However, if you are someone who gets up in the middle of the night for a midnight snack, a cup of tea, or even a quiet (or not-so-quiet) early-hours chat with your roommates before settling in for the second stretch, you’re a biphasic sleeper. You probably sleep in two long stretches, broken by a period of wakefulness every night. You’re also biphasic if you like taking an afternoon nap or siesta and spend shorter intervals in your bed at night. In countries like Spain, for example, it is tradition to siesta for one to one and a half hours and then sleep again for five to six hours at night.

Polyphasic sleepers, on the other hand, take segmentation to the next level. They sleep more than twice a day. They may put in a pre-midnight snooze, walk around the house between twelve and two, settle in for another stretch and take short siestas to rest their brains and bodies during the day. Interestingly, we all start out as polyphasic sleepers when we’re born.

Both biphasic and polyphasic sleep are what experts called segmented sleep. Segmented sleep is any type of sleep pattern that involves sleeping in chunks or segments.

Segmented sleep is not necessarily a problem but it becomes one if you believe it to be so. The mantra that a solid, unbroken, eight-hour stretch of sleep is the gold standard is one of the most common and erroneous sleep perceptions that troubles people who experience sleep problems.Thousands of people who wake up in the middle of the night experience great anxiety because they believe their wakefulness is unnatural and unhealthy. This anxiety, more than the awakening itself, can interfere with healthy sleep patterns;worrying puts your brain in a state of hyperarousal, which interferes with your natural sleep drive .

However, research indicates that waking up during the night is often perfectly normal – a throwback to our pre-industrial past. Sleep researcher Roger Ehkirch points out that people in the pre-industrial era habitually slept in segments.

 His research, based on diaries, documents, books and medical literature, deduces that biphasic sleep occurred across the globe in Europe, North America, the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and Latin America.

In other words, in the pre-industrialized world our ancestors slept in shifts and thought nothing of it. Biphasic sleep – historically dubbed the “first” and the “second” sleep – were perfectly normal. It is likely that artificial illumination, along with work and school schedules, started extending active hours and shifting when, and how, sleep cycles occurred.

Ehkirch says the consolidated sleep to which the industrialized world aspires is for Western societies “a remarkably youthful form of sleep, a product not of the primeval past but of forces grounded in technology (artificial illumination) and shifting cultural attitudes toward sleep over the course of the Industrial Revolution.”

Sleep patterns are not a one-size-fits all affair. Sleep is not a passive state. You sleep in stages , which range from very light sleep to deep sleep. And different people have different sleep cycles, depending on factors such as their circadian rhythm .

Segmented sleep can be unhealthy if all your sleep segments in a 24-hour period do not add up to the total number of hours of sleep you need to function properly. But for different people this figure is different. There is no hard-and fast rule. Some people are genetically inclined to need less sleep.

A 2021 survey done in India even found that medical students performed better academically if they slept segmentally rather than monophasically and that segmental sleepers did not suffer from daytime sleepiness as much as monophasic sleepers did.

When Is Polyphasic Sleep Unhealthy for Me?

Polyphasic sleep is sometimes associated with neurodegenerative illnesses like Alzheimer’s and dementia. And it can become a problem if you’re sleeping polyphasically because you’re stressed or depressed. Or if your job causes multiple interruptions of your natural circadian rhythms over a 24-hour period. Doctors, nurses and night-shift workers, for example, may experience fatigue as a result of such forced polyphasic sleeping patterns.

The Journal Sleep Health warns that polyphasic sleep schedules, and the sleep deficiency inherent in those schedules, are associated with a variety of adverse physical health, mental health, and performance outcomes.

 However, if a polyphasic rhythm works for you and allows you to function optimally, there is no reason why you shouldn’t follow this rhythm.

If you are worried about waking up at night, 

 and talk to our experts to discover if your biphasic or polyphasic sleep patterns are optimal for you.

Sudhansu Chokroverty, Sudhansu. (1994). Sleep disorders in Sleep Disorders Medicine, 7-16. Butterworth-Heinemann. 

https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-7506-9002-7.50007-0.

