My sleep routine
For most of my life, I've slept like a baby. Quick to fall asleep, immune to noise and movement.
Then I started taking anti-depressants. It's been a rocky road ever since, with frequent insomnia, vivid dreams, interrupted sleep.
This has made me look to what I do before and leading up to going to sleep, and make several adjustements. What came out of it is my current sleep routine. It's not magic - I still have terrible nights - but it helps. And like so many things in life, it's as much about the trying as it is about the results. Trying to assert some measure of control over what can't be controlled.
The following has been distilled mostly from Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams and a lot of trial and error:
- Try to go to sleep - and to wake up - at roughly the same time every day (weekends included)
- iPhone has a custom Sleep Focus enabled from 9:50pm to 06:45am, with:
- No apps allowed
- No calls allowed except from my partner
- Home screen only shows Calm (for the occasional wind-down exercise)
- Laptop must be turned off and back at the office
- No other screens allowed, except for maybe the Kindle
- Optional: Do some light journaling using pen and paper if there are stray thoughts that need to be sorted
- Read a book - non-negotiable
- Take a hot shower before going to bed; it helps to relax, and to lower the body temperature
- Spray some Twilight Body Spray on pillow; it's a little silly but the smell really is soothing
- Optional: Wear Loop Quiet ear plugs if feeling anxious or neighbors are being especially noisy
- Optional: Wear a padded sleep mask if partner wants to read
- Last resort: Take ½-1 Ambien - this isn't a real fix, as the quality of the sleep is overall much worse. But it beats thrashing about and feeling anxious
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