Feeling well-rested isn't just a matter of sleeping more; quality is key. Understanding this crucial measure can help you overcome insomnia.
Improving sleep efficiency addresses many of the problems that contribute to insomnia.The best-tested treatments for sleep problems tend to be very data-focused: what time you go to bed, number and length of naps, how long it takes you to fall asleep, number of times you awake in the night, and so forth. But one less familiar number is especially important: sleep efficiency.Sleep efficiency is the percentage of time you're in bed that you're actually asleep.
Then, adjust your time in bed to align with how much sleep you tend to get. Aim to be in bed for your average sleep time plus 30 minutes or so, to allow time for falling asleep and brief middle-of-the-night awakenings. For example, if your average sleep time is seven hours 30 minutes, give yourself about eight hours in bed each night.
Many people find that they wind up sleeping just as much—or more—when they take steps to improve their sleep efficiency. However, it may take a few nights for your sleep to consolidate. Your brain and body might be used to being awake for long stretches in the night, so there is usually an adjustment period when you start matching your time in bed to how long you actually sleep. It could take a week or so for your sleep efficiency to improve.
If your sleep efficiency reaches 90 percent or more but you don't feel well-rested, you may need to increase your time in bed. It's safest to add time gradually—for example, experiment with an additional 15 minutes per night and work up slowly from there so your sleep quality doesn't fall apart. Eventually you can find the right balance where your sleep efficiency is high and you wake up feeling refreshed.Muench, A., Vargas, I., Grandner, M. A., Ellis, J. G., Posner, D., Bastien, C.
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