Ekirch A. R. (2016). Segmented Sleep in Preindustrial Societies. Sleep, 39(3), 715–716. https://doi.org/10.5665/sleep.5558

Ekirch, A. (2015) The modernization of Western sleep: or, does insomnia have a history? Past & Present, 149–92.

Hirano, A et al. (2018) DEC2 modulates orexin expression and regulates sleep. PNAS, 115 (13), 2434 – 3439. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1801693115.

Shalini S.P. et al. (2021) Effect of Segmented Sleeping on the Academic Performance of Medical Students. A Questionnaire Survey. Medico-legal Update, January-March 2021, Vol. 21, No. 1.

Weaver, MD et al. (2021) Adverse impact of polyphasic sleep patterns in humans: Report of the National Sleep Foundation sleep timing and variability consensus panel. Sleep Health, 7 (3), 293-302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2021.02.009.

Learn about segmented sleep and the difference between biphasic, polyphasic & monophasic sleep

Segmented Sleep: Monophasic, Polyphasic & Biphasic Sleep | Dawn Health

What is Segmented Sleep? The Difference between Biphasic, Polyphasic & Monophasic Sleep

Sleep is controlled by two different processes in your body: your circadian rhythm and your sleep drive. These two processes help determine your ability to fall asleep and stay asleep and affect how awake or tired you feel during the day.

 Experts collectively refer to your circadian rhythm and your sleep drive as the two-process model of sleep.

 is your “biological clock” that responds to external cues in your environment, such as light, to influence what times you fall asleep and wake up.

Your homeostatic sleep drive, also called sleep pressure or sleep load, is a process that increases your desire to sleep throughout the day. Your sleep drive can be thought of as a balloon that gradually fills up during your waking hours and then slowly deflates during sleep. The longer you are awake, the more the “pressure” builds, making you feel increasingly tired. While you are asleep, the pressure decreases, eventually making you feel less tired and causing you to wake up.

Understanding how your sleep drive grows and knowing the factors that can weaken it may help you get a better night’s sleep.

The sleep drive is powered by adenosine. Levels of this molecule are controlled by energy metabolism within cells.

Every cell in the body uses adenosine triphosphate (ATP) as its energy source. ATP consists of adenosine attached to three phosphate molecules. As the cell breaks off the phosphate molecules one by one, it gains energy that it can use to complete various tasks. Eventually, once all three phosphate atoms are removed, your body is left with just adenosine.

This remaining adenosine forms the sleep drive. As adenosine builds up, it leads to changes in the brain: it slows the activity of brain networks that makes you feel more awake and turns on brain processes that make you feel tired.

Overall, the longer you stay awake, the more energy your brain uses and the more adenosine accumulates to make you feel sleepy.

Sometimes, other factors can also ramp up your sleep drive. Large amounts of mental or physical effort can sometimes increase sleep pressure, causing you to feel more tired after a busy day. Additionally, when you’re sick, and your immune system is activated to fight off germs, it produces molecules that further increase your sleep drive and make you want to sleep more.

The sleep drive is based on natural processes in the body related to metabolism, energy, and brain activity. You can’t damage your sleep drive or turn it off. However, some things may temporarily weaken the sleep drive and make it harder for you to fall asleep.

 is a process that can occur when you are under a lot of stress. It can also be a symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). During hyperarousal, the brain creates stress hormones that activate brain pathways and make you feel more awake. These hormones can also cancel out the effects of the sleep drive.

Caffeine may also affect your sleep drive. When you drink coffee, tea, or soda, caffeine molecules attach to adenosine receptors — proteins in the brain that are responsible for sensing and responding to adenosine. Caffeine blocks adenosine from interacting with these receptors, preventing it from triggering the sleep drive.

How to Harness Your Sleep Drive for Better Sleep

To reinforce and strengthen your sleep drive, 

 can help. “Sleep hygiene” refers to basic sleeping habits that can help you get longer, higher-quality rest.

