[Dani]

Hello all,

I am halfway through Martin’s 14 day free program and today, day 7, he talked about, in addition to getting up at the same time each day (i.e. setting your anchor) thinking about the total amount of time you sleep per night, adding 30 minutes, and then counting backwards and that is what time you go to bed. So for example, if I wake up at 7a and I sleep on average 6 hours per night, I would go to bed at 12:30a, even if I’m sleepy before that. I am having a hard time wrapping my mind around this. Have other people done this and does it work?

Dani

[Martin Reed]

Hello Dani! Can you tell us a bit more about why you’re having a hard time wrapping your mind around the concept of a sleep window? I’d love to provide more clarity if I can!

In terms of it “working” I think that depends on your goal. If you implement a sleep window, what would your goal be?

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If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Mastery program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

[Dani]

Hi Martin,

Thank you for your response. First my goal is to sleep for longer stretches more consistently (things have improved with your sleep training) and sleep through the night without waking up. I guess I also just want to be less anxious about my sleep.

The challenge I have is with the idea of restricting my sleep. For example if I’m sleeping an average of 6.5 hours per night and I want to wake up at 7a I would add 30 minutes and go to bed at 12:00a. This feels so late. And I guess I worry that if I had a hard time falling asleep I’d be getting even less.

All that being said since following you I have stopped trying to go to bed as early as possible and am pushing my bed time a little later and this has helped. I just don’t want to be up until midnight.

Thank you,
Dani

[Martin Reed]

If you feel comfortable with your current sleep schedule, there’s no need to change anything. If you feel that you might be setting yourself up for a lot of wakefulness with your current sleep schedule, perhaps it might be worth experimenting with a new approach and reducing the amount of time you allot for sleep so it is a bit more closely aligned to the amount of sleep you are currently generating?

A clock doesn’t know when we are sleepy — trying to make sleep happen before we are sleepy can create some struggle and difficulty. It’s great to hear that you have been experimenting with a different approach and seem to be finding it helpful!

—

If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Mastery program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

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