Table of contents for The Power of Sleep in Real Simple

The Stages of Sleep

WHILE WE TEND to focus on the number of hours we’re in bed, remember: The purpose of sleep is to restore your mind and body, so getting high-quality zzz’s matters as much as quantity. There are four stages of sleep that a person usually cycles through between four and six times a night. Each cycle lasts roughly 90 minutes. It starts with non–rapid eye movement (non-REM or NREM) sleep. The first stage is the lightest sleep, when you’re nodding off. Your brain activity begins to slow and your muscles relax and might twitch. It typically lasts just a few minutes. Then you enter the second stage of light sleep, where you may be able to respond to someone speaking to you or claim you’re not really asleep. Breathing, heart…

3 min

The Hows and Whys of Dreaming

MONTHS INTO THE pandemic, my dreams started changing. Instead of flunking my unstudied-for algebra exam, I faced a fresh horror: I was being jostled by a large crowd, panicked I had forgotten my mask. Another night, I dreamed I was building a house alongside Dr. Fauci. My friends were sharing similarly themed nocturnal escapades. And sure enough, #quarantinedreams became a hashtag. “People reported unusually active dream lives, and those dreams were especially vivid and bizarre,” says Deirdre Barrett, PhD, an assistant professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School and author of Pandemic Dreams. The uncertainty of the COVID crisis not only charged our days with anxiety, it infected our slumber too: Nightmares about hazmat suits and crawling bugs indicated our brains were working around the clock to process a…

8 min

15 Dos and Don’ts for Better Sleep

YOU CAN TAKE steps to improve your sleep not just when you’re getting ready to turn in for the night or are already in bed, but also throughout the day. Here are some science-backed and expert-approved strategies for getting the full night’s sleep that is so essential to your health and well-being. Stick to a Consistent Schedule We all have busy lives, and it’s often tough to get to bed at the same time every day. Yet keeping a consistent bedtime and wake-up schedule is a top recommendation from numerous sleep experts. “It’s critical to keeping your circadian rhythm in sync and should even be practiced on the weekends,” says Michael Breus, PhD, a Los Angeles–area sleep specialist. If your sleep schedule is currently all over the place, the best…

8 min

Truths and Consequences

Wine and Other Alcoholic Beverages Help You Fall Asleep. Fall asleep, yes, but not stay asleep. “The quality of sleep is going to be lower,” says Frank Scheer, PhD, a professor at Harvard Medical School and director of the Medical Chronobiology Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The problem is that once the booze wears off, it has the opposite effect of a sedative—disrupting your sleep later in the night and cutting the amount of REM time you get. “Alcohol almost completely obliterates stages 3 and 4 of sleep, which are tied to immune and cognitive function,” says Michael Breus, PhD, one of the country’s leading sleep specialists. And the more you have, the worse it gets. His advice: Stick to one or two drinks max, and stop drinking…

To Nap or Not to Nap?

NAPPING IS QUITE a divisive topic among sleep specialists: Some are opposed to it except for rare occasions, but others think it’s A-OK to snooze during the day, with a few caveats attached. Those who condone naps cite their potential benefits. “Napping can be a great tool to enhance alertness and productivity in the afternoon,” says Rebecca Robbins, PhD, a sleep scientist and instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School, who points to research that reveals napping may even boost short-term and muscle memory. The key is to set your alarm and stick to it: 20 to 25 minutes is an ideal power nap—you’ll avoid entering deep sleep and feeling groggy upon waking or having the nap interfere with nighttime sleep patterns. On the occasional day when you’re totally…

The Bed of Your Dreams

OF ALL THE ADVICE on how to sleep better, the most basic may be: Make sure you’re comfortable. And that happens right in your bed. Not so long ago, bed comfort meant choosing between “soft” and “firm” for your pillow or mattress—oh, and something about thread count in the sheets? The conversation pretty much ended around there. These days, however, you have a world of options for all your bedding products, and they take many factors into consideration—not just firmness, but also temperature, allergy sensitivities, weight, even sustainability. The marketplace has also expanded with the rise of online retailers of mattresses, pillows, and linens—the bed-in-a-box brands, which include Casper, Marlow, Brooklinen, Luma Sleep, and Brooklyn Bedding. To begin with, if you’d like a roomier bed, remember that in addition…

