Have you laid in bed and your thoughts are constantly racing and feel that you can�t get comfortable and/or turn your brain off. This may contribute to your mind trying to fight itself and lead to poor sleep habits. According to Mind (2023), �Poor sleep leads to worrying. Worrying leads to poor sleep. Worrying about sleep is like your mind trying to fight itself. That�s a horrible place to be�.

There�s a close relationship between sleep and mental health. Living with a mental health problem can affect how well you sleep, and poor sleep can have a negative impact on your mental health. Sleep deprivation affects your psychological state and mental health. Individuals with mental health problems are more likely to have insomnia or other sleep disorders (Harvard Health Publishing, 2021). Sleep problems are particularly common in people who have been diagnosed with�anxiety,�depression, bipolar disorder, and ADHD (Harvard Health Publishing, 2021).

Understanding your chronotype can help you be able to create healthier sleep habits. A chronotype is your body�s natural inclination to sleep at certain times. Have you ever heard of people being an early bird or a night owl? This has to do with your chronotype. In addition to regulating sleep and wake times, chronotype has an influence on appetite, exercise, and core body temperature. It is responsible for the fact that you feel more alert at certain periods of the day and sleepier at others� (The Sleep Foundation, 2023).� Knowing your chronotype can help you understand your individual sleep needs, as well as when the best time is to eat, drink caffeine, exercise, and more.

There are four sleep chronotypes: Bear, Lion, Wolf, And Dolphin

Bears:�are all-day �hunters� which means they spend most of the day awake and then tend to sleep deeply at night. They are most alert and productive during the middle of the day, from late morning through early afternoon, making their productivity power hours from 10 AM � 2 PM (Calm, 2023) and (Breus, 2022).

�Lions:�are morning �hunters�, so they are generally good sleepers that wake up energized and ready to take on the day. The morning and early afternoon are their most productive times making their productivity power hours from 7 AM � 12 PM (Calm, 2023) and (Breus, 2022).

Wolves:�are nighttime �hunters�, feeling most productive in the evening. They don�t start feeling tired until midnight or so which makes their productivity power hours from 4 PM � 6 PM (Calm, 2023) and (Breus, 2022).

Dolphins:�They are tired during the day and wired with restless, nervous energy at night. Dolphins struggle to fall asleep and stay asleep, tending to wake up often during the night. Dolphins do have a high productivity window with their productivity power hours from 3 PM � 9 PM (Calm, 2023) and (Breus, 2022).

Resources:

• https://blog.calm.com/blog/sleep-chronotypes#:~:text=Bear%20Chronotype&text=Schedule%3A%20Bears%20are%20all%2Dday,from%2010%20am%2D2%20pm.
• https://www.thewep.org/documentations/mctq
• https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/sleep-and-mental-health
• https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/sleep-problems/about-sleep-and-mental-health/
• https://thesleepdoctor.com/how-sleep-works/chronotypes/
• https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sleep-newzzz/202104/the-four-chronotypes-which-one-are-you
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FZl4V18tfI