"Sleep Divorce: 5 Warning Signs and How to Improve Your Sleep Quality

 5 Signs You Need a Sleep Divorce - More Tips for a Good Night's Sleep 

CNBC Make It spoke to several sleep experts about what they do to get optimal sleep, when it's time to try something like a sleep divorce, and  which supplements, like melatonin and magnesium, work better and are more effective. 

Here are some of their top tips for quality sleep. 

4 Tips from Sleep Experts for a Good Night's Sleep 

1. Consider these 5 Signs You May Need a Sleep Divorce 

A sleep divorce isn't as drastic as it sounds. To get the best sleep possible, this simply means sleeping separately from your partner, whether that's in separate beds or separate bedrooms,  Shelby Harris,  licensed clinical psychologist and head of sleep wellness at Sleepopolis, told Make It in 2022. 

You should consider a sleep divorce if you or your partner: 

• Snores loudly 
•  Has different sleep patterns or hours (early riser vs. night owl) 
•  Moves around a lot while sleeping 
•  I'm a light sleeper or feel like my alarm clock is disrupting my sleep 
•  Everyone has different preferences for things like room temperature and bedding. 

 

Harris suggested trying to work out the issues first to see if you can both sleep peacefully in the same bed. And if you do decide to have a sleep divorce, make sure it's a respectful decision  and that your sleeping arrangements are similar (not that one partner sleeps on the couch while the other sleeps in a comfy bed).  

2. Try a pre-bedtime routine from a sleep expert 

Dr. Richard Schwab, head of the division of sleep medicine at the  Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, shared his sleep habits with Make It magazine in 2022. 

"I think the most important thing to do for  sleep is to go to bed at the same time every day and wake up at the same time," Schwab said. 

His preferred bedtime is 11:30 p.m. and he usually wakes up at 6:30 a.m. 

Schwab also discovered, through trial and error, how many hours of sleep he needs each night. 

"I require six or seven-and-a-half hours of rest, and if I do not get that, I get tired," he says.  To achieve optimal sleep, Schwab recommends designing the room atmosphere according to your desired temperature and light incidence. He also got a big bed so that his wife and children can sleep there. 

3. If you have a 9-to-5 job and are a night owl, make these simple changes: 

 "We all have a slight genetic predisposition to one of two types: morning people or night people," Rebecca Robbins, an assistant professor of medicine in the Department of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, told Make It in December  2023. . 

But that can be difficult because the standard 9-to-5  schedule of many jobs doesn't fit with  night owls' biological clocks. Here are Robbins' seven ways to help night owls thrive at work: 

• Get outside during the day and get plenty of sunlight 
• Avoid caffeine in the afternoon 
•  make sure go to bed and wake up at the same time each day
• Use blue light devices  at work, such as "happy lights" 
• Exercise in the morning 
• Do certain things  in the evening, like: B. Heart Project 
• See if you can change your work schedule 

4. When it comes to sleep, remember that melatonin is slightly more effective  than magnesium. 

Two popular supplements touted to promote sleep are melatonin and magnesium, but  licensed clinical psychologist Shelby Harris says one of the two is more effective. 

"Melatonin is the most commonly used natural sleep aid, and if taken correctly, it can help gradually change your body's circadian rhythm," Harris said in February. 

"It's important to have good sleep hygiene and habits in place before taking magnesium or melatonin for sleep." 

Here are some of Harris' suggestions  for establishing good sleep hygiene: 

• Stick to a consistent sleep schedule. 
•  Relax before bed. 
•  Turn off your electronics right before you  go to sleep.
•  Avoid caffeine at slightest 8 hours some time recently sleep time.

 All of these "increase your body's natural melatonin production, which helps you fall asleep more easily." 

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