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Sleep habits that actually work

The handful of habits sleep scientists keep coming back to — and how to make them stick.

"Sleep hygiene" sounds clinical, but it just means the everyday habits that make sleep easier. None of them work overnight. Australian sleep experts are clear that improvement takes a little while, but if you keep the habits up most days, sleep does get better.

1. Same wake-up time, every day

The single most powerful habit. Get up at about the same time each morning — weekends included — and your body clock settles, making it easier to feel sleepy at night.

2. Morning light

Light early in the day helps set your body clock. Breakfast by a window or a short walk outside is enough.

3. The bed is for sleep

Train your brain to link bed with sleep: no scrolling, work or TV in bed. If you've been lying awake for what feels like 20 minutes, get up, do something quiet and dull in dim light, and go back when you feel sleepy. Rest still counts — it doesn't have to be sleep.

4. An hour to wind down

Dim the lights, put the phone on night mode or away, and do something calm: a book, a shower, a few slow breaths. Try the 4-7-8 breathing guide.

5. Keep naps short and early

Long naps — more than about 30 minutes — and evening naps make it harder to fall asleep at night.

6. Make the room cool, dark and quiet

See our fix-it guides for hot nights, light and noise.

If nothing changes

If you've had trouble sleeping for months, talk to your GP. The best-supported treatment for ongoing insomnia is a structured program called CBT-I (cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia), and your GP can point you to it.

Sources

• Good sleep habits — Sleep Health Foundation
• Sleep hygiene — Better Health Channel
• Healthy sleep habits — healthdirect

General information only, not medical advice. If poor sleep is ongoing, talk to your GP.