In Search of a Good Night’s Sleep (and a New Pillow)
I need a new pillow. That started simply, right?
I started writing this content on Sunday morning after the time change. For once, that morning, I woke up naturally without an alarm or the fear that my phone somehow wouldn’t change times automatically and the alarm wouldn’t work (yes, this is true) and I would therefore be late for my usual Sunday morning activity of singing for at least one Mass, and sometimes 3.
However, that Sunday morning, I was recovering from a minor procedure and also from my flu shot and its usual side effects of a low grade fever and general malaise for a few days. Maybe I always need to schedule my flu shot for this time change weekend, this feels like a good strategy!
But I digress (I blame the fever).
And please, yes, I know, if I have a fever, I should have been resting instead of writing but that only works for so many days straight for me before I get bored, and I could use the distraction. It’s not like I planned to leave the house or operate heavy machinery that day, and I can always go back and edit this when I am feeling normal, so this is low risk.
My friends, It feels like THAT time of year. On my editorial content calendar, I blocked this week for what feels like the annual Sleep Article.
And let me save you some time - if you don’t struggle with getting enough sleep or with getting good quality sleep, first - that is great for you and keep doing what you’re doing! And second, you can keep listening or reading, or you can do something else with your day, your choice! And truly, if you have never had sleep troubles, you can write the article next year and share your tips with my community!
Back to our topic. This time of year, the weather gets colder, the days get shorter, our biological inclination is to settle in and snuggle up, at least in this hemisphere. However - despite biology and sunlight and all the other factors, sometimes we still can’t sleep, or can’t get good quality sleep.
And while I am not a sleep expert, I am a productivity and organizational coach, and I know that good sleep can be the difference between productive and unproductive, organized and disorganized, a good quality of life and a poor one.
And, unfortunately, our sleep is one of the first places that takes a hit when life gets disrupted. We start to cut corners when we’re feeling overly committed and busy. To fit more into our already busy days, we set the alarm a little earlier, we stay up a little later, we ignore our body’s messages to rest and we just push through. And since biology is telling us to rest more when it’s cold out even though our culture is telling us to keep going, this time of year, we feel even more tired than we usually do when we ignore our need for rest.
So here we are.
In my laying-low these last few days, I read through my periodicals reading pile and there was a great article in Real Simple from September (yes, catching up) that suggested we should take care of our sleep as we would a good friend. We should be happy when sleep comes, however it comes, and we should “provide the things it needs to thrive - a consistent routine, a comfortable environment, regular exercise, and mental and physical self-care” (per the Real Simple Article, September 2025). I really appreciate this low-key and affirming approach.
As an aside, please remember that when we decide to make changes, we can start with a few simple changes and firm up those habits, as opposed to believing we need to make big sweeping changes all at once.
If you remember nothing else about this week’s article, friends, remember this - you have agency and you have options, when it comes to sleep and rest, and everything else! If your sleep has been suffering, and now you’re suffering, too - there is always hope. You can make changes and try different options to find solutions for yourself! And that is really good news.
Getting a good night’s sleep isn’t just about the business between 10 pm and 6 am (or whenever your bedtime and wake time are). It is a 24 hour consideration. Let’s walk through the factors that impact our sleep, what they are and what to do about them.
Lighting - the bad and the good.
Of course we need lighting. I am not suggesting we need to sit in the dark all day. But we need to understand the effects lighting can have on our body and our sleep. Technology and artificial lighting bring the wrong kind of light into our eyes and brains in the evenings and might make it difficult for us to fall asleep.
What to do about it:
Be exposed to natural light first thing in the morning and bright light during the day. Consider investing in a SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) therapy lamp especially on cloudy days when natural daylight is lacking. (I love my happy lamp!)
Use warm (white and yellow) lightbulbs for cozy in-direct lighting in the evening. We want to avoid overhead lighting in the evening because it confuses our melatonin (for sleep) / serotonin (for daytime) production.
Adjust the light settings on your phone, tablet, computer and television to “night time”
settings to eliminate blue light.
Food Choices
If you find that your stomach keeps you awake at night, the good news is that you can make different choices that will help you sleep better. For example,
Drink your daily water intake in the morning and afternoon and not too close to bedtime, to cut down on nighttime waking.
Choose spicy foods during the day or for an early dinner if spicy foods keep you up at night.
Front load your biggest meals at breakfast and lunch if eating a big dinner makes you uncomfortable, and obviously - adjust your evening meal time earlier if you find an emptier stomach more conducive to a good night's sleep.
Conversely, plan for a high protein snack an hour before bed if you can’t sleep on an empty stomach (yogurt or string cheese work for me).
And google “foods to help you sleep” if you need more ideas!
