The most useful trouble sleeping tips are the boring ones: keep the same wake-up time every day, cut caffeine after lunch, switch off screens before bed, and get up if you can’t drop off. Most short bouts of poor sleep improve with these habits, and if they don’t, a pharmacist or GP can help you work out what’s going on. This guide is part of our common illnesses A–Z, and it’s the advice we give most often at the counter.
Is it insomnia or just a bad week?
Everyone has the odd rough night. Insomnia is when getting to sleep, staying asleep or getting refreshing sleep becomes a regular problem. It can look like:
- lying awake for a long time after you go to bed;
- waking during the night and struggling to get back to sleep;
- waking too early in the morning;
- feeling tired, foggy, irritable or low on energy during the day;
- trouble concentrating or remembering things.
healthdirect describes chronic insomnia disorder as sleep problems happening at least 3 nights a week for at least 3 months. Short-term insomnia often follows a stressful event, an illness or a change in routine, and usually settles once the trigger passes.
You’re far from alone. According to healthdirect, more than 1 in 10 people have at least mild insomnia at any given time, and it’s more common in women and older adults.
What’s keeping you awake?
Poor sleep usually has more than one cause. Common ones include:
- Stress, worry or grief: a busy mind is one of the biggest sleep thieves.
- Mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.
- Pain and health conditions, including breathing and digestive problems.
- Hormonal changes, such as menopause.
- Caffeine, nicotine and alcohol. Alcohol might help you nod off, but it tends to disturb sleep later in the night.
- Some medicines can affect sleep as a side effect.
- Other sleep disorders, such as sleep apnoea or restless legs.
- Your bedroom and your habits: a hot, bright or noisy room, irregular bedtimes and late-night scrolling.
Trouble sleeping tips we share at the counter
These are drawn from the Sleep Health Foundation’s sleep habits advice and healthdirect. Try a few together for a couple of weeks rather than one for a single night.
1. Anchor your wake-up time
Go to bed and get up at roughly the same time every day, weekends included. A steady wake-up time is what sets your body clock. The Sleep Health Foundation suggests spending no more than 8 or so hours in bed, because long lie-ins can make it harder to fall asleep the next night.
2. Watch the caffeine clock
Caffeine can stay in your system for hours. The Sleep Health Foundation recommends avoiding it for at least 3 to 7 hours before sleep, or simply having none after lunchtime if you struggle to sleep. Remember that cola, energy drinks and some teas count too.
3. Give yourself an hour to wind down
Spend the last hour before bed doing something calm: reading, a warm shower, gentle stretching or music. The Sleep Health Foundation suggests turning off screens 1–2 hours before bed, and healthdirect recommends at least an hour.
4. Get up if you can’t sleep
If you’re not asleep within 20 to 30 minutes, get up and do something quiet in dim light until you feel sleepy, then go back to bed. Lying there clock-watching teaches your brain that bed is a place for worrying.
5. Keep the bed for sleep
Try to use your bed only for sleep and intimacy, not for work emails, streaming or scrolling.
6. Time your meals, naps and exercise
- Finish your evening meal at least 2 hours before bed.
- If you nap, keep it short (around 30 minutes) and earlier in the day.
- Regular exercise helps sleep, but healthdirect suggests avoiding it in the evening.
7. Make your bedroom work in the Gold Coast climate
A cool, dark, quiet room helps. On humid Gold Coast summer nights that can take some effort: a fan or air conditioning, light cotton bedding, block-out curtains for early sunrises, and earplugs if you’re near a busy road or holiday apartments. If you’re visiting and struggling in a new room, the same basics apply.
How can a pharmacist help with sleep problems?
A pharmacist is a good first stop, especially if poor sleep is new or you’re not sure what’s behind it. We can:
- check whether any of your current medicines, including over-the-counter products and supplements, might be affecting your sleep;
- talk you through sleep aids by category, from non-medicine options like eye masks and earplugs to herbal products and short-term sleep medicines;
- explain what’s suitable for your age, health and other medicines, because some sleep aids aren’t safe with certain conditions or when combined with alcohol;
- help you decide when it’s time to see a GP instead.
In Australia, some sleep aids can only be supplied after you talk to a pharmacist, and others need a prescription. They’re generally meant for short-term use. The Sleep Health Foundation notes that sleeping tablets can help occasionally, but if you take them often your body gets used to them and they stop working as well. Ask your pharmacist which option suits you, and follow the label or your pharmacist’s advice.
If you take several medicines, a medication review can be a useful way to spot anything that might be disturbing your sleep.
When should you see a GP about trouble sleeping?
Book in with your GP if:
- poor sleep has lasted several weeks or is affecting your work, study, driving or relationships;
- you’re feeling persistently low, anxious or not coping;
- someone has noticed loud snoring, gasping or pauses in your breathing while you sleep;
- you have restless or uncomfortable legs at night;
- you wake up unrefreshed even after a full night in bed;
- you feel so sleepy during the day that you nod off at the wheel or at work;
- you think a medicine or health condition is causing the problem.
For ongoing insomnia, the recommended first treatment is cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), a structured program that changes the thoughts and habits keeping you awake. The Sleep Health Foundation says CBT-I works better than sleeping tablets in the medium and long term. Your GP can explain your options, and they may refer you to a psychologist or sleep specialist.
If you’re having thoughts of harming yourself, call 000 in an emergency or Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Talk to our pharmacists at Pacific Fair
If trouble sleeping is wearing you down, our pharmacists can go through your habits, your medicines and your options with you in private. Pop in, with no appointment needed. Find us on the ground floor of Pacific Fair Shopping Centre, Broadbeach, open 7 days (until 9pm Thursdays), or call (07) 5592 2099.
Written by the Priceline Pharmacy Pacific Fair team. Reviewed by Jason Markey (BPharmSci, MPharm), Pharmacist.
Sources
- healthdirect – Insomnia
- Sleep Health Foundation – Insomnia
- Sleep Health Foundation – Sleep Hygiene: Good Sleep Habits
- Lifeline Australia – Crisis support
This article is general information only and isn’t a substitute for personal advice from your doctor or pharmacist. Always read the label and follow the directions for use. If symptoms persist or you’re worried, talk to your pharmacist or GP. In an emergency, call 000.