The One Where A Consistent Sleep Schedule Became My Superpower
- Sep 10, 2025
- 6 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
This is part of my Sleep Mini-Series. Read the introduction here.
In my previous Sleep Series post, The One Where I Took Sleep Hygiene Seriously, I explained how I created a calm and relaxing environment to sleep in. This did have some impact on my sleep, my bedroom certainly felt more restful. But it clearly wasn’t enough, as I would still struggle to get to sleep and then stay asleep on many nights. And I still wasn’t feeling fully rested in the morning.
Over the years I have made many changes to help improve my sleep, but instilling a consistent sleep schedule has been the biggest game changer for me. It really is my superpower. Maybe it could become yours too. I’d heard many sleep experts talk about the importance of consistent sleep and wake times, but I really didn’t expect it to have much of an effect on me. I was so wrong!
A consistent sleep schedule became the biggest game changer for my sleep.
Why Consistency Matters for Better Sleep
A consistent sleep schedule is important for both good-quality sleep and long-term health. This consistency allows your body to follow its natural circadian rhythm, our internal clock that helps regulate sleepiness, alertness, digestion and many other processes. A consistent schedule helps keep that rhythm aligned.
When we’re going to sleep and waking up at different times each day it’s a challenge for our circadian rhythms to stay in sync. Sleeping in later at the weekend contributes to what sleep experts call “social jetlag”. This is due to our circadian rhythms being knocked out of kilter, similar to jetlag when travelling through different time zones.
As anyone who has done much travelling knows, it can take a few days for your body to adjust to a new time zone. Imagine doing that every week. Your body literally doesn’t know which time zone you’re in! Thinking about it like that, to me, it makes total sense that the body is designed for and needs routine. Otherwise it’s constantly trying to find its rhythm amidst chaos.
Understanding all of this helped me to realise that I needed to give consistency a proper try. It was the first Covid lockdown and shielding that gave me the perfect chance to explore this secret weapon.
How a Consistent Sleep Schedule Improved My Sleep with Chronic Illness
It was March 2020, and the outbreak of the Covid pandemic. Lockdown and shielding meant I couldn't leave the house. Every day looked much the same. No appointments, meeting friends or trips to visit family. Now seemed the right time to try a consistent sleep schedule.
Trusting the experts, I decided on my sleep and wake-up times, and set about sticking to that schedule. I used an alarm to remind me to start my bedtime routine, as well as when to wake up. And I also put a smart bulb in my bedside lamp. I set it on a timer to dim 5 mins before going off, so I could put my book away and get myself settled. Then the light would go off at my planned lights-out time. This really helped when my self-discipline was lacking.
At first, I found it hard. I was initially lying awake, not able to sleep. I then adjusted the time I wanted to go to sleep. But I kept my wake-up time fixed. Although, I also found that hard to stick to, as some days I just felt too tired to get up. Luckily, the weather was consistently lovely and unseasonably warm. So it soon became my routine to get up, make a coffee and sit outside. It was lovely!
It took several weeks and plenty of trial and error, but soon it was working quite well. I found times that seemed to work well for me, and I stuck to my bedtime routine from The One Where I Took Sleep Hygiene Seriously. I noticed that I was actually feeling tired and ready to go to bed at my set time, I was sleeping better, and it was easier to get up in the mornings. And I still follow the same schedule now, five years later.
How to Try a Consistent Sleep Schedule
I appreciate that when I chose to try this out it was during an exceptional time, the likes of which we will hopefully never see again! Not leaving the house for several weeks was the perfect time to try and incorporate this routine.
However, that doesn’t mean that it’s not possible outside of pandemic and lockdown conditions. Just a little more difficult, I admit. Whenever you attempt this, it does take discipline. But for better sleep and long-term health, it is worth it.
To start with you need an idea of how much sleep you ideally need. I appreciate that if you’re already having trouble with sleep, this will be impossible to answer to begin with. Experts say that most adults need on average 7-9 hours of sleep a night. But we are all unique and there is no magic number. You need to discover what your body needs.
This is why it will start with some trial and error. Most of us have a time that most mornings we either have to be or wish to be awake by. So work backwards from there. It is usually a good idea to be in bed for about an hour longer than you want to sleep. Why? Because it takes time to fall asleep and it’s usual for everyone to wake several times during the night, even if you’re not aware of it.
I would suggest you pick when you’re going to try this carefully i.e. with no planned late nights. Then stick to the regime for at least a week and see how it goes. We often use alarms to tell us when it’s time to wake up. Why not also have one to remind us it’s time to go to bed? This is what I did. Otherwise it’s too easy to think “just one more episode”. What does a parent say to a child in this situation? They need to stick to their routine, otherwise they’ll be tired and grumpy in the morning, and won’t perform so well at school. A wise pep talk we sometimes need to give to ourselves!
Once you’ve decided on your sleep and wake times, set your relevant alarms and then stick to it, every day of the week. Resist that urge to hit snooze at the weekends. Then assess how it went and if the timings need to be adjusted at all. Keep going, be disciplined and think of the longer term benefits.
Consistency Over Perfection
There are two ways I know that a consistent sleep schedule has improved my sleep and wellbeing: how I feel, and the data recorded by my Fitbit. I generally no longer need an alarm for waking, as I usually wake up at around the same time. I fall asleep more easily, have fewer long awakenings during the night, and, as a result, I have more energy.
This isn’t to say that my chronic fatigue is gone, it’s still there, but the short-term effect of missing my routine can be more severe than it might be for a healthy person.
Sleep is about patterns over time, not perfection every night.
Please don't think that I am doing this perfectly all the time, I'm not! Most nights I stick to my schedule, but life happens, late nights, holidays, or just days when things don’t go to plan. That’s okay. Especially if you live with a chronic illness, that flexibility is important. What matters most is gently returning to your routine, because that’s where the long-term benefits lie.
I know this from experience. As I started writing this Sleep Series, my blog was very new and setting up the website became all-consuming. In the evenings, I’d lose track of time, stay up far too late, and soon enough my fatigue and mood were both suffering. It was no coincidence. But within a few days of returning to my sleep schedule, my energy started to improve and my sleep quality bounced back.
That experience was a powerful reminder: pushing too hard and ignoring what my body needs played a big part in me becoming ill in the first place. These days, I try to hold onto the lesson that consistency is what counts, and even if I slip, I can always reset.
My Real-Life Consistent Sleep Schedule
Although the right sleep schedule will be different for you, it may help to see what mine looks like:
In bed: 21:45/22:00
Read until: 22:25
Lights out: 22:30
Wake up: 07:00
Average sleep: around 7.5 hours
We all have different routines and sleep requirements, so you need to find what works best for you. But consistency really can make a remarkable difference.
Remember, no one element is a magic key to unlocking good-quality sleep. Having a consistent sleep schedule has had the most impact on my sleep. That’s why I call it my superpower. But it is within the context of other changes I have made.
Do you have a consistent sleep schedule?
If not, is it something you might consider trying?
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