7 Tips for Better Sleep: How to Improve Sleep & When to Get Help
Lying awake at night can be frustrating. If sleep difficulties persist, it may be helpful to explore possible sleep disorders or seek professional support.
Do you find yourself often lying awake at night, replaying conversations or thinking about what you need to do tomorrow? Sleep difficulties can stem from many factors, including work stress, family responsibilities, or underlying health issues. While these factors can be difficult to control, there are habits that can help you get more restful sleep.
Sleep difficulties are more common than you might imagine, especially during times of stress, anxiety, or major life changes. According to the CDC, over one-third of adults in the U.S. aren’t getting enough sleep, 14.5% have trouble falling asleep, and 17.8% have trouble staying asleep.
The good news is that there are practical, research-supported ways to improve sleep and make meaningful changes over time.
In this article, we’ll explore:
Creating a calming wind-down routine, such as reading before bed, can help signal to your body that it’s time to sleep.
What Happens If You Don’t Get Enough Sleep?
Sleep deprivation occurs when you aren’t sleeping enough or aren’t getting quality rest. This can be short-term, lasting just a few nights. When it becomes chronic and lasts for weeks or months, your brain has a harder time regulating emotions and managing stress.
The amount of sleep you may need varies depending on your age. The average daily amount needed is:
Newborns (up to 3 months old): 14 to 17 hours.
Infants (4 to 12 months old): 12 to 16 hours, including naptime.
Young children (1 to 5 years old): 10 to 14 hours, including naptime.
School-aged children (6 to 12 years old): 9 to 12 hours.
Teenagers (13 to 18 years old): 8 to 10 hours.
Adults (18 years and up): 7 to 9 hours.
Chronic sleep deprivation can increase irritability, cause difficulty concentrating, increase anxiety, and lower energy levels. Long-term, people with chronic sleep deprivation are more likely to develop high blood pressure, high cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes, and symptoms of depression and anxiety. The longer sleep difficulties continue, the more they can affect both physical and psychological well-being.
That said, it’s important not to panic. Occasional sleep disruption is common, especially during stressful periods. If it becomes more severe, support is always available to help address underlying causes.
7 Tips for Better Sleep
1. Create a Restful Environment
Your sleep environment plays an important role in how easily you can fall asleep and stay asleep. The brain is highly responsive to light, noise, and temperature, and even subtle disruptions can interfere with sleep quality.
Aim to keep your bedroom dark, quiet, and cool. Using an eye mask, a white noise machine, and a fan or AC can help support deeper sleep. These adjustments may seem simple, but over time, they can meaningfully improve sleep consistency.
2. Create a Consistent Wind-Down Routine
The brain loves predictability. Creating a consistent sleep routine helps signal to your body that it’s time to transition from alertness to rest.
Rather than moving directly from work, screens, or stimulating activities into bed, build a short, calming sequence that you repeat most nights. This might include:
Dimming lights
Reading something relaxing
A warm shower or bath
Meditation or slow, deep breathing
Journaling
Gentle stretching
Over time, your brain begins to associate these cues with sleep, making it easier to fall asleep naturally. Consistency matters more than perfection. Even a simple, repeatable routine can improve sleep quality when practiced regularly.
3. Limit Late-Night Alcohol & Caffeine
What you consume in the evening can have significant effects on sleep quality. Caffeine can remain in your system for several hours, and even if you are able to fall asleep, it can reduce how deep your sleep is and how often you wake up. Some individuals may be more sensitive to caffeine than others. Consider limiting coffee, energy drinks, tea, and other caffeinated beverages later in the day.
While alcohol can feel relaxing at first, it disrupts normal sleep cycles. You may asleep more quickly, but it often leads to lighter, more fragmented sleep and early-morning waking. It’s also helpful to avoid heavy meals close to bedtime, as digestion can interfere with your body’s ability to fully relax.
4. Manage Light Exposure
Light helps regulate your circadian rhythm, which is your body’s internal sleep-wake cycle. Getting natural sunlight earlier in the day helps support healthy sleep patterns. In the evening, try to reduce exposure to bright screens and lights. This includes light from phones, TVs, and computers as they signal to your brain that it’s daytime and can disrupt sleep hormones. Try dimming lights and turning off screens 30–60 minutes before bedtime to make it easier to fall asleep naturally.
5. Improve Daytime Habits
What you do during the day can influence how well you sleep at night. Regular movement, time outdoors, and a consistent daily routine all support healthy sleep patterns.
Exercise during the day can improve sleep quality, but try to avoid intense workouts closer to bedtime. Additionally, try to keep naps during the day relatively short (under an hour) and avoid napping late in the afternoon.
6. Calm Racing Thoughts at Night
Many people experience racing thoughts, worry about responsibilities, and unresolved stress at nighttime. Practicing simple mindfulness techniques can help quiet your mind. Try writing down tomorrow’s to-do list, journaling lingering thoughts, or practicing slow breathing or mindfulness exercises.
