You turn off the lights. Slip under the covers. You're ready for a night of deep, restorative sleep... But your brain has other plans. All of a sudden, your mind's off to the races and a feeling of alertness settles in. You now feel wide awake when all you wanted was to sleep.

If this frustrating experience sounds familiar, know you're not alone. According to research, trouble falling asleep is a surprisingly common experience:

Sleep Foundation reports that over 80% of people have difficulty falling asleep. 37% reported frequent difficulty falling asleep. Gallup’s most recent State of Sleep in America report found that 81% of adults reported a busy mind stops them from sleeping.

So if you’ve been struggling with sleep and searching for ways to sleep faster — we hear you. We get it. And we’re here to offer evidence-based tips to get your sleep back on track.

Step 1: Identify your sleep disruptors ⤵

You can research all the sleep studies and tips you want. But if those sleep solutions aren’t matched to your unique nightly roadblocks — they’re unlikely to fix trouble sleeping.

You might already have a good idea of what’s behind your sleep issues…

→ That rattle of the AC that always keeps you up
→ Non-stop thoughts about everything you have to do tomorrow
→ Shift work that’s forced you to adjust your sleep schedule to daylight hours

Once you know the source of what’s keeping you up at night, it becomes a lot easier to spot-treat your sleep habits and health. So the next few nights, keep a journal next to your bed and note the experiences or thoughts keeping you up to decode your unique sleep saboteurs.

Why Can’t I Fall Asleep? 
7 Culprits + Tips to Resolve Them

Sleep Delayer #1: Circadian Rhythm Disorders

Your circadian rhythm refers to your body’s internal 24-hour clock. According to Dr. Matthew Walker, Somnee’s Co-Founder and Chief Sleep Scientist, UC Berkeley Professor of Neuroscience, and Author of the International Bestseller, Why We Sleep:

“Your 24-hour clock will drum out a daily and a nightly rhythm. And the tik-tok rhythm of your clock will make you feel sleepy at night and then makes you feel alert during the day.”

While your brain organizes this 24-hour cycle mostly on its own, it also takes cues from your environment. For instance, from light.

Here’s how it works:

When light begins to peak through the blinds, it prompts the release of hormones like cortisol to promote wakefulness. When it gets dark outside, your brain increases melatonin about 2 hours before bed to promote drowsiness.

3 top contributors to dysregulated circadian rhythms...

#1 Jet lag

Traveling more than 3 time zones can mess with your body’s natural sleep schedule. However, those flying east often report more symptoms of daytime sleepiness and difficulty adjusting to sleep schedules than those flying west.

#2 Shift work sleep disorder (SWSD)

People with SWSD often get stuck in cycles of exhaustion and poor-quality sleep. Research suggests around 27% of shift workers develop SWSD, characterized by symptoms like waking up already exhausted, feeling fatigued or falling asleep on the job, then struggling to fall asleep in their adjusted sleep schedule.

#3 Delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS)

DSPS is a condition where you fall asleep 2+ hours after “desired” bedtime. About 7-16% of adolescents and young adults are diagnosed with DSPS. It’s typically related to dysregulated hormones, with melatonin production occurring later than ideal.

How to treat insomnia from circadian rhythm issues

→ If you have a condition like DSPS, it’s best to discuss options with a sleep specialist who can offer personalized solutions to your biology. A natural sleep aid that promotes your brain’s preferred sleep signals (like Somnee) can help get your brain back on the right path to earlier sleep.

→ For jet lag and shift work, some of your best tools will be your sleep hygiene habits and optimizing your room for faster, easier rest. (We’ll dig into these tips more below!)

Sleep Delayer #2: Stress, Anxiety, and a Busy Mind

As mentioned earlier, an estimated 81% of adults in America share that racing thoughts and mental activity stop them from falling asleep at night. One of the most common worries: stress about falling asleep!

Gallup found the #1 factor that determines sleep quality: your mental and emotional state when you go to bed. The results also found that stress nearly doubled the chances of a poor night’s sleep. 

If you live with anxiety, this can add another layer of challenge on top of “run-of-the-mill” stress from work and daily life. Anxiety can increase hormones that promote wakefulness and alertness, creating that “wired” feeling that makes sleep so hard.

Tips to calm your mind for sound sleep

→ Give your mind more time to get sleepy

If your brain needs more time to fall asleep, plan for it. Try starting your bedtime routine 30-60 minutes earlier, and leave more time for relaxation-inducing activities.

→ Try a “worry journal”

Dr. Matt Walker shares that people with insomnia often, “can’t fall asleep because they’re thinking about what didn’t they do, what should they do, what needs to be done tomorrow…”

His solution: “An hour before bed, just sit down and write out all of the things that are on your mind. And it’s catharsis, it’s sort of like vomiting out your… stress on the page,” helping you let go and drift off.

→ Meditate for 5-10 minutes

If you struggle with a busy mind, meditating may be the last thing you want to do. But research suggests meditation can help calm the sympathetic nervous system (your stress response) for better and easier sleep.

For 5 minutes, try:
→ Focusing on a mantra
→ Focusing on deep breathing 
→ Exploring your body’s experience
→ Tuning your attention to a physical object

→ Go on a mental stroll

Instead of counting sheep, UC Berkeley Professor Allison Harvey advises going on a mental stroll. Here’s how to do it: In high-definition, envision going on a walk you know well. 

Immerse yourself in the details, from getting out of bed to stepping out the front door. Dr. Walker shares, “It really helps take your mind off itself. You stop overthinking… and then you fall asleep faster.”