Many experts recommend going to sleep and waking up at the same time every day. 

 Sleeping in for several hours on the weekend may make you feel better rested in the short term, but it doesn’t give your sleep drive as much time to build up. You may then have problems sleeping later that night, causing you to feel tired for the next few days.

Waiting until you’re tired to lay down in bed is also a good idea for boosting your sleep drive. If you’re trying to go to sleep before your sleep drive has built up enough pressure, you’ll lay awake. On the other hand, waiting longer to go to bed or even occasionally depriving yourself of a little bit of sleep can make your sleep drive stronger, helping you fall asleep more easily.

 In the same vein, avoiding napping during the day helps increase your sleep drive so you feel more pressure to sleep later in the day.

Trying to sleep with a weak sleep drive is a common cause of insomnia and is something that 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I)

 can help fix. CBT-I is recommended by sleep experts such as the American Academy of Sleep Medicine as the first treatment option for people having trouble sleeping.

CBT-I can help you better understand how sleep processes work and learn how to change your attitudes and habits to strengthen your sleep drive and get better rest.

To see if CBT-I might be the right fit for you, fill out 

Deboer T. (2018). Sleep homeostasis and the circadian clock: Do the circadian pacemaker and the sleep homeostat influence each other’s functioning?. Neurobiology of sleep and circadian rhythms, 5, 68–77. 

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbscr.2018.02.003

National Institute of General Medical Sciences. (2022, March 11). Circadian Rhythms. 

https://www.nigms.nih.gov/education/fact-sheets/Pages/circadian-rhythms.aspx

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, March 30). NIOSH Training for Nurses on Shift Work and Long Work Hours. 

https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/work-hour-training-for-nurses/longhours/mod2/11.html

Dunn, J., &Grider, M. H. (2022). Physiology, Adenosine Triphosphate. StatPearls. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK553175/

Besedovsky, L., Lange, T., & Haack, M. (2019). The Sleep-Immune Crosstalk in Health and Disease. Physiological reviews, 99(3), 1325–1380. 

https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.00010.2018

Taillard, J., Gronfier, C., Bioulac, S., Philip, P., & Sagaspe, P. (2021). Sleep in Normal Aging, Homeostatic and Circadian Regulation and Vulnerability to Sleep Deprivation. Brain sciences, 11(8), 1003. 

Kalmbach, D. A., Cuamatzi-Castelan, A. S., Tonnu, C. V., Tran, K. M., Anderson, J. R., Roth, T., & Drake, C. L. (2018). Hyperarousal and sleep reactivity in insomnia: current insights. Nature and science of sleep, 10, 193–201. 

Lazarus, M., Shen, H. Y., Cherasse, Y., Qu, W. M., Huang, Z. L., Bass, C. E., Winsky-Sommerer, R., Semba, K., Fredholm, B. B., Boison, D., Hayaishi, O., Urade, Y., & Chen, J. F. (2011). Arousal effect of caffeine depends on adenosine A2A receptors in the shell of the nucleus accumbens. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 31(27), 10067–10075. 

https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.6730-10.2011

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2016, July 15). Tips for Better Sleep. 

https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/sleep_hygiene.html

Goel, N., Basner, M., Rao, H., & Dinges, D. F. (2013). Circadian rhythms, sleep deprivation, and human performance. Progress in molecular biology and translational science, 119, 155–190. 

https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-396971-2.00007-5

Feuerstein, S., Hodges, S. E., Keenaghan, B., Bessette, A., Forselius, E., & Morgan, P. T. (2017). Computerized Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia in a Community Health Setting. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 13(2), 267–274. 

The homeostatic sleep drive, also known as sleep pressure is a biological process part of the two-process model controlling sleep.

How the Homeostatic Sleep Drive Works | Dawn Health

How the Homeostatic Sleep Drive Works

Advanced sleep phase syndrome (ASPS) and delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) are conditions that cause your sleep schedule to be out of line with what is considered “normal” by society’s standards. ASPS and DSPS don’t necessarily affect 

If you have an unusual sleep schedule due to working a job or going to school outside of typical daytime hours, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have ASPS or DSPS. When people do have these conditions, they often want to follow a different sleep schedule, but their bodies don’t seem to let them.

