I used to do almost all of these. Here are 8 sneaky habits that might be sabotaging your sleep — and what actually works instead.
1. Lying in bed, wide awake, trying to force sleep
You're not sleepy, but you stay in bed because... what else are you going to do at midnight? Unfortunately, every minute you spend awake in bed teaches your brain one thing: this is a place for frustration, not sleep.
What works: If you're not asleep after ~20 minutes, get up. Read something dull in low light. Sit on the couch. Only go back when you're genuinely drowsy. (Yes, this feels wrong. It works anyway.)
2. Taking long or late naps
A 20-minute power nap before 2 PM? Fine. But if you're crashing on the couch for an hour at 5 PM, you're basically borrowing from tonight's sleep. Good luck falling asleep later.
Try this instead: Keep naps under 30 minutes, and aim for before 3PM.
3. Trying too hard to sleep
This one got me for months. The more effort you put into falling asleep, the more alert your brain becomes. It's the cruelest paradox of insomnia.
What works: Stop trying. Focus on your breathing, a body scan, or just the sensation of the pillow against your face. Sleep arrives when you stop chasing it — which is infuriating advice, but it's true.
4. Obsessively tracking your sleep
Sleep data can be useful — until it starts running your life. Wake up feeling decent? App says "bad sleep"? Now you feel terrible. This is called orthosomnia, and it's more common than you'd think. I fell into this trap hard.
Try this instead: Use sleep trackers as a general guide, not gospel. How you feel matters more than the graph.
5. Forcing yourself to get 8 hours — every night
The 8-hour rule is overrated. Sleep needs are personal. For some, 6.5 is plenty. For others, 9 is the sweet spot. Obsessing over a number can backfire.
Try this instead: Track how you feel during the day, not just how long you were in bed.
6. Checking the time when you wake up at night
Just a quick glance at your phone, right? Except now your brain is doing math: Only 4 hours left. I'm going to be wrecked tomorrow. Cortisol spikes. Sleep is gone.
What works: Turn your clock away. Put your phone face-down in another room. You don't need to know what time it is — nothing good comes from that calculation at 3 AM.
7. Using your bed for everything but sleep
Working, scrolling TikTok, eating snacks, binge-watching — if you’re doing it all in bed, your brain doesn’t see it as a sleep space anymore.
Try this instead: Keep your bed sacred. Use it for sleep (and sex), and nothing else. That way, your body knows: bed = time to rest.
8. Ignoring how your daytime habits affect your nights
Sleep doesn’t start at bedtime. It starts in the morning — with light, food, movement, and how you handle stress. Poor sleep is often just the final domino.
Try this instead: Get morning sunlight, move your body, limit caffeine after 2PM, and give your brain space to wind down in the evening.
You don't need a new mattress. You don't need another melatonin gummy. (Trust me on the melatonin — I wrote a whole article about why it stops working.) You probably just need to unlearn some habits that felt helpful but aren't.
💤 Want to start sleeping better — for real? We’ve got a personalized plan waiting for you.
References
- Furukawa, T. A., et al. (2024). Components and Delivery Formats of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Insomnia in Adults: A Systematic Review and Component Network Meta-analysis. JAMA Psychiatry. DOI: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2023.5060
- Qaseem, A., et al. (2016). Management of Chronic Insomnia Disorder in Adults: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American College of Physicians. Annals of Internal Medicine. DOI: 10.7326/M15-2175
