Things You Do That Worsen Your Insomnia and What You Can Do About It

Do you find yourself staring at the ceiling at 3 am, wondering where your sleep went? You're not alone. Millions of people struggle with insomnia. They, like you, find it difficult to drift off or stay asleep.

Medical conditions or stress could be one reason for this sleep disorder. But a far more overarching cause is bad habits and poor sleep hygiene. From late-night screen time to relying on alcohol as a sleep aid, these behaviors sabotage restful sleep.

But there is hope. In this article, we’ll explore common habits that exacerbate insomnia and provide practical solutions to help you reclaim a peaceful night’s sleep. Follow along and learn how to get some shut-eye when you need it.

Common Behaviors That Worsen Insomnia

Before concluding that you might be genetically wired to sleep in late, check if you have one or more of these sleep habits:

Inconsistent Sleep Schedules

People with insomnia usually don’t have any rhyme or rhythm to when they go to bed and when they wake up. Some days, they go to bed at 10 pm and some days at 2 am. This disrupts the body’s natural sleep-wake cycle. Your brain cannot predict when you will go to bed. So it doesn’t release melatonin and other sleep hormones on time.

Exposure to Blue Light

Smartphones, laptops, televisions, tablets, and just about any screen that emits light are your enemy at night. Their light is in the blue wavelength (400-490 nanometers), which messes up your internal body clock. It alerts your brain when it should be winding down.

Poor Sleep Environment

What’s your bedroom like? Is there noise coming from the street or lights from a lamppost shining into your room? Is it too cold or too hot for your liking? Maybe the bedsheets are itchy, or the bed is hard like a rock. These distractions and discomforts are not conducive to sleep. With even one of these factors at play, your brain will remain alert instead of getting sleepy.

Caffeine Consumption

Coffee is not just an innocent warm beverage. It is a powerful psychostimulant that has various effects on your nervous system. If you drink it throughout the day or close to bedtime, tossing and turning in bed throughout the night shouldn’t come as a surprise.

Alcohol Use

Alcohol lovers say that drinking helps them sleep at night. That is a common sleep myth. But it couldn’t be further from science. Alcohol’s sedative effect makes you think you are falling asleep faster. But internally, it wrecks the normal sleep architecture, particularly REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. You’ll unlikely get a good night’s rest after a glass of whiskey or wine.

Stress and Worry

If there’s a lot on your mind when you hit the sheets, you won’t be falling asleep anytime soon. Add that to the anxiety of watching the clock tick while you lie fully awake. This cycle of sleep-related worry creates a conditioned response of anxiety to bedtime. When you associate your bed with stress rather than relaxation, initiating sleep becomes all the more difficult.

Sedentary Lifestyle

You will find that you fall asleep a lot faster after a day of physical movement, be it going to the gym, visiting new places on a trip, or taking a long walk. If you don’t move your body, you won’t feel tired at night. It’s as simple as that.

Natural Remedies for Better Sleep

So you do multiple things on the list above that make it harder for you to sleep. Now what? The solutions are right here.

• Establish Consistent Sleep Patterns: You must go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Come hell or high water, you cannot change this timing. After a while, your body will know when to initiate sleep, and falling asleep won’t be a problem.

• Manage Blue Light Exposure: Turn off all electronic devices 2-3 hours before bed. If there is some device you must use, dim the brightness to the lowest level and use blue light blocking glasses.

• Optimize Your Sleep Environment: Your bedroom should make you sleepy. Keep it quiet, dark, and cool. And make sure your bedding is soft and fluffy (or firm, if that’s how you like it).

• Exercise Appropriately: Do some light exercises every day. That could be stretching, walking, jogging, or yoga. But remember that exercise is a stimulating activity that raises the body temperature. So, avoid it a few hours before bed.

• Consider Natural Sleep Aids: A lot of natural remedies help improve sleep without any of the side effects or dependency risks that come with medication. Try warm milk, chamomile tea, kratom powder, or cherry juice. See what works for you.

• Practice Stimulus Control: A leading cause of insomnia is associating the bed with wakefulness. You need to change this. Only go to bed when you're sleepy. And if you can’t sleep after 15-20 minutes of lying in bed, get up and go sit in another room.

• Limit Substance Use: Say no to caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol in the evening hours. Even when you can’t consciously feel the effects of these substances, they remain in your body and disrupt sleep quality.

Sleep Well

There is an Irish proverb that goes, “A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor's book.” Are you getting enough of both?

Insomnia can make you feel powerless. It’s like your mind has turned against you. That’s why you need to win this battle! When you prioritize sleep, you’re not just fighting exhaustion—you’re reclaiming the energy to live fully.

Restful sleep restores mental clarity and helps you gain control over your days. A well-rested mind thinks sharply, reacts more calmly, and heals faster. And a well-rested person can do more with their time without feeling overwhelmed. You deserve to be that person!