How Many Z's Do I Need?Sleep quality is as important as sleep quantity. Each person requires a different amount of sleep each night. The best way to figure out how much sleep you need is by considering how you feel during the day.
What You Need
You have probably heard that the average adult needs to get about 8.3 hours of sleep at night. This may be true (or even a bit more than the real average), but “average adult” means than many people need less than that and many people need more than that. The amount of sleep needed varies from person to person, just like height and weight. Relatively few people need less than 6 hours or more than 9 hours of sleep every night. In fact, well over 80% of the population probably needs to get 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
In order to know how much sleep you need, you should think about what it means to get enough sleep. If you are able to get out of bed in the morning without much difficulty, don’t find yourself getting sleepy much during the daytime, and find that you are able to perform well and keep a relatively positive mood during the day then you’re probably getting enough sleep. If this is the case after getting 5 hours of sleep each night, then you’re probably one of the few who can get by on very little sleep. Most people, however, will find that after getting 5 hours of sleep a night they will struggle to get out of bed in the morning, need naps or doze off watching TV, or have difficulties controlling mood and performance during the day. Matching the amount of sleep you get at night to how you feel during the day is the most important part.
Quality of Sleep
Often, though, it’s not just about how much sleep you get, but how good that sleep is – getting enough sleep means quality as well as quantity. One of the best ways to ensure that you get good sleep is to remove any of the obstacles of sleep that would create disruptions – noise, light, extreme temperatures, and stress, among many factors. Then by making sure that you get out of bed when you’re not sleeping, you can train your body to sleep better during the night and you may be able to feel better during the day without actually spending more time in bed.
People who don’t feel that they’re getting enough sleep often have more difficulties with the quality of their sleep than with the quantity. If you’re trying to find a better night of sleep, first consider getting higher quality sleep, then think about whether you’re going to need more. If you’re able to fall and stay asleep just fine once you crawl into bed at night, but then get up after six hours and find that you’re still tired, then you should consider getting more sleep.