Sleep Tips and Tricks

Hi friend,

Who doesn’t love a knock-down, drag-out argument about something of little consequence, particularly after a week spent processing the most horrible info imaginable? Such as this Bloomberg report on the plans to build out a network of warehouses to detain thousands of immigrants to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars — warehouses that will potentially include “guard shacks” (this is on top of the more than 70,000 people detained right now, including a record number of children) — and then countless Epstein articles.

So it was with pleasure that we curled up to read the New York Times’ look at people who rely on delivery apps instead of prudently eating home-cooked meals.

The article kicked off a wave of sanctimony across social media where, relieved from the seriousness of the news cycle, everyone waxed on about how they stock their pantries or have figured out how to cook despite a demanding work-home life.

The over-reliance on delivery does seem to be generational. Though reporter Priya Krishna was careful to speak with a wide variety of people for the piece, she also mentions that Gen Z “can barely recall a life without delivery, and their social lives now revolve around it.”

One Yale college student she highlights says she orders in with her friends (delivery drivers are omnipresent outside the dorms, though everyone living there is also paying for a college meal plan) and that “she and her long-distance boyfriend order the same meal and eat it together over FaceTime” as a way of keeping in touch.

In the comments, Krishna says that she sees this as a “big mentality shift” for younger generations. “The barrier to entry for buying a house feels so vast that they might as well go for short-term indulgences because they feel they’ll never be able to save up,” she says.

Maybe. Or it’s just a bad habit that’s costing people a ton of money. Just look at the rise of buy-now, pay-later loan platforms like Klarna, which last year partnered with DoorDash. According to LendingTree, Gen Z is much more likely to use a BNPL loan than older generations.

You know what else lots of people have thoughts about, aside from food delivery? Sleep, or solutions for a lack of it. A few weeks ago, we asked you all to send us your best sleep tricks and tips. We got so many good ones, we decided to feature them. Read on for that, plus a few recommendations for your weekend.

Bye,
Your friends at Gloria

Every article I read about health and sleep includes the following message: Sleep is important. Did you know? If you don’t get enough sleep, horrible things will happen to you. Oh, and also: Don’t stress about sleep. Because stress is also bad for you. But not as bad as not sleeping.

So helpful. As if we need reminders that sleep is important, and how we’re endangering our brains and bodies by not getting enough of it. As if it’s a conscious choice. As if we want to spend our days feeling like garbage.

As a lifelong insomniac, sleep is one of those things I’ve obsessed about for decades. Now it feels like everyone's right there with me. As Air Mail reports, the 1% is focused on sleep as a metric of health — a sea change from the era where CEOs bragged about how little they slept. Maybe there’s something comforting in knowing that we’re all bonded by our struggle with sleep, no matter who we are.

We asked you all what has helped with your sleep, and we got so many great answers. Everyone is on a sleep journey, and everyone is trying to figure out how to work with their own unique brains and biological situations. I’m going to share some of the feedback here, grouped into three loose categories: behavior changes, supplements, sleep issues as a sign of an underlying health concern, and our longest (and most thorough) response. 

Behavioral Changes

“I did a course in Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Insomnia that I read about in the NY Times and it was extremely helpful, even before I started taking any supplements.”

“Sleep has become my obsession in the new year. I recently read The Sleep Prescription (Bookshop, Amazon), and it has changed my relationship with sleep. In particular, control what you can control (wake up time), your bed is for sleep and sex (nothing else), and strategies for what to do when you wake up at night. It's all evidence-based and is truly helpful.”

“The most helpful thing I have found is Ozlo Sleepbuds – this mostly helps with a snoring partner, but they do actually work!”

“I struggled a lot with snoozing. I would often snooze for a full hour and a half, or turn off my phone alarm and sleep through the full 1.5 hours of my wake-up light and radio blaring (truly wild, I don’t know how that’s possible). I’d always feel terrible, sluggish, and unproductive all day. My therapist is also a sleep specialist and got me onto the whole ‘wake up at the same time every day to reset my circadian rhythm’ and it’s been a game changer. On mornings when it feels extra hard, I remember to “follow the plan, not the feeling” and I’m such a better person all day for it. I started to feel tired earlier in the night, and the wake ups feel more like routine/way less of a struggle.”