If you feel like you may have signs of ASPS or DSPS, talk to your doctor. Treatment can help you safely and effectively adjust your sleeping patterns or cope with keeping an unusual schedule.

ASPS, also called advanced sleep-wake phase disorder, causes you to be an extreme early bird. If you have this condition, for example, you may find yourself becoming very sleepy in the late afternoon and needing to get to bed in the early evening, despite wanting to stay awake longer. You may then find yourself naturally waking up extremely early in the morning, lying awake until your alarm eventually goes off.

Get tired and fall asleep earlier in the day than you want to

Wake up early in the morning and can’t get back to sleep

Experience these symptoms nearly every day, including days when you have work or school as well as your free days

Have had these symptoms for at least three months

ASPS typically occurs due to predispositions or development changes in your circadian rhythm (internal body clock) and sleep drive (the process in your body that makes you feel increasingly sleepy the longer you are awake).

 These changes may develop because of genetics — about 

 of people with ASPS have a family member with the condition. Additionally, ASPS is more common among older adults.

On the other end of the spectrum, DSPS turns you into a night owl. If you have DSPS, you may find yourself regularly staying awake until the early hours of the next morning. In the absence of any responsibilities the next day, you might find yourself sleeping in until noon or later. Some experts also refer to DSPS as delayed sleep-wake phase disorder.

You may want to talk to your doctor about DSPS if you:

Don’t start feeling sleepy or aren’t able to fall asleep until very late

Struggle to wake up in the morning at a certain time

Experience these late sleep-wake times regardless of whether or not you are trying to follow a certain schedule

Have had these symptoms for three months or more

Like ASPS, DSPS can develop due to the underlying biology of  your circadian rhythm and sleep drive.

 DSPS is also more common in young adults and teens; about 

 of people within these age ranges have the condition. Additionally, many people with mental health disorders also have DSPS.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

 is strongly linked to DSPS in some studies. ADHD is a condition that causes you to be inattentive (have trouble focusing or staying organized), hyperactive (moving around a lot when it is not appropriate), and/or impulsive (acting or speaking quickly without thinking it through).

 people with ADHD may have DSPS.5 Studies have found changes in the genes that control circadian rhythms in people with ADHD. This causes certain body processes, such as hormone production, to occur 1.5 hours later than they would in people without ADHD.

DSPS is also more common in people with psychiatric conditions like bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, and substance use disorder.

Changing your sleeping patterns can be difficult on your own, but certain strategies can help. Although ASPS and DSPS look a little different, their recommended treatments are very similar.

 can be a good place to start. Sleep hygiene consists of habits that can help you develop higher-quality, more consistent sleep. You will want to try:

Staying away from coffee in the afternoon and evening

Avoiding naps, especially later in the day

Staying out of your bedroom except when you want to sleep

Removing distractions involving bright lights or noise from your bedroom

Getting out of bed and doing something else for a bit if you can’t fall asleep

You can also try adjusting your lifestyle to match your natural sleep rhythm rather than fighting it. For example, if you have ASPS, you could try working or taking classes a little earlier in the day or meeting up with friends for happy hour rather than for a late dinner. If you have DSPS, you could try switching to an evening or night shift or making plans with loved ones later in the evening.

 or phototherapy is also an effective technique for treating ASPS and DSPS. This method involves using bright lights to shift your sleep-wake times and reset your circadian rhythms. If you have ASPS, this may involve surrounding yourself with light in the late afternoon or evening hours, while DSPS is treated with light exposure in the morning.

Although Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) was originally developed as an insomnia treatment, it is also an effective and well-known therapy for both ASPS and DSPS. CBT-I helps you learn more about your personal sleep habits and change your thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding rest.

