Getting laid off in 2024 shook me to my core.
And not using a regular earnings coming in, and my days crammed with churning out purposes to any open place I might discover, my sleep took a significant hit. And never in a approach that may make any well being skilled nod approvingly. Right here’s the deal: throughout 2024 and 2025, I began going to mattress at 5 (typically even six!) within the morning and waking up at 4 within the afternoon.
The heavy bags under my eyes, the feeling like half the day was already gone, and the sharp drop in my productivity made me feel like the laziest bum alive. At the start of this year, I looked myself dead in the mirror and made a decree: starting now, I’m repairing my sleep schedule for the sake of my private {and professional} life.
So I selected ChatGPT to assist me get again on observe, and it’s already finished wonders. Inside every week, getting actual sleep once more went a great distance towards making me really feel higher bodily and mentally.
ChatGPT gave me a step-by-step breakdown of practical sleep habits
During the first full week of the new year, I began my mission of repairing my sleep schedule with a lengthy prompt for ChatGPT:
“I’ve been going to sleep at five or six in the morning and waking up at four in the afternoon. Now I want to improve my sleeping habits. What are some ways I can do that?”
It responded in a reassuring tone with a thoughtful comment (“Resetting a sleep schedule like that is very doable—you just need a bit of structure and patience”) and 10 steps that laid out a process worth adopting.
Here’s a look at the step-by-step measures ChatGPT supplied me with:
- Pick a target sleep schedule (and commit to it). You don’t have to