8 min

How to Unwind

THERE ARE TWO TYPES of people in this world: those who fall asleep moments after their head hits the pillow and, well, the rest of us. The ones who await sleep in bed, as thoughts ping-pong in our brains and the glowing numbers on the clock remind us we’re still awake. According to Jade Wu, PhD, a Durham, North Carolina–based sleep medicine specialist and researcher, what you do in the hours before bed impacts the quality of your sleep immensely. “My general philosophy is to switch from ‘doing’ mode to ‘being’ mode,” says Wu. That means you should put away things that are meant to be “productive” and spend the time on things you enjoy. Do what you know helps you decompress and feel at ease—whether it’s reading, cuddling…

Credits

FRONT COVER Romolo Tavani/iStock/Getty Images BACK COVER Clockwise: simpson33/iStock/Getty Images; Chelsea Cavanaugh/Shutterstock; FamVeld/iStock/Getty Images TITLE PAGE AND CONTENTS P. 1 Studio Firma/Stocksy P. 2 Sophia Hsin/Stocksy P. 3 From left: Juan Moyano/Stocksy; Tanja Ivanova/Moment/Getty Images; Anne Bentley INTRODUCTION P. 4 Yaroslav Danylchenko/Stocksy CHAPTER 1 PP. 6-7 The Image Bank/Getty Images P. 9 Jasmin Merdan/Moment/Getty Images P. 11 Yaroslav Danylchenko/Stocksy P. 12 Artem Varnitsin/EyeEm/Getty Images P. 13 Elena Bondarenko/iStock/Getty Images P. 14 Eva Almqvist/iStock/Getty Images PP. 16-17 Yulia Shcherbina/EyeEm/Getty Images P. 19 Clockwise: Juan Moyano/Stocksy; Jane Cameron/Stocksy; Jenny Dettrick/Moment/Getty Images; Helen Rushbrook/Stocksy P. 21 jhillphotography/Moment/Getty Images P. 23 Adria Photography/Moment/Getty Images PP. 24-25 Salim Hanzaz/iStock/Getty Images PP. 26-27 Salim Hanzaz/Shutterstock P. 29 iStock/Getty Images PP. 30-31 Enrique Ramos Lopez/EyeEm/Getty Images P. 33 Kevin Elsby/Alamy PP. 34-35 Pisit Papitpunt/Moment/Getty Images CHAPTER…

What Happens When We Sleep

BACK WHEN HE WAS in medical school, W. Chris Winter, MD, attended a lecture on “garbage disposal” in the human body. “I remember we learned about this awesome thing called the lymphatic system, which helps get rid of the toxins and waste that build up in our bodies,” he says. “We also learned that the brain doesn’t have anything like the lymphatic system.” It turns out that was wrong. Winter is now a neurologist and sleep expert based in Charlottesville, Virginia, and the author of several books about sleep, including The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child. He says that in just the last decade, researchers have identified something similar to the lymphatic system that clears waste from the brain and central nervous system. It’s known as the glymphatic…

10 min

Wake Up Right!

FOR A GREAT DAY, start with a morning routine that stacks the deck in your favor. “We want to use the strongest tools that work the fastest to help set our brain to a motivated and productive mode first thing,” says Wendy Suzuki, PhD, a neuroscientist and author of Good Anxiety: Harnessing the Power of the Most Misunderstood Emotion. Creating a wake-up routine can also help you tap into the benefits of ritual: Research finds that people who perform repeated behaviors that have meaning attached to them feel more in control and can better cope with anxiety and stress. To build the perfect mindset to fuel your next 12 hours, try any of these strategies. Look on the Bright Side Open your curtains or blinds immediately after getting up,…

4 min

Out of Order

STRUGGLING TO GET A GOOD night’s sleep is nothing new. In the Old Testament, Job obsesses over his restless evenings: “When I lie down, I say: ‘When shall I arise?’ But the night is long, and I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day.” In today’s frenetic, combative world, poor or insufficient sleep has become a public health epidemic. About a third of American adults suffer from short sleep duration, defined by the CDC as less than seven hours in a 24-hour period. Sometimes it’s just a matter of working too much, going to bed too late, or the proverbial tossing and turning all night. Or it could be caused by a sleep disorder. If you have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep,…