People with ASPS and DSPS often struggle with the pressure surrounding what society considers to be “normal” sleep and awake hours. CBT-I helps treat both of these syndromes because it targets how we feel about our sleeping patterns. To learn more about CBT-I, read Dawn’s 

If you are struggling to improve your sleep, try 

. We provide tailored CBT-I advice about sleep habits thanks to in-depth work with a one-on-one sleep coach. To learn more, fill out our 

Culnan, E., McCullough, L. M., & Wyatt, J. K. (2019). Circadian Rhythm Sleep-Wake Phase Disorders. Neurologic clinics, 37(3), 527–543. 

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ncl.2019.04.003

Stanford Health Care. What Is Advanced Sleep Phase Syndrome? 

https://stanfordhealthcare.org/medical-conditions/sleep/advanced-sleep-phase-syndrome.html

Stanford Health Care. What Is Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome? 

https://stanfordhealthcare.org/medical-conditions/sleep/delayed-sleep-phase-syndrome.html

National Institute of Mental Health. (2021, September). Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. 

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd

Lunsford-Avery, J. R., & Kollins, S. H. (2018). Editorial Perspective: Delayed circadian rhythm phase: a cause of late-onset attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder among adolescents?. Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, 59(12), 1248–1251. 

Wajszilber, D., Santiseban, J. A., & Gruber, R. (2018). Sleep disorders in patients with ADHD: impact and management challenges. Nature and science of sleep, 10, 453–480. 

MedlinePlus. (2022, February 10). Healthy Sleep. 

https://medlineplus.gov/healthysleep.html

Advanced sleep phase syndrome (ASPS) and delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) are conditions that cause your sleep schedule to be out of line.

Advanced Sleep Phase Syndrome vs. Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome

As technology becomes more advanced, and tools like smartphones and fitness watches become better at collecting health data, more people than ever before have started tracking their sleep. In 2017, about 

 said they used sleep trackers regularly or occasionally to improve their rest. [1]

Sleep trackers may help you become more aware of your sleeping patterns and take note of any potential problems. However, many studies have found that they tend not to be very accurate in their measurements. There is also a risk that using these devices may actually lead to an unhealthy preoccupation with sleep that can contribute to 

There are many types of devices that can track your sleep. They come with varying degrees of complexity — some sleep trackers may record a couple of different types of information, while others may paint a very detailed picture of how you slept at each point during the night. [2]

Some sleep trackers are wearable. They consist of devices that you put on your wrist, finger, or head. Wearable trackers stay in contact with your skin as they continually collect data. Many of these devices also gather information about your physical activity levels and calories consumed or burned.

Other sleep trackers are non-wearable devices. For example, you may collect sleep data with a sleep tracker app on your smartphone. In this case, you may place your phone on the bed next to you as you sleep. You can also use sleep monitors that sit on or under your mattress. Some of these devices may also report information about the conditions of your room, including temperature or humidity.

What Type of Information Do Sleep Trackers Collect?

Sleep trackers typically measure whether you’re asleep or not using metrics like your movements, heart rate, body temperature, and breathing patterns. All of these body processes undergo changes as you move through the different stages of sleep.

. During the first three stages, sleep starts out light and gets progressively deeper — it is deepest during stage 3 sleep. Your heart rate and body temperature decrease with each stage. The fourth sleep stage is rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, in which your heart rate increases, your breathing becomes more irregular, and you dream. [3]

Sleep trackers may use information like your heart rate to report that you were in a period of “light sleep” or “heavy sleep,” but this isn’t exactly the same as reporting your sleep stage. Studies have found that sleep trackers often can’t accurately detect which stage a person is in. [4]

The best way to measure your sleep stages is through tests like 

 that measure brain waves. You can’t go through these tests at home with sleep trackers; you undergo them in sleep clinics. Polysomnography and other tests administered by sleep specialists can help officially diagnose sleep disorders. [4]

Sleep trackers aren’t perfect. Unfortunately, many companies don’t share exactly how their tracking programs work, which means it can be hard to determine their accuracy. Additionally, the vast majority of sleep trackers are categorized as “lifestyle/entertainment” devices. They aren’t regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which means that no one is checking to make sure the devices are accurate or based on current scientific information.5