“I avoid caffeine after 10am most days, just in case. I’ve lately been ending phone use before 8pm but this is very inconsistent, although it does seem to help with relaxing to fall asleep.”

Health Issues Affecting Sleep

“I am 46 and really struggled with insomnia two years ago, out of the blue. Then, after a few months, it went away. About a year later it happened again, same time, in late December, early January. I went and got my vitamin D and iron levels checked and they were both low. I started taking supplements and have been sleeping mostly great ever since!”

“I have finally found something to make me sleep! And it’s glorious! And it is… the pill! To summarize: I’m in peri, haven’t slept properly in ~7 years, HRT did very little for me, things got very bad, and finally I bullied my way into an endocrinologist appointment and she suggested the pill. Like that tiny little thing most of us took for decades when we were young and didn’t even think about, that we can only beg for a microdose of in middle age while getting lectured about the horrible terrible very bad (disproved study of the) dangers of, and that it turns out has nearly completely fixed all of my symptoms. I haven’t cried in months! Huzzah!”

Supplements (Magnesium, Melatonin, And More)

“I am almost 59, went through menopause just a couple of years ago (along with a divorce), and had trouble sleeping. Usually waking up at 3am. I discovered a drink mix called Nello SuperCalm with theanine and just the right amount of magnesium that has been a game changer! Full magnesium pills make me super slow and groggy the next morning. Theanine supplements are awesome for anxiety.”

“My girlfriends (early 60s to 70 in age) and I talk about quality of sleep and what to do fairly often. Many of us struggle with waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to get back to sleep for 1 to 4 hours! One of my friends recently revealed that she had been taking Benadryl every night for a decade!!! She finally shared that with her doctor and was told to stop immediately. Many of us have started taking magnesium glycinate with great success. I take 1 capsule before bedtime and basically sleep through the night except for having to get up to use the bathroom. When I took the recommended dosage of 2 capsules, I struggled with grogginess for several hours after waking.”

EBY is the celebrity-backed intimates brand behind some of the most comfortable bras we own. Everything is wireless but still extremely supportive thanks to a smart design that uses a 3D-printed nylon thread set inside silicone, then finished with slip-resistant flocking. The result: bras that stay put, mold to your shape, and never poke or dig.

We’re restocking for spring starting with the soft, all-day Relief Bra; the Seamless Sheer Bralette for comfort that’s also sexy, and the new T-Shirt Bra for an invisible layer under thin tops. Shop it all here. #partner

TO WATCH Peacock’s new series The Burbs (out Sunday) is a new iteration of the 1989 cult classic starring Tom Hanks and Carrie Fisher. Potentially funny? It features Keke Palmer in the starring role, with Paula Pell as a helpfully nosy neighbor. The Super Bowl — and Bad Bunney’s half-time show — is also on Sunday starting at 6:30 ET, obvs.

TO SHOP: The Outnet just kicked off an extra 30 percent off sale, running now through 2/12, and it’s a great moment to get investment pieces on major discount. Our wish list includes statement designer sunglasses, an incredible zebra coat, these chic corduroys, a crisp striped button-down, sexy black ankle boots, and a luxe polished blazer. There are also so many Mansur Gavriel bags. Shop it all here. #partner

TO LISTEN Taking in The History Bureau podcast from the BBC is like consuming a compulsive crime thriller — except it’s a deep dive into a real, and pivotal, world event that took place in 1999. It’s astounding; we’re hooked.

TO MAKE There’s a food-world fervor over cabbage right now…to the point that Vogue has dubbed 2026 the “year of the cabbage.” We get it: Cabbage is crunchy, affordable, and lasts forever in the fridge. We usually chop it into salads, but we are going to try roasting it with this tasty peanut crunch.

Document dump reveals Epstein’s movements in the art world as well as his close watch of the #metoo movement. • “Everyone is stealing TV.” • Interesting life lessons from four cold, snowy winters spent in Sweden. • Can incels be reformed? People are trying.

_{*Gloria may receive an affiliate commission on purchases made through our newsletter.}