10 min

A Natural Solution

IF YOU’RE FINDING a good night’s rest hard to come by but would rather not resort to a prescription medication or over-the-counter antihistamine, familiarize yourself with nonpharmaceutical remedies, from herbal supplements and teas to aromatherapy and bath soaks. With all the options available, it can be tough to pinpoint which one’s best for you. Some natural sleep products are backed by more evidence than others regarding their efficacy. The FDA does not review supplements for safety and effectiveness before they are marketed, as it does with drugs. Before you take any supplement, consult your doctor, who can make sure it’s safe for you. Most herbs aren’t likely to be harmful, says Brent Bauer, MD, director of research for the integrative medicine program at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, but some…

7 min

Sleep Tips for Desperate Parents

1. Spring Into Action at the First Sign of Sleepiness. Timing is critical. Tuning in to your baby’s natural biological rhythms—by reading her telltale drowsy signs—ensures that when she’s placed in her crib, melatonin (the powerful sleep hormone) is elevated in her system, and her brain and body are primed to drift off with little fuss. If you wait too long, however, your infant can become overtired, so not only will she have lower melatonin levels, but her brain will begin to release wakefulness hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. This makes it difficult for your baby to fall asleep and stay asleep and can lead to early wake-ups. So don’t miss these cues: When your little one is still, quiet, disinterested in her surroundings, and staring off into space,…

7 min

Anywhere You Lay Your Head…

SOFA ONLY SO GOOD Dozing off on the couch is a nightly ritual for some people—though they eventually get up and go to bed. And in most cases, that’s a good idea. The Sleep Foundation generally advises against lying on a couch all night since, unlike mattresses, sofas are not designed to support the reclining body. You could end up with back or neck pain because sofa sleeping is not usually conducive to proper spinal alignment. A couch can make it easier to sleep with your head or upper body elevated (on the armrest), which may be desirable if you have a respiratory or digestive issue such as obstructive sleep apnea or gastroesophageal reflux. SWING AWAY Sure, Gilligan and the Skipper slept in hammocks during their time on the…

3 min

Next-Gen Sleep

WITH A THIRD of American adults getting less than seven hours of shut-eye a night, according to the Sleep Foundation, people are seeking solutions in many forms. Sara Dittoe Barrett, PhD, author of The 4-Week Insomnia Workbook and director of Cognitive Behavioral Associates of Chicago, says she likes to create a toolbox filled with strategies to increase the chance of sleeping well. “Some of these tools are cognitive, meaning the way we think about sleep and our beliefs about sleep are important,” she explains. “Some of the tools are behavioral, like getting regular exercise and making sure your bedroom is comfortable and conducive to restorative sleep.” Now technology can be part of your toolbox. What follows are some tech products that support sleep hygiene. None involves looking at a…

6 Feel-Good Stretches to Do Before Bed

YOUR BODY needs time to shift into sleep mode, which is why it’s recommended you do something relaxing before bed. That could mean reading, snuggling under a weighted blanket with a cup of chamomile tea, or doing some simple stretching. Such exercises would be beneficial to both sleep and fitness. “Deep breathing and slow stretching slow the nervous system and calm the brain and body similar to meditation,” says Leslee Bender, Florida-based creator of the I Am Ageless Now workout program and the Bender Ball, who developed the following series of six soothing stretches. Do them right before you’re ready to crawl into bed to encourage sounder slumber. To really protect and preserve your body, pair these with lower back or foot stretches or also do a more vigorous workout…

5 min

How Long Can You Go?

WHETHER IT’S A COLLEGE student pulling an all-nighter, a sleep-deprived new mom, a truck driver trying to stay alert for the long haul, or a club kid on the party circuit, people have their own good reasons to want to stay awake. The desire for more waking hours is hardly new. Benjamin Franklin opined that “in the grave will be sleeping enough.” R. Buckminster Fuller, who was described by Time magazine in 1943 as a “futurific inventor,” saw sleep as a waste. “Two hours of sleep a day,” said Fuller, “is plenty.” Which may not be so far from the truth—though only for a select few. Ying-Hui Fu, PhD, a professor of neurology at the University of California, San Francisco, first identified a genetic mutation responsible for an unusually…

