I had seven hours sleep, which I haven’t had in weeks, after talking to an M.D. who’s a sleep specialist. In a little while, I’ll relate what he told me, because it might be helpful to others.

First, a caveat: I took 12.5mg of Hydroxyzine at bedtime.

Second, credentials of Dr. Steven Feinsilver, so you know this isn’t some woo-woo I heard in line at Whole Foods.

The most important variable is, wake up at the same time every day. Set an alarm. Even if you’re tired, even if you didn’t sleep, get out of bed. And try to get morning sun on your face, if you can do it safely, to set your circadian rhythm.

Working backwards from your wake up time, go to sleep seven hours earlier. If you’re not tired, so it anyway; if you’re exhausted, try to stay awake.

Every sleep study I’ve seen says that bed should be only for sleeping and sex, and *some* sleep experts say it shouldn’t even be for sex, except that half you guys are too vanilla to do it anywhere else.

Don’t read in bed. Read in a chair and stay out of the bed until bedtime. If you can’t fall asleep after 15 minutes, get out of bed and do something else, it ain’t happening, chief.

The more you avoid alcohol and caffeine, the better. Put away your phone two hours before bedtime, and try to not stare it all day long; the light is stimulating. Exercise, but not right before bed.

If you need Benzos to sleep, make goddamn sure it’s only for a short period of time. If you think insomnia is bad, let me tell you about benzo addiction.

Naps might make it harder to fall asleep, but if you’re miserable, take a nap. This is the timely aspect of what he said: everyone is sleeping badly. Accept it. Don’t struggle with it, don’t get angry or frustrated, live with it. Do what you need to do to get through the day.

It won’t last forever.

One late thing to add. IMPORTANT. Insomnia might be a symptom of depression, even if it's not accompanied by any other symptoms. Years ago, I had a very long insomnia and my wife, a psychiatrist, kept saying, "You might be depressed." Me: "I'm not DEPRESSED. I just can't SLEEP."

It had been triggered by a friend's betrayal, and to me, I was righteously pissed off. Finally, it got bad enough to see a shrink, who put me on an antidepressant, which resolved the depression and the insomnia.

Of course, he also put me on benzos and renewed the prescription without any warning for four years, which made me an addict, so fuck him!