If you’re one of the 70% of U.S. adults who share your sleeping space with a significant other, you know that bedtime isn’t all cuddles and kisses.
Sleeping in the same bed with someone else is often an exercise in patience—and compromise.
A partner’s buzzsaw-like snoring or restless legs can keep you awake for hours. And nothing puts you in a rage at 3 A.M. quite like having your half of the blankets stolen away.
But that’s not all.
What happens when one of you is a morning lark and the other is a night owl? You might find yourself trying to fall asleep while your partner is just getting their second wind. Or staying up alone for hours after your partner has dozed off.
Unless you sleep like a log, it’s tough to snooze restfully while someone nearby is awake. Plus, lack of quality shuteye is linked to more frequent and more intense fighting in couples. And if you’ve ever spent the night tossing and turning, you know how easy it can be to blow up over little stuff.
So what can you do from keeping your mismatched bedtimes from messing with your relationship—and your sanity?
First, the bad news: Experts agree that you can’t really change your chronotype- (dictates our body’s natural tendency to fall asleep and wake up at a certain time of day.)
You might be able to shift your usual schedule by an hour or even two. But try to push it more than that, and you’re basically fighting biology. Which is always a losing battle.
Try these tips-
💤Try meeting in the middle. Heads up, this won’t work if you’re conked out by 10PM and your partner stays up until 3AM. But if your bedtimes differ by an hour or so, you might be able to meet halfway.
💤Make your bedroom work for everyone.
💤Respect each other’s schedules.
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