How Much Sleep Do I Need? Twelve Tips on Getting the Right Amount of Rest

Feeling drowsy and listless all day may be making you wonder, "how much sleep do I need?" The answer to that question depends on who you are. Everyone seems to have a different requirement for sleep. Although eight hours is the standard answer, some people need more. Others can do well on significantly less. The important thing is to make sure the sleep you do get is high quality. Here are some tips on sleep quality and how much of it you need.

1. Establish a schedule for going to sleep and waking up, and stick to it.

2. Avoid substances that make sleep difficult, like tobacco, caffeine and alcohol. Even though they might seem necessary, you will feel better without them.

3. If possible, don't ignore your body's messages about sleep. When you feel sleepy, stop working and go to bed. Even if you have tasks left to do, they'll go more quickly after you have rested.

4. Try to refrain from taking frequent naps during the day.

5. Test your sleep cycle by ditching the alarm this weekend. If you wake up at the same time without it, and you feel plenty rested, then your sleep cycle is probably fine.

6. If you don't wake up on time feeling rested (see number 5), then try adding an hour of sleep each night for the next week. Test it out again next weekend. By repeating this exercise as often as necessary, you should be able to zone in on the right amount of sleep for you.

7. If you have allowed yourself to become addicted to alcohol, tobacco or caffeine, then try to reduce these stimulants over time. Quitting cold turkey might make sleep nearly impossible.

8. When answering the question "How much sleep do I need," think about your age. As we get older, we need less and less sleep. Newborns sleep all the time (usually). Older folks don't sleep much at all.

9. If you are pregnant, you'll probably need to sleep longer than you normally do.

10. Remember that sleep needs are individual. Just because someone you met needs ten hours a day, this doesn't mean you require the same amount.

11. Sleep disorders like sleep apnea, sleep walking, and other conditions throw everything out of balance. You'll need to get your doctor involved on this one.

12. Sleep cycles repeat about every 90 minutes. If you can schedule your sleep time, try sleeping in multiples of 90 minutes. You might be surprised by how rejuvenated you feel.

"How much sleep do I need?" It's a question that only you can answer. Use the twelve tips above to get started on your journey to perfect sleep.

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