The following has been distilled mostly from Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams and a lot of trial and error:

1. Try to go to sleep - and to wake up - at roughly the same time every day (weekends included)

2. iPhone has a custom Sleep Focus enabled from 9:50pm to 06:45am, with:

   • No apps allowed

   • No calls allowed except from my partner

   • Home screen only shows Calm (for the occasional wind-down exercise)

3. Laptop must be turned off and back at the office

4. No other screens allowed, except for maybe the Kindle

5. Optional: Do some light journaling using pen and paper if there are stray thoughts that need to be sorted

6. Read a book - non-negotiable

7. Take a hot shower before going to bed; it helps to relax, and to lower the body temperature

8. Spray some Twilight Body Spray on pillow; it’s a little silly but the smell really is soothing

9. Optional: Wear Loop Quiet ear plugs if feeling anxious or neighbors are being especially noisy

10. Optional: Wear a padded sleep mask if partner wants to read

11. Last resort: Take ½-1 Ambien - this isn’t a real fix, as the quality of the sleep is overall much worse. But it beats thrashing about and feeling anxious

References

Related Notes or Links

• Adapt to changes with grace
• Matthew Walker
• Judgement is the fast food of self-care
• Self-care is non-negotiable