Sleep science: Part two – Patterns, problems, and how to optimise sleep

Part one explained why sleep is so important, plus how (and why) we measure it. In this part, we’ll look at how sleep patterns vary – among adults, and during different stages of life – common issues people experience, and set out some tips for optimising sleep. 

The ideal amount (and timing) of sleep varies

Many people wonder how much sleep they should be aiming for each night. 

We know from part one that getting enough sleep is important. Yet the optimum amount – for staying physically and mentally healthy, and functioning at our best – varies wildly among different people. 

The average adult needs between seven and nine hours' sleep a night, but some of us need more or less. Our biological clocks (the physical, mental and behavioural changes that follow a roughly 24-hour cycle) also differ. Some people function best later in the day (so-called ‘night owls’), while others are better first thing in the morning (‘larks’). In future, this may be more widely accommodated within flexible work arrangements.

Many different factors are behind this varied need for sleep. These range from our genetics, biology and sex (on average, women need slightly more sleep than men), through to cultural factors, our routines, working hours and activity levels. 

A person's need and opportunity for sleep varies during different stages of life

Sleep patterns vary depending on age. Babies and young children spend the greatest amount of time sleeping, while teenagers are more likely to have irregular sleep patterns.

For older adults, it may take longer to get to sleep than among young people, and the structure of sleep can also change. Older adults also tend to spend less time in deep sleep, have shorter sleep cycles, and sleep may become multiphasic (i.e. they may nap as well as getting a longer period of sleep at night). 

Meanwhile, sleep can vary during different phases of the menstrual cycle, during pregnancy, and in relation to life events – like looking after a young baby or other caring responsibilities.

Common sleep issues

Just as it’s normal for the need for, timing of, and opportunity for sleep to vary, it’s also normal to have the occasional sleep-deprived night – even for good sleepers.

This may be down to factors like having had a highly stressful day, the weather, noise or our environment. We might notice feeling a bit groggy, irritable or having trouble concentrating the next day, but usually recover after a good night’s sleep.

But for some of us, difficulty with sleeping can become a regular problem that impacts on other areas of our lives. 

Common problems are things like taking a long time to fall asleep, or waking frequently in the night and then struggling to fall back to sleep. This means we don’t get our optimum amount of sleep, despite having enough hours available for doing so. Sleeping too much is a common symptom of low mood, although we’ll focus more on not getting enough sleep in this blog series.

Where to start if you’re concerned about sleep

While some factors (like genetics and biology) can make us more likely to experience sleep problems, it’s common for issues to follow some kind of precipitating factor. This could be a stressful life event, sleeping in an unhelpful environment (e.g. one that’s noisy), going through the menopause, or when experiencing anxiety or depression.

For some people, sleep issues are fairly mild and feel manageable – they resolve when there are no longer stressors at play. For others, problems are quite severe, and impact how they function day to day.

They may affect attention, memory, mood and anxiety-levels, and may become a longer-term problem – that persists even when stressors are no longer present. The prevalence of insomnia (the most common sleep disorder) has increased considerably over the past 20 years and may be as high as 22%. 

If you’re concerned about your sleep, or other aspects of your mental health, it’s best to speak to a healthcare professional. Sleep problems are one of the most common reasons for GP visits in the UK, and in such cases, a GP is able to look into whether any medical factors are contributing to your sleep problems, and recommend or refer you to therapy or other specialist help.

Sleep hygiene

If you’re looking to optimise your sleep, there are a few things that might help. These are general tips and are not intended as solutions for anyone experiencing sleep problems – do speak to a health professional if you’re concerned about your sleep. 

The first thing is what’s known as sleep hygiene. This means following healthy sleeping habits, like: 

• Avoiding caffeine later in the day, as it’s a stimulant (and keeps you awake).
• Not taking naps. For some people naps aren’t a problem, but they can reduce your body’s ‘sleep drive’ – making it harder to fall asleep at night.
• Not going to bed too full or hungry.
• Minimising use of screens (or dimming the screen) in the hours before sleep, as the bright light reduces the melatonin your body produces, which is needed for sleep.
• Trying to avoid content you find stressful just before sleeping, like the news or your work emails.
• Optimising your environment – like noise and light levels.
• Doing something relaxing before going to bed.

The second thing is establishing your bedroom as a place for sleep, to help signal to your body and mind when it’s time for sleep. This includes things like, where possible:

• Trying to keep to a regular sleep and wake pattern.
• Limiting time spent in your room doing things like working or studying, planning, worrying or watching TV.
• If you’re unable to fall asleep after about 20 minutes, going to another room for a while (and doing something relaxing), then returning to your bedroom when you feel sleepy.

Last, if you tend to lie in bed worrying about things you’ve got to do the next day, you could try jotting down the worries and agreeing with yourself a time where you’ll deal with them the next day.

For more information, you'll find various sleep-based Series on the Unmind platform. 

In part three, we’ll explain how cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can help with sleep, talk about the evidence behind using digital interventions for sleep, and introduce our recent efficacy study – where we’ve evaluated Unmind's Sleep Tools.

(Missed part 1? Click here to catch-up.)

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