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How to cope when you haven't had enough sleep

By Carol Rääbus
A woman in a hijab resting her head in her hand looking tired for story about how to cope when you've slept badly.
You've barely slept, but you've got stuff to do. Can anything really help you get through the day, other than more sleep?(Pexels: Fikri Mz)

The alarm goes off and you mutter some curse words. You've barely slept and all you want to do is shut out the world, but that's not really an option.

There are plenty of helpful hints online about how to push through after a crappy sleep, but they're not always based in fact.

So, what are some proven (and healthy) ways to get today's jobs done when you've been up most of the night with noisy neighbours, a loud storm, a sleepless child or for no apparent reason at all?

Small disclaimer here: we're talking about one or two bad nights, not days on end of no sleep with hallucination-inducing sleep deprivation. If you're having regular disrupted sleep and it's affecting life, please speak to a doctor.

Caffeine is your friend, but be strategic

The first thing many of us reach for when we're feeling tired is a caffeinated drink.

Caffeine is "everyone's favourite psychoactive drug" and it really does help us to be more alert and focused.

Siobhan Banks, co-director of the Behaviour-Brain-Body Research Centre, says a lack of sleep can dull our senses, making it harder for us to focus on tasks. She says caffeine can help with this.

"Where we know that caffeine is really good is with keeping you alert with things like driving, for example," Professor Banks says.

She says while caffeine can help you be safer while driving on the way home, it can have unwanted effects as well.

When we don't get enough sleep our body gets an inflammatory response — our heart rate goes up, our blood pressure goes up, glucose is released into the blood.

This is our body working to keep us going until we can sleep again, but it makes us feel more stressed, on edge and a bit sick. Caffeine also raises our heart rate and can make us feel even more on edge, so it's best not to drink a coffee if you're already nervous, for example.

And if you're sensitive to caffeine, it can stop you from sleeping and therefore compound any sleep loss.

"It's just being aware of using caffeine in a more strategic way," Professor Banks says.

And it's not just caffeine you're drinking. Depending on whether you have a short black, mocha, caffeinated soft drink or energy drink, the liquid often has extra sugars, fats, proteins and chemicals — so watch what you slurp.

  • Verdict: Caffeine can help you focus for short periods of time to help you get through the day, but be careful about your tolerance and what else you consume with it.

Eating can make you feel better, but not wake you up more

A man in a tanktop and backways cap eating cake and holding ice cream
Many of us reach for something sweet to snack on when we're feeling sleepy, but this only provides a temporary energy boost, followed by a slump.(Pexels: Nappy)

Snacking is a common behaviour of the tired and snoozy.

Professor Banks says research does show shift workers often snack more than regular-hour workers, but it's more a psychological mood boost than helping the body cope with disrupted sleep.

If you've got that churning feeling in your stomach from being tired, having a snack can help you feel better, says Gorica Micic from the Adelaide Institute for Sleep Health, but it won't cure your tiredness.

And if you reach for a chocolate bar to help you get through, it might make things worse in the long run.

  • Verdict: Having a snack can help your body feel better, but it won't wake you up.

Drink water (in case you're dehydrated as well as tired)

Dehydration can feel similar to how you feel after a bad night's sleep — cottonwool in your head, raised heart rate, finding it hard to concentrate and maybe a bit moody or grumpy.

Professor Banks says many, if not most, adults are a bit dehydrated most of the time, so drinking more water is never a bad idea.

"There's nothing wrong with having some water. It will make you feel better and get rid of any dehydration," Professor Banks says.

But unlike caffeine, water doesn't help your alertness, so again, it's not a fix for a lack of sleep.

  • Verdict: Being hydrated is a good idea all the time and can make you feel better, but water doesn't combat true sleepiness.

Get up and move — in the sunlight if you can

A woman with a cup in her hand in the sun outside
If you're able, getting out in daylight can help you feel more awake.(Pexels: Bui Nam Phong)

If your day is quite sedentary when you're sleepy, it can make you feel even dozier.

"Changing posture, moving about … getting out during the day and taking a walk around the building, especially if it's a sunny day, that will have great healthful impacts on your alertness and also your general wellbeing," Professor Banks says.

Getting sunlight on your face in the morning can help your body shut off melatonin, the chemical we produce for sleep, says Moira Junge, a health psychologist with the Sleep Health Foundation.

"If you're walking to the station or driving, wherever possible [don't wear] sunglasses in the morning so you get that light in to suppress your melatonin," Dr Junge says.

  • Verdict: Moving your body can make you feel more alert, and sunlight can help shoo away sleep hormones, but it won't solve your problem entirely.

Can you squeeze in a powernap? That might help

You can go for as many walks, drink as much caffeine and eat all the sugar in the world — nothing will cure your tiredness other than sleep.

"A brief power nap can combat the effects of sleepiness," Dr Micic says.

Professor Banks says naps can be great for people like parents of newborns who need to grab sleep when they can, but they can be a bit of a trap for others.

"Anyone who is having trouble getting off to sleep at night, I wouldn't recommend them having a nap," she says.

The longer we don't sleep, the stronger the need for sleep becomes, and this can be helpful for someone who has a lot of trouble getting to sleep at night.

"Keep that sleep pressure so it helps you get off to sleep at night," Professor Banks says.

  • Verdict: If you don't have a sleep problem and just need to catch up a bit, a nap is great. Keep them short and don't nap if you have trouble getting to sleep at night.
A woman lying on a bed with a small baby
Few people are as sleep deprived as parents of newborns. For them, napping where and when they can is a great idea.(Unsplash: Kevin Liang)

Are weekend sleep-ins always bad?

If you have a lot of trouble getting to sleep at night, messing up your bedtime over a weekend can add to that problem.

But Dr Junge says if you don't usually have problems with sleep, "catching up" with a sleep-in on the weekend can help you feel better.

"If you don't have a sleep problem … feel free to catch up a little on the weekend," she says.

"But the advice generally … is to keep it fairly consistent."

  • Verdict: Those of us without sleep problems can benefit from a bit of a lie-in, but if you struggle with keeping a sleep routine, try not to change on the weekends.
