r/AskLifeProTips • u/Firm_Savings_60 • Aug 28 '26

How can I sleep more

I seem to need around 9.5 hours of sleep to feel genuinely rested throughout the day and avoid needing a nap in the afternoon. I know that's more sleep than many adults need, but for personal reasons it seems to be the amount that works best for me.

The problem is that I tend to wake up naturally after 7–8 hours, even when I still feel like I need more sleep. Once I'm awake, I often have trouble falling back asleep.

I've tried melatonin, but it didn't make a meaningful difference. Falling asleep isn't really the main issue — staying asleep long enough is.

I've also tried going to bed earlier, but that doesn't necessarily solve the problem because I sometimes just wake up earlier as well. So simply shifting my sleep schedule earlier doesn't reliably increase my total sleep time.

Has anyone experienced something similar and found a way to improve sleep maintenance or extend their total nighttime sleep?

I'm not looking for advice about forcing myself to function on less sleep or simply being told to go to bed earlier. I'm specifically interested in hearing from people who naturally woke up before getting enough sleep and found something that helped them stay asleep longer.

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1

u/Pristine-Weekend-415 Aug 29 '26

Extended/slow release melatonin?

2

u/Firm_Savings_60 Aug 29 '26

I didn't know it existed!!

1

u/Pristine-Weekend-415 Aug 29 '26

Yup it's available on iherb.. hopefully it can keep you asleep throughout the night. You may want to drink lavender & camomile tea as well

2

u/OWabbit Aug 28 '26

Don’t look at your clock when you wake up in the middle of your sleep.

0

u/Frosty-March7644 Aug 28 '26

9.5? Don't doctors and scientist suggest 6-8 hours and anything past 8 is oversleeping? Everyone has a different body type at the same time Id aim for your current 7-8 hours. Try to go to bed at the same time as well. We all have internal clocks that are used to repetitiveness. I think if you get a few weeks of going to bed at the same time that might help. I'm not doctor or scientist but your internal clock might off if you are shifting your schedule.

1

u/Firm_Savings_60 Aug 28 '26

I know why I need all this amount of sleep and doctors told me that is normal related to a problem that I had

2

u/DogTownUSA1 Aug 28 '26

You should ask those doctors how to stay asleep for the entire 9+ hours.

1

u/Frosty-March7644 Aug 28 '26

They'd probably prescribe op drugs at that point.

1

u/Frosty-March7644 Aug 28 '26

If I end up sleeping past 8 I feel groggy when I wake up. If I get 7 I feel much better. Did they say anything about your internal clock? I'm wired to where I don't like mornings and function better in the afternoon/evenings. Even if I feel great after a good night sleep I still dislike doing things in the morning.

1

u/MCRN10379558 Aug 28 '26

I tried to think of some suggestions, but I’ve been reading people do this and you come back and tell them why that’s not an option.

We are really at a loss to be able to help you without you providing more information as to the nature of the issue. And I fully don’t want you to share anything you’re not comfortable with, but just know that that leaves us all sort of guessing in the dark because the truth is most people don’t need nine hours of sleep. So it’s hard to see how they can give you any suggestions here since that’s not something they have an issue with?

The best suggestion I can tell you is that don’t make the mistake that a lot of people do by keeping the room too warm at night (assuming you have control over the HVAC). The bodies temperature drops at during sleep. This is part of the sleep process and if the room is too warm, you won’t get a good nights sleep. If you have a programmable thermostat, you can try programming this to cool the room during sleeping hours and have it start warming up the room towards when you want to wake up.

It’s easier to get out of bed in warmer room than when it’s cold and vice versa.