It’s no secret that people with adhd often have sleep issues. I certainly do. I’m curious what bedtime routine helps others sleep. My partner likes to read a boring book before bed, but I struggle to read books unless they are engaging. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated :)
I used to take a double-shot of Nyquil before when I should be going to bed just so I could get to sleep at a decent time.
- Smart lights throughout the house. Mine very gradually dim off in the evening, simulating sunset, which helps convince my body to crawl into bed. They also gradually dim on in the mornings, which helps ease me into being awake. When my routines are strong, I’m often up and out of bed before my alarm (and before sunrise).
- Exercise. I find that working out first thing in the morning works best for me, but my friend does better with evening workouts. Consistency is much more important than time of day, but maybe don’t expect to fall asleep immediately after working out.
- Sleep cycles. A typical sleep cycle is roughly 90 minutes, so aiming for a bedtime that gives you a multiple of 90 minutes total sleep time can make the waking up part easier. I used to use the Sleep ad Android app for my alarm because it could try to detect your sleep cycles and would wake you up early if it meant waking you up in the ideal sleep phase.
- Don’t sleep in. I know it’s a real tough one, but if you can force yourself to get up on a consistent schedule, you’re more likely to be actually tired on schedule also. This one is especially challenging to stick to if you want to get up early on weekdays, but stay up late on weekends. Naps may help here, but it can take some practice to find what works.
- Bed is for sleep (and sex) only. Don’t hang out in bed, and if you’re having a lot of trouble falling asleep, get out of bed for a while until you’re feeling more tired. This helps your brain form a stronger association where bed = sleep.
- Avoid caffeine, alcohol, marijuana, etc., before bed. While some of these may help you fall asleep, they often result in lower quality sleep and may make it more likely that you wake up.
- Limit fluid intake before bed so that you don’t wake up in the middle of the night to pee. *Routine. I think I kinda loosely touched on this in a few other points, but sticking to a consistent routine makes it so much easier to fall asleep and wake up.
Oh, and if your responsibilities and/or latitude have you regularly trying to sleep during daylight hours, definitely get a sleep mask and/or some good blackout curtains so you can block out the light. Ear plugs may also be helpful if noise is an issue.
I like the smart lights idea. If I owned my house I’d see about doing that.
I’ve used them in a few rentals. There’s a wide variety of options available that are just bulbs + an app, or bulbs & a hub + an app, so unless you have some unusual fixtures, they can be used anywhere.
In fact, my last apartment had an unusual fixture: an overhead fixture that had hardwired LEDs in it, rather than any sort of swappable bulb, so I found a cheap overhead fixture that fit standard E26 bulbs, and just swapped the fixtures for the duration of my stay, then switched them back when I moved out. As long as you can ensure the power to the fixture is off at the breaker, it should be a pretty simple swap.
I lie to myself by saying, “I can stay awake for one more episode” before eventually falling asleep on the couch sometime in the next 10 minutes. Then, approximately 3-4 hours later, I’ll wake up, take my evening medications, brush my teeth, prepare for and then go to bed so I can lay there awake for the next hour or two trying to fall back asleep. Eventually, I’ll dose off and get a few more hours of sleep, although never achieving the quality or depth of sleep I obtain while passed out on the couch.
Honestly? Ritalin
Since I started taking it I’m way more tired in the evening and don’t struggle to fall asleep 🤷
I haven’t had a lot of luck with adhd meds. I’m really sensitive to meds unfortunately.
My personal theory is that stimulants can help your brain stop working in overdrive and focus on one thing and, while they don’t make me sleepy per se, it helps me fall asleep. But it doesn’t always work and can also disrupt my sleep.
I’m still baffled by it, but a couple of years ago I found a switch in my brain and now I rarely have issues falling asleep anymore. I think the most important thing for me is not to constantly ask myself why I’m failing at such a seemingly simple task, but rather work around my natural instincts and try to support them as best I can.
If I go to bed early, because I have to get up early, I start spiralling and fall asleep way later, so I try to only go to bed whenever I’m tired. If I end up sleping too little I take one or two 20 minute naps (I try to never exceed 20, it would make me even more tired).
Another factor is probably how long I sleep. I always assumed I wanted to sleep long, because getting up sucks. But at some point I realised, that my first ‘sorta-awake’ moment is the perfect moment to get up and have energy for the day and get tired at the proper time. This moment comes at around 6 hours for me. I still struggle with this a lot though.
