Do you track your sleep every night? Checking your score first thing in the morning like it’s a report card?
Yeah… that smartwatch on your wrist might not be helping as much as you think.
A new study out of the University of Bergen in Norway looked at more than 1,000 adults and found something surprising: while sleep tracking apps are wildly popular, they don’t always lead to better sleep. In some cases, they actually make it worse.
There’s even a name for it: “orthosomnia.”
It’s basically when you become so focused on getting perfect sleep data that it starts stressing you out—and ironically, that stress is what messes up your sleep.
Here’s what the researchers found:
18% of users said sleep tracking made them more anxious
14% felt like something was wrong with their sleep after checking their data
Younger adults were hit the hardest by this effect
And if you already deal with insomnia? It can amplify everything. Instead of helping, the tracker turns into another thing your brain fixates on at 2 a.m.
The tricky part is… sleep tracking can be useful. It can help spot patterns, flag potential issues, and even catch things like sleep apnea early.
But the key is how you use it.
Because your sleep score isn’t a grade. You’re not “failing” at sleep because your watch says you got a 72 instead of an 85.
If anything, chasing perfect sleep might be the exact thing keeping you awake.
Bottom line:
Use the data as a guide—not a judgment.
Pay attention to how you feel, not just what your app says.
And remember… the goal isn’t perfect sleep. It’s better sleep.
(more)
Comments