Sleep Delayer #3: Caffeine

Did you know caffeine can stay in your system for 10 to 12 hours, depending on your metabolism? That means the coffee you drink at 2 pm could still be affecting you til 2 am! But its impact on sleep goes even further, says Dr. Matt Walker.

According to his research, a single cup of caffeinated coffee at night can decrease deep sleep activity by 20-40%. Dr. Walker shares, “I'd have to age a healthy adult by probably about 10 to 15 years to produce that kind of a reduction in deep sleep.”

Drinking caffeine can also:
- Increase nightly wake-ups
- Make it harder to fall asleep
- Lead to sleep fragmentation
- Increase anxiety and mind racing at night
- Decrease the amount and quality of deep sleep

Caffeine tips for improved sleep

→ To avoid sleep problems, Dr. Walker suggests limiting daily coffee to 1-3 cups and cutting caffeine 12 hours before your bedtime.

Sleep Delayer #4: Screen Time Overload

You know how light in the morning wakes you up? Researchers have traced this energizing effect of natural light to a specific section of the light spectrum: blue light. It plays a key role in circadian rhythms, telling the mind it’s time to be awake. As light fades from the sky, melatonin production increases. 

The problem: The blue light from many electronic devices mirrors that of natural light. This can stimulate our brains and make us feel more energized and awake.

Tips to calm your mind for sound sleep

→  2 hours before bed, turn off the tech to sit back and relax with good music, good books, and/or good company.

→  If you really need to use tech, consider using blue light glasses or a blue light filter. These lessen the blue light from your tech, reducing its impact on melatonin production.

Sleep Delayer #5: Your Brain Needs More Time to Unwind

Many of us underestimate the amount of time our brains actually need to fall asleep. But just like you need to warm up before working out, your brain needs time to slip into “sleep mode.”

Dr. Walker shares that people tend to think that “sleep should be like a light switch,” and that you can immediately go from catching up on emails and watching TV to fast asleep. This isn’t the case.

Instead, “Sleep is… like landing a plane,” says Dr. Walker. “It takes time for your biology to start to wind down and… descend you down onto the terra firma of good sleep at night.”

Tips to help your brain unwind for deep rest

→  Start your sleep routine 30-60 minutes earlier to give your brain more time to get sleepy.

→  Build out a personal relaxation routine! The consistency of these relaxation techniques can help signal to your brain it’s time to start getting ready for sleep. 

Here are a few activities to consider: 
- Reading
- Meditating
- Journaling
- Aromatherapy
- Gentle stretching
- Listening to relaxing music
- Playing a sleep story or ASMR track

Sleep Delayer #6: You’re Accidentally Teaching Your Brain to Stay Awake

If you lie in bed for hours, can’t sleep, and find yourself getting more and more frustrated — don’t stay in bed! Dr. Matt Walker advises that if you’re not asleep after 20-30 minutes, your best bet is to get out of bed.

Here’s why: “Your brain’s an incredibly associative device, and very quickly it learns… your bed is the place of being awake.”

This means that if you eat in bed, watch TV in bed, work in bed, or do anything other than sleep (or be intimate) in bed — you could be sending your brain the wrong message.

Your best move: reserve your bed for sleep and intimacy only.

Tips to rewire your brain’s link between bed and sleepiness

Instead of getting frustrated, Dr. Walker suggests, “Get up, get out of bed, and, in dim light in a different room, just read a book or relax, do some stretching. Only come back to bed when you’re sleepy."

This helps your brain start reclassifying your bed from a place for alertness and energy to one of drowsiness and calm.

Sleep Delayer #7: Your Sleep Environment Isn’t Helping You

The best sleep aid you could ever ask for comes down to something surprisingly simple: your bedroom.

Factors like light, noise, and temperature can have a huge impact on your body’s capacity to fall asleep quickly and sleep soundly. We’ve already explored how light can benefit or impair sleep. But sound and temperature can also be big contributors to sleep quality.

Intermittent or sharp sounds keep the brain on high alert, stopping you from relaxing and drifting off. Dr. Walker’s research also found that at the peak of sleep, the body’s core temperature consistently drops by 2-3° F. So if your room temperature is too hot or too cold, it can make it harder for your body to reach its ideal temperature for sleep.

Tips to optimize your bedroom for better rest

→  Block out ambient light with blackout curtains, under-door stoppers, or eye masks.

→  Use sleep-friendly headphones or earplugs to reduce noise.

→  Cover unavoidable noise with relaxing audio.
(ASMR, sleep stories, relaxing music, white noise machines.)

→  Turn down the AC to 65-68° F.
(Each of us is unique, so experiment to find the perfect sleep temperature for you.)

→  Try taking a warm bath 30-60 minutes before bed.
(This drops your core body temperature to fall asleep faster. Research has also found this technique can increase deep sleep by 10-15%!)

Somnee: A Natural Solution for Faster Sleep

Sleeping pills knock you out and impair sleep quality. Meditation, CBT-i, and other relaxation techniques take serious personal commitment, consistency, and time before you feel the difference in your sleep.

Somnee does things differently.

With Somnee, all you need to do is sit back and relax for 15 minutes while it works its magic. Unlike most sleep aids on the market, Somnee speaks your brain’s natural language, delivering safe, tested, and gentle electricity personalized 100% to you. With every session, your Somnee Smart Sleep Headband learns a little more about your brain’s patterns of activity before bed and the unique way your brain likes to sleep.

In just 2-3 weeks, 80% of Somnee Sleepers report the biggest shifts:

✓ Falling asleep 50% faster
✓ Reducing nightly wake-ups by ⅓ 
✓ Sleeping 30+ minutes longer every night

Ready to say goodbye to restless nights?
Try Somnee 45 Days Risk-Free >>