Additional Wake-Up Wisdom

AVOID HITTING SNOOZE Studies show you’re better off just setting your alarm for later or getting out of bed when it goes off than using the snooze button. Why? When you go in and out of sleeping and waking up, it worsens what’s known as sleep inertia—the groggy feeling that comes from jolting yourself out of sleep. DO WHAT YOU LOVE Ever notice on days you have something exciting planned, it’s easier to pop right out of bed? Re-create that feeling on a daily basis by doing something you enjoy in the morning: Read, put on your favorite songs, do a crossword puzzle, or treat yourself to a flavored coffee drink, for example. NIX WEEKEND LINGERING Instead of adjusting your sleeping pattern to what’s on your calendar, find a…

1 min

Animal Slumbers

THE LARGEST LAND MAMMAL gets by on astonishingly little sleep. In 2017, researchers in Botswana tracked two African elephants and discovered they rested for only two hours a day and in some cases went several days without rest. Paul Manger, PhD, and his research team at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa fitted trackers under the skin of the elephants’ trunks to record sleeping patterns. If the trunk stayed still for five minutes or longer, the animal was asleep. “We had the idea that elephants should be the shortest-sleeping mammal because they’re the largest,” Manger told BBC News at the time of the research. “Why this occurs, we’re not really sure. Sleep is one of those really unusual mysteries of biology, that along with eating and reproduction,…

Feed Your Sleep

Yogurt As a probiotic food, yogurt can increase the amount of healthy bacteria in your gut. That, in turn, may have an impact on your sleep cycle because a well-balanced gut microbiome keeps serotonin levels from dropping (most serotonin is produced in the gut). You may know serotonin as a “good mood” chemical, but it also plays a role in sustaining the body’s circadian rhythms and facilitating sound sleep. Magnesium is involved with the regulation of your circadian rhythms too, and yogurt is a good source of this mineral. Cereal Carbs in general are conducive to sleeping, but for various health reasons, complex carbs—like those in whole, high-fiber cereals—are preferable to simple carbs such as sugary snacks and white bread. Or opt for oatmeal made from whole or steel-cut…

4 min

Up, Up, and Away…and Asleep?

LET’S PUT TO BED a one-size-fits-all approach to getting a good night’s rest when you’re traveling. The key is finding a routine that works for you. “People vary a lot in their ability to sleep on airline flights. Some are never able to fall asleep, and others fall asleep before takeoff,” says David Nelson Neubauer, MD, a National Sleep Foundation Board member and associate professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Medicine. “One good strategy to limit the effects of jet lag is to avoid starting a trip already sleep-deprived. Plan ahead, and don’t lose sleep because of last-minute packing,” he advises. “We all have prominent 24-hour rhythms coordinated by our brain’s circadian clock. Our daily exposure to daytime light reinforces the timing of our circadian rhythm, but it does…

Your Sanctuary for Slumber

TO MAKE YOUR nighttime environment favorable to sleep, your bedroom should be… Cool Your body temperature naturally drops as you drift into sleep, so cooling down your bedroom can jump-start the process and make it easier to sleep. Most experts advise setting your thermostat 5 to 10 degrees lower than your average daytime temperature. “It’s different for every person, but your bedroom should probably be under 70 degrees,” says Joyce Walsleben, PhD, co-author of A Woman’s Guide to Sleep. Menopausal women experiencing hot flashes—or those who like to bundle up in blankets—may want to aim even lower. Dark Your body is programmed to sleep when it’s dark, so you can encourage that rhythm by easing into nighttime. Light inhibits the secretion of melatonin, a hormone that naturally promotes sleep. “Even…

The Fine Art of Sharing a Bed

ROCKABYE, BABIES A mom of four sets ground rules for co-sleeping. IT WAS ABOUT 2 a.m. on a sweltering July night when it occurred to me that I might never sleep again. I had newborn twins, a 3-year-old, and a 6-year-old, and I was on the verge of losing it. As soon as I put one twin down, the other would wake up. It might have been funny if it hadn’t been so torturous. Then one night when my boy twin was 6 months old, I dozed off while nursing him in bed. We both awoke the next morning following a miraculous five-hour stretch of sleep. The rest is history. On any given night, there’s a good chance my wife and I have a kid in our bed. Those…