Too much focus on a 'perfect night' can make you sleepless, here's how it works

You have a busy day ahead of you, want to catch up on sleep, or are simply trying to clear your head and unwind. Yet, no matter how hard you try, you just can't fall asleep. It can be incredibly frustrating when your body and mind refuse to cooperate, and you find yourself tossing and turning in bed. What many people don't realize is that this problem is more common than you think and even has a name: orthosomnia.

This type of sleep problem revolves around a constant obsession with getting the perfect night's sleep. Ironically, this constant focus on sleep can actually disrupt your sleep patterns and make it even harder to fall asleep. But how exactly does this work, and why can focusing too much on sleep be counterproductive?

The obsession with getting a good night's sleep is called orthosomia, according to American magazine Time. It refers to the fear of not getting the "right" amount and quality of sleep, often fueled by data from sleep trackers. Kelly Baron, a clinical psychologist at the University of Utah, explains that the term, which is a combination of "ortho" (right) and "somnia" (sleep), is even comparable to orthorexia, an obsession with food.

Orthosomnia isn't an official medical diagnosis, but a phenomenon that has emerged due to the popularity of sleep trackers. "We saw more and more people with insomnia coming in with their sleep trackers," explains clinical psychologist Baron. "They trusted the device more than their doctor or even their own sense of how well they'd slept."

After reviewing a series of studies, Baron and other researchers concluded that some people were unnecessarily concerned about their sleep quality. "People became too fixated on the data from their sleep tracker and engaged in a perfectionistic quest for the ideal sleep to optimize daytime performance."

The problem with this unhealthy fixation on sleep metrics is that it can fuel anxiety and worsen insomnia in people who already suffer from it. People with orthosomnia may feel anxious about falling asleep, staying asleep, or achieving certain sleep metrics such as deep sleep, REM sleep, how long it takes to fall asleep, or sleep efficiency (the percentage of time you're actually asleep compared to lying in bed). As a result, Baron says, you may actually lie awake longer at night.

But what exactly is the problem with being so preoccupied with how you sleep? First of all, researchers say you can't properly test your own sleep. "Many people don't realize that trackers aren't medical devices."

“The accuracy is therefore always questionable,” says clinical psychologist Michael Breus, but the problem with an unhealthy fixation on sleep measurements is that it can mainly worsen insomnia in people who already suffer from it.

But what's the solution for a better night's sleep? "Sleep is one of those things you can't perfect," says Baron. "Sometimes you do everything right and still don't sleep well. You can't overcontrol it." Still, that doesn't stop some people from trying. "People are overly focused on everything sleep-related because of the abundance of data," says Breus.

Instead of fixating on every detail of your sleep, psychologists suggest it's better to think about your goals for improving your sleep. Do you want to sleep longer? Do you want to wake up feeling more rested? Or do you have another goal? With those intentions, you could use the feedback from a sleep tracker to adjust your behavior, for example, your eating and drinking habits or your evening use of electronic devices. "Self-monitoring and goal setting are the cornerstones of any kind of behavior change," says Baron.

Metro has previously offered several tips for falling asleep more easily. For example, the 10-3-2-1-0 method helps, and it helps to take a short walk before bed and put your phone away early. The doctor also offers advice that can help you get started.