Look for these 5 clues you need more sleep

Graphic with a photo of Dr. Victoria Boggiano and text reading

We know that sleep is important for our health. Long-term sleep issues have been linked to worse cardiovascular health, a weakened immune system and cancer.

“Sleep really varies from person to person, and as we age, the amount we need changes,” says UNC Health family medicine physician Dr. Victoria Boggiano. Your goal should be to feel rested and ready for the day when you wake and tired at bedtime.

“Because there’s so much individual variation, it can be hard to get to that perfect spot,” Boggiano says.

So how do you know if you’re getting enough? Look for these clues that you could use more shut-eye.

You don’t want to get out of bed, and you run out of steam before the day ends.

Being tired in the morning can be a sign of either not getting enough sleep or getting too much.

“When we’re well-rested, we often find that we have the ability to do the things we want to do in a day without fatiguing,” Boggiano says. “When people consistently feel fatigued as they go about their day, looking at sleep quality and quantity is part of the solution. Working to improve your sleep can be really transformative.”

You can’t shake your bad mood, and everyone irritates you.

“A lack of sleep causes mood changes, so that you feel anxious, depressed, irritable and stressed,” Boggiano says. “Stress and sleep are a chicken-and-egg situation. Stress makes it hard to sleep, and lack of sleep causes stress.”

A lack of sleep also affects your interactions with others. “Our ability to navigate social dynamics, take care of a loved one, and be present and engage in conversations are all affected by how much sleep we get,” Boggiano says. “When we’re not getting enough, those social connections suffer.”

You make poor food choices and skip the gym.

“The hormones that affect hunger and fullness can get out of balance when you’re lacking sleep, so you’ll likely reach for more food and less healthy foods as a response,” Boggiano says. But junk food depletes your energy, and eating too much can make it hard to sleep later. “It can feel like an insatiable hunger that you can’t get ahead of.”

When you’re tired, you also don’t want to exercise.

You make errors or can’t complete tasks.

Lack of sleep can increase the chance that you’ll make an error or forget something.

“You might still be making good decisions, but it will feel a lot harder,” Boggiano says. “Your ability to process tasks decreases, so it feels harder to write a complex email or complete tasks.”

Depending on the situation, these errors can be more consequential. “Driving on little sleep has real safety implications,” Boggiano says. “Your processing speed is slower, and that affects your accuracy.”

You don’t look like yourself.

A night or two without good sleep can be enough to cause bags under the eyes, puffiness, dryness or a dull complexion. Lack of quality sleep has been associated with a wide range of effects on the skin, including psoriasis, acne, rosacea and premature skin aging.