Seven expert and unexpected tips for people who have already tried everything
As a sleep coach, I regularly meet people who have “tried everything” to get more sleep. They have read every article on the subject and devoured every tip on the internet and then adjusted and readjusted their routines based on the advice they have found. Many of them are doing all the right things – spending time winding down before bed, curbing screen time, meditating – but still they struggle. The problem is that when it comes to sleep, unlike almost every other area of life, effort is not rewarded. In fact, it is actively punished. The more you try, the less you are likely to succeed.
This is because sleep is a passive process, like breathing or digesting. It cannot be controlled and nothing we can do can force it to happen. If we can stop trying, sleep will naturally follow. But not trying to sleep is extremely hard, especially when you are exhausted and desperate. Instead, I get my clients to shift their attention towards the main causes of sleeplessness: lack of sleep drive and hyperarousal. Tackling these two factors (which happily respond very well to a bit of effort) can then create the right conditions to allow sleep to happen all on its own.
