The seven signs you’re actually sleeping better than you think

I have always been convinced that I am a terrible sleeper. Evidence to support this includes the fact that I can never fall asleep when my head hits the pillow; the fact that I wake up in the middle of the night pretty much every single night; the fact that I feel drowsy after lunch; and the fact that, at this point, being tired has become half my personality. But sleep scientist Dr Sophie Bostock tells me otherwise. If fact, she argues that many of the things we all catastrophise about are just part of how healthy sleep works. Which is why, rather than obsessing over eight flawless, undisturbed hours, it can be more helpful to look at the reassuring signs you’re actually sleeping better than you think. Here, Dr Bostock shares seven of them… 1. You can function day to day “Rather than focusing on the number of hours you get each night, I always ask people how they feel during the day. Can you function without relying heavily on caffeine or sugar to keep you going? Can you get through the day without constantly feeling as though you are falling asleep? “Occasional short naps – 10 or 15 minutes – can be a great performance boost if you’ve got young children, you travel a lot or you’re doing a lot of sport. But if you are always battling to keep your eyes open, that is more of a sign of poor-quality sleep, or even a sleep disorder. Moderate, situational tiredness is normal; constant exhaustion that you are forever medicating with coffee is not.” Shorts 2. You wake in the night – but fall back asleep relatively easily “One of the biggest myths I see is that good sleepers never wake up in the night. In reality, waking up during the night is a normal part of sleep. “We all wake up in between sleep cycles, and even the best sleepers have brief ‘micro-arousals’. For people who aren’t worried about their sleep, these are just moments when they roll over and go back to sleep – they probably don’t even remember them the next morning. “Also, particularly as we get older, getting up once, maybe even twice, to go to the toilet can be totally normal and doesn’t mean you have a sleep disorder. “The difficulty comes when you label yourself a bad sleeper and start to catastrophise every awakening. If, most of the time, you wake briefly and then resettle without too much drama, that is actually a very reassuring pattern.” 3. You wake up regularly around your usual time If you don’t need an alarm to wake you up, it’s a good sign (Photo: Susumu Yoshioka/Getty) “Are you able to wake up at roughly the same time each day, without necessarily needing an alarm? Then that is an excellent sign. “Even if you do use an alarm, it is a good sign if it doesn’t violently jolt you from deep sleep, but catches you when you already feel close to awake. If you have a fairly consistent routine, your brain starts to anticipate that rhythm and often starts to wake you up just before the alarm. And this suggests you are probably getting enough sleep.” 4. You don’t need huge lie-ins or ‘sleep marathons’ at the weekend “Most people have their sleep squeezed during the working week, so it is not unusual to get a bit more at the weekend. If you’re sleeping in by only an hour or so, I’m not going to be worried – typically, if you’re not playing major catch-up at the weekends, that’s quite a good sign you are getting enough during the week. “The problem comes when you sleep in more substantially. When we consistently move our body clocks by more than two hours at the weekend, we start to see increased risks of issues such as heart disease, because our bodies are constantly being pushed to operate at the ‘wrong’ time – what we call social jet lag. “If you are sleep-deprived, absolutely catch up when you can. But if you don’t regularly need epic weekend lie-ins just to feel human, you are probably sleeping better than you think.” 5. Your energy naturally ebbs and flows A mid-afternoon slump isn’t necessarily something to worry about (Photo: Maskot/Getty) “Another myth I like to bust is the idea that your energy should be high and steady all day. That’s just not how our biology works. We all have circadian rhythms – internal body clocks – which affect alertness: it tends to start lower in the morning, especially if you are more of a night owl, then gradually builds up. “Most people have a noticeable lull after lunch, sometime between about 1pm and 3pm, and that dip is completely normal and natural. We are not machines running at 90 per cent all day long. “Light plays a huge role as well: if you don’t get enough natural daylight, particularly in the morning, you can end up feeling sluggish for longer, sleepy in the afternoon and not very sleepy at night, all because your internal clock isn’t getting the right cues. “So some ebb and flow in your energy is expected; it is a relentless, overwhelming fatigue that makes me worry more about sleep.” 6. Your mood is generally good “We are all probably aware that the quality of our sleep can affect how we feel. If you are chronically low or irritable all day, most days, then that is, of course, a red flag. By contrast, if you generally feel fairly good, that is probably a sign that you are sleeping well too. “One thing to bear in mind is that mood has rhythms, just as energy does. Large-scale analyses suggest that positive mood tends to rise in the morning, dip in the afternoon and then pick up again in the evening. So an afternoon slump, or a little irritability at that point in the day, can be completely normal. “It is also easy to blame poor sleep for what is actually fatigue caused by never taking breaks. If you try to concentrate non-stop, both your mood and focus will suffer, regardless of how well you have slept. Regular breaks are good for concentration, productivity and how we feel.” 7. You fall asleep within 30 minutes (not 30 seconds) “People are often surprised when I tell them that falling asleep in less than five minutes, night after night, is usually a sign of sleep deprivation, not perfect sleep. It is actually more normal to have a gradual ‘runway’ towards sleep: taking about 10 to 30 minutes after you have switched out the light is what I’d consider typical. “If it’s consistently taking a lot more than half an hour, I’d start looking at whether you are going to bed too early for your body clock, or whether stress and tension are getting in the way. But what’s unrealistic is expecting to fall asleep the minute your head hits the pillow – even if you have been sleepy.”