sleep pressure
The body’s need for sleep, which builds the longer we stay awake and eases while we sleep.
Where it comes up
-
01
What is CBT for insomnia, and what would it ask of me?
What CBT for insomnia asks of you, why it starts with less time in bed, how long it takes and how to find it or try it on your own.
-
02
How do I get through the day after a bad night?
Barely slept? How one short night really affects your day, what helps you get through it, and why tonight's sleep will probably be deeper.
-
03
Do I have insomnia?
Weeks of bad sleep: is it insomnia or a rough patch? What counts, why it outlasts the stress that started it, and what helps.
-
04
Are naps good for you?
Are naps good or bad for you? How long and when to nap, why a long nap can leave you groggy, and how a nap changes the night ahead.
-
05
What is the body clock, and how does it decide when I'm sleepy?
How your body clock works: a clock in nearly every cell, reset each morning by light, and why some people are simply built to sleep later.
-
06
How long does caffeine stay in your system?
How long caffeine stays in your body, why an afternoon coffee keeps some people up, and how it can thin deep sleep even if you fall asleep fine.
-
07
How much sleep do I really need?
How many hours of sleep adults need, why it's a range rather than one number, and how to tell from your days whether you're getting enough.
-
08
Why am I wide awake at bedtime?
Wide awake at bedtime after a long day? Why the body clock pushes alertness in the evening, how naps and caffeine add to it, and what helps tonight.
-
09
How do I sleep well on night shifts?
Why sleep after a night shift is short and light, and what helps: when to sleep, a nap before work, light and darkness, and guarding day sleep at home.
-
10
What can I do when I dread going to bed?
Bad nights can leave you dreading bed, and the dread keeps sleep away. Why it happens, why tonight matters less than it feels, and what to try this evening.
-
11
How do I wind down when I’m tired but wired?
Tired but wired in the evening and can’t switch off? Why the day keeps running after you stop, and how to let it wear off without a routine to get right.
-
12
What is deep sleep, and am I getting enough?
What deep sleep is, why it comes early in the night and thins with age, and why a tracker's deep sleep number is only a rough guess.
-
13
Why can’t my teenager fall asleep before midnight?
Teenagers’ body clocks really do shift later. Why your teen isn’t sleepy at 10pm, what school start times do, and how to help without a nightly fight.
-
14
Why does my sleep change as I get older?
Why sleep gets earlier, lighter and more broken as you get older, which changes come with age itself and which come from something else, and what still helps.
-
15
What makes us feel sleepy?
Why sleepiness builds the longer you're awake, how the body clock puts it off, and why caffeine, naps and sleeping in work the way they do.
-
16
Why are some nights better than others?
Why you sleep well one night and badly the next: how your day, wake time, light and hours awake shape tonight's sleep, and why some variation is normal.