Scheduling Choices
I started out writing this article calling this subtopic “Scheduling Mistakes”, but they aren’t really mistakes unless they are messing with your sleep. As mentioned earlier, a good night’s sleep is a consideration for all 24 hours, and not just the ones you’re in bed.
Go to bed and get up at the same time every day, if possible.
I won’t tell you to get your full 8 hours of sleep, since some adults need less and some need even more. Adjust your bedtime and wake time to where you fall asleep when you go to bed, and awake rested, sometimes without the alarm clock. And try to stay close to your target bedtime and wake time even on weekends and vacations.
Be aware of medication and supplement side effects that might keep you awake, and move those to earlier in your day. For example, in my ADHD article, I mentioned that a higher dose of my ADHD medication kept me awake, so we adjusted the dose down and I now make sure to take it first thing in the morning.
Same goes for exercise - schedule it earlier in the day if you find that working out too close to bedtime interrupts your sleep.
A word here, in support of Rest. Sometimes we can’t fall asleep or aren’t sleepy, but our body and brain may still need rest. A break with some actual restorative rest - being and not doing, journaling, meditating, deep breathing, slowing down for a few minutes - may also be what your body needs in the course of your day.
Sleeping Environment
The National Sleep Foundation tells us that people who make their beds daily are more likely to sleep well every night, and 71 percent of us sleep better in a fresh-smelling bedroom. In addition, a cluttered room reminds us of unfinished tasks, whereas a calm and uncluttered room helps us relax. Closing closet doors and dresser drawers further soothes us.
We all sleep best in a cool-not-cold, dark (no bright alarm clocks!), and quiet (but not too quiet, I like a little white noise) room. Experiment with the best combination for yourself. Temperature, lighting, blankets, weighted blankets, fan, silence, white noise, you name it. When I teach this content in my career readiness courses, I remind my students that they have agency and choices! You can make changes and try different options to find solutions for yourself!
Underlying Health Issues
I am not a doctor and I do not play one on TV. But let me advise, there may be medical issues, diagnosed and undiagnosed, that disrupt your sleep or your partner’s sleep and that messes with yours, too. Sleep apnea, snoring, restless leg syndrome, the list goes on and on.
Consult with your health care professionals regarding your sleep, and your pharmacist regarding medications.
I am being purposely vague because I trust you with your own medical challenges. But as an example, a few years ago, leg pain was keeping me awake until a comment to my doctor sent me to PT for a few months, and now I have stretching strategies and no more leg pain. Of course, if you’re like me, there is menopause - don’t even get me started. But I reached out to my doctor a few weeks ago about that, too. Don’t share the burden alone, reach out to your professionals.
Your Brain, Technology, Sleep Anxiety
This sub-section started out as 3 different sections, but they are related.
I’ll start with how technology can impact our sleep. I already suggested adjusting the lighting on your technology. And here’s an appeal, from personal experience: late-night “doom scrolling” disrupts our sleep. I have tracked the impact of doom scrolling social media before bed on my own quality of sleep, and I both sleep less and have poorer sleep quality when I scroll social media before bed. Set a timer for yourself to remind you to put down your phone at a certain time (funny right, that is a timer on your phone!). Or, there are apps you can use to keep you from certain other apps during certain times of the day. When I did a google search, I chuckled because the first hits were about parental controls for our kids, but we adults need boundaries, too!
Another good / bad tech challenge: Sleep anxiety exists. It’s a type of performance anxiety, when you freak out about not sleeping and the stress in turn keeps you from sleeping. Yes, that’s a thing. And relatedly, I recently read an article that said using a sleep tracker but focusing too much on your metrics can also rev up your anxiety and keep you from sleeping. So, if metrics help you improve your sleep, great. If you feel you’re being judged by your tracker, perhaps step away? Or look at your metrics over a week instead of every day?
And finally, tech and anxiety included, often our brain betrays us when it is time to head to bed. The body is tired but the brain is just getting started! A few ideas:
Create the habit of wrapping up your work day with a tomorrow planning session, to get some of those ideas out of your head.
Stop scrolling at least an hour before bedtime, and consider googling apps that limit screen time if you need some tough love to make this new habit stick.
Experiment with meditation / white noise / breathing exercises - I love my Calm App, or you can check out youtube for something to listen to as you drift off.
Keep a note pad by the bedside to jot down last minute thoughts that are keeping you awake. DO NOT pick up your phone to send yourself a reminder, you know what might happen!
Greet sleep like a friend, right? Be grateful for rest and sleep, however they arrive. As I lay in bed, I will acknowledge gratitude for my warm feet, smooth sheets, a few comfy positions before settling in, some deep breathing, my pillow for supporting my head, and slowly tensing and then relaxing all of those points as I appreciate them usually helps me drift away…
I hope you found this content helpful today. If sleep has been on your mind lately, give a strategy or two a try and let me know what works best for you!