Multiple studies have found that sleep trackers aren’t as accurate as we might hope. Sleep trackers: [4], [6]

Are likely to report that you got more sleep than you really did

Are very inaccurate when it comes to measuring how long it takes for a person to fall asleep

Often incorrectly report that you’re sleeping when you’re actually awake, especially if you have chronic health conditions

Are poor at distinguishing how deep a person’s sleep is

Despite their limitations, sleep trackers may be helpful for some people. One benefit is that they can make you more aware of your sleep and encourage you to learn more about how to get better rest. [5]

Another positive is that they can give you a broad overview of your overall sleeping patterns. If you’re trying to 

, such as going to bed and waking up at the same time each day, a sleep tracker can help you determine whether you’re on track. It may also point out other helpful insights — for example, you may notice that you get more sleep on days when you’ve been more physically active. [4]

A sleep tracker could also help you detect any overarching problems, such as being woken up early at the same time each day. It may also help you identify potential signs of sleep disorders. For example, loud snoring or waking up multiple times throughout the night could point to sleep apnea.

In the long term, sleep tracker data could also be combined with data from other health devices to help you and your doctor better understand your health.5

One problem with sleep trackers is their potential inaccuracy. People relying on these devices may think they’re getting more or less sleep than they really are. Additionally, the devices often can’t reliably tell what sleep stage you’re in, which means it’s hard to measure your sleep quality. [4]

Additionally, some people using trackers become so preoccupied with their sleep stats that they actually start getting worse sleep. Experts call this “

.” For example, you may find that if your sleep tracker is regularly telling you that you’re not hitting your targets, you develop increased anxiety surrounding sleep. You may even be tempted to spend extra time in bed, which can worsen insomnia. [4]

Although sleep tracker devices and apps may provide you with a lot of data, they don’t always help you understand how to best use this information. For example, you may see that you’re not getting a lot of deep sleep, but feel unsure about how to change this — your sleep stages are largely outside of your control.

Instead, you may want to focus on what you can control, such as what time you lay down in bed and how long you spend trying to sleep. Sleep tracker devices may help, but aren’t strictly necessary when it comes to making these sorts of changes.

Sleep trackers can help define sleeping patterns and are a fantastic starting point to improve overall sleep. However, they may 

 when paired with other strategies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I).4 During 

, you work with a therapist or online program to adjust your behaviors and beliefs surrounding sleep. CBT-I is known to be very effective in treating insomnia. [7]

CBT-I can provide tailored one-on-one coaching that can teach you how to make the most of your sleep. For the most effective results, use your sleep tracker to start a conversation with your therapist.

To take the first step toward getting a better night’s sleep, 

 to get matched with a sleep coach who can provide personalized advice.

Percentage of U.S. adults that use apps to track their sleep as of 2017, by gender.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/699434/us-adults-that-use-apps-to-track-sleep-by-gender/

de Zambotti, M., Cellini, N., Goldstone, A., Colrain, I. M., & Baker, F. C. (2019). Wearable Sleep Technology in Clinical and Research Settings. 

Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 51

(7), 1538–1557. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000001947

Patel, A.K., Reddy, V., & Araujo, J.F. (2021, April 22). Physiology, Sleep Stages. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK526132/

Baron, K. G., Abbott, S., Jao, N., Manalo, N., & Mullen, R. (2017). Orthosomnia: Are Some Patients Taking the Quantified Self Too Far?. 

Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 13

(2), 351–354. https://doi.org/10.5664/jcsm.6472

Khosla, S., Deak, M. C., Gault, D., Goldstein, C. A., Hwang, D., Kwon, Y., O'Hearn, D., Schutte-Rodin, S., Yurcheshen, M., Rosen, I. M., Kirsch, D. B., Chervin, R. D., Carden, K. A., Ramar, K., Aurora, R. N., Kristo, D. A., Malhotra, R. K., Martin, J. L., Olson, E. J., Rosen, C. L., … American Academy of Sleep Medicine Board of Directors (2018). Consumer Sleep Technology: An American Academy of Sleep Medicine Position Statement. 

Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 14

(5), 877–880. https://doi.org/10.5664/jcsm.7128

Conley, S., Knies, A., Batten, J., Ash, G., Miner, B., Hwang, Y., Jeon, S., & Redeker, N. S. (2019). Agreement between actigraphic and polysomnographic measures of sleep in adults with and without chronic conditions: A systematic review and meta-analysis. 

, 151–160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2019.05.001

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2017, August 1). 

https://effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov/products/insomnia/consumer

Sleep trackers are now common. Learn how accurate they are and if they really can show you how you slept.

How Accurate are Sleep Trackers? |  Dawn Health

How Accurate are Sleep Trackers?

If you have problems falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too early, you may have insomnia — a common sleep disorder. Insomnia may make you feel like you barely sleep at night and it may cause you to feel really tired during the day. While occasional sleeplessness is common, you may have chronic insomnia if your sleep troubles have been ongoing for at least a month.

There are several options for insomnia treatment. If your sleeping problems are caused by an underlying medical disorder, addressing that condition is always a good first step. Additionally, certain medications and lifestyle changes can help you get a better night’s sleep. The most well-known and effective option is 

cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I)

 CBT-I is a personalized program that addresses your relationship with sleep and how best to support and promote healthy sleep patterns.

Our expert sleep therapists have no wait and can talk as soon as today. We take insurance in several states and have affordable self-pay options! You can learn about by clicking to our home page.

Several types of medications may help you sleep better. Some sleeping aids can be bought over-the-counter. Some of the most popular options include:

Diphenhydramine, which goes by brand names like Aleve PM, Benadryl, and ZzzQuil

Other medications are sedatives that are prescribed by a doctor. Prescription sleeping aids include:

When going through a severe episode of insomnia, it is typical to reach for these types of aids. Medications for insomnia may help you get a full night’s sleep when nothing else will, and higher-quality sleep can help protect your health.

Unfortunately, sleep medications can also have drawbacks. It is a good idea to talk to your doctor to find out whether these drugs may be helpful for your personal needs.

Experts recommend using sleeping aids only as a temporary fix. They are not a good long-term solution, for several reasons:

The hangover effect — These drugs make some people feel “hungover.” You may feel extra groggy the day after using sleep aids.

You can build up tolerance to over-the-counter drugs — These medications typically work well at first. However, your body quickly gets used to them, making these aids increasingly less effective the longer you use them.

You may become addicted to prescription drugs — If you use sleep aids too often, you may develop a dependence on them and be unable to fall asleep without them.

Side effects — Different types of sleeping pills can lead to different health issues, including headaches, dizziness, tiredness, nausea, diarrhea, and memory and thinking problems.

It is also quite popular to treat insomnia with antidepressants. These medications may alter levels of certain brain chemicals that affect sleep. However, symptom relief can take several months to achieve and is not also sustainable if you stop taking antidepressants. Also, paradoxically, some antidepressants can negatively impact sleep quality. To learn more about using antidepressants to manage insomnia, 

CBT-I is a program that can help you develop better habits and attitudes surrounding sleep. It can be understood as a therapy that creates a bond between your behavior, your thoughts, and your emotions to reprogram your sleep patterns. CBT-I can provide a long-term solution to sleeping problems.5 To learn more about cognitive behavioral therapy for sleep and check out an in-depth explanation of the “CBT-I triangle,” read our 

CBT-I also gives you the tools you need to change unhelpful thought and behavioral patterns.6 Purposely working to build up beneficial attitudes and behaviors through CBT-I can help you develop more positive emotions toward sleeping and feel more motivated to stick to new sleep habits.

CBT-I is the gold standard treatment for insomnia, recommended by both the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the American College of Physicians.

Learn about cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and how this can be used as an alternative to sleep medication.