Rather than trying to force your mind to be quiet, the goal is to create space between you and anxious thoughts so your body can begin to relax.
7. What to Do When You Can’t Sleep at Night
If you are lying awake and can’t fall asleep, it can be helpful to get out of bed and move to another room. Try lying on your couch, and doing something quiet and relaxing in low light—such as reading, stretching, or practicing slow breathing—until you begin to feel sleepy again.
This helps prevent your brain from associating your bed with frustration or stress. Avoid stimulating activities like checking emails or scrolling on your phone, which can make it harder for your mind to wind down.
Once you feel drowsy, return to bed and try again. Over time, this can help retrain your brain to associate your bed with rest and sleep.
When Sleep Problems May Signal a Disorder
When trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too early becomes a regular pattern, it may be related to an underlying sleep disorder.
Some common sleep disorders include:
Insomnia: persistently difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too early.
Sleep apnea: a condition in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep, often causing frequent awakenings and poor sleep quality.
Restless legs syndrome (RLS): characterized by an uncomfortable urge to move the legs, usually in the evening or at night, which can make it difficult to fall asleep.
Narcolepsy: a neurological disorder causing uncontrollable daytime sleepiness and sudden "sleep attacks."
Circadian rhythm sleep disorders (CRSDs): a group of conditions in which sleep patterns don’t align with the body’s internal clock, making it difficult to fall asleep or wake up at typical times.
If you are struggling with sleep difficulties several nights per week that last for multiple weeks and interfere with daily functioning and well-being, it may be helpful to speak with a healthcare provider to better understand your sleep concerns. Sleep disorders and difficulties can be draining and frustrating to deal with, but you are not alone, and help is always available to get back on track.
When to Reach Out for Support
If persistent sleep problems are affecting your mood, concentration, work performance, school, or relationships, it can be helpful to seek additional support. Sleep problems are closely connected to mental health, and anxiety, stress, depression, and trauma can make it harder for the mind and body to fully relax at night.
Evidence-based approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can help people develop healthier sleep habits, manage anxious thoughts, and improve overall sleep quality.
If you're located in Brookline or the greater Boston area and are struggling with ongoing sleep difficulties, the clinicians at Careful Counseling offer compassionate, evidence-based support for anxiety, depression, and related concerns that may be affecting your sleep.
If you're ready to take the next step, you can get started with Careful Counseling today by scheduling a 15-minute free consultation.
Sleep Questions People Often Ask
-
Many people struggle with falling asleep at night, especially during periods of stress, anxiety, or major life changes. Racing thoughts, worry, irregular sleep schedules, caffeine intake, and excessive screen use can all contribute to sleep problems and difficulty falling asleep. When the mind remains active and the nervous system stays alert, it becomes harder for the body to transition into rest.
If you regularly experience trouble falling asleep or nighttime anxiety, it may help to explore strategies that support relaxation and sleep habits. In some cases, working with a therapist who specializes in anxiety treatment or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can help address the thought patterns that interfere with sleep.
-
Falling asleep faster often begins with improving your sleep routine and sleep environment. Consistent sleep schedules, limiting blue light before bedtime, and practicing relaxation techniques can all help signal to your body that it is time to sleep. Activities such as journaling, slow breathing, or mindfulness exercises can also help calm racing thoughts and reduce nighttime stress.
If you frequently struggle to fall asleep quickly, the issue may be related to stress, anxiety, or insomnia. Evidence-based approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for anxiety and insomnia can help improve sleep quality by addressing both sleep habits and anxious thought patterns.
-
Waking up during the night is a normal part of the sleep cycle, and most people briefly wake several times without realizing it. However, frequent awakenings or difficulty falling back asleep may be linked to stress, anxiety, alcohol consumption, or environmental disruptions such as noise or light.
In some cases, waking up multiple times at night may be related to insomnia, sleep apnea, or other sleep disorders. If nighttime awakenings are affecting your energy, mood, or ability to function during the day, addressing underlying stress and improving sleep habits can help restore more consistent sleep.
-
The most common sleep disorder is insomnia. Insomnia involves persistent difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking earlier than intended, even when there is enough opportunity to sleep. Many people experience short-term insomnia during stressful periods, but chronic insomnia can last for weeks or months.
Insomnia is often closely connected to anxiety, stress, and mental health concerns. Evidence-based therapies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) are commonly used to treat insomnia by helping individuals change sleep habits, manage anxious thoughts, and improve overall sleep quality.
-
It is normal to briefly wake up several times during the night as part of the body’s natural sleep cycle. Most awakenings are very short and people often fall back asleep without remembering them.
However, waking up frequently and struggling to fall back asleep can be a sign of sleep disruption, stress, anxiety, or insomnia. If nighttime awakenings are happening regularly and affecting how rested you feel during the day, it may be helpful to explore strategies that improve sleep quality and address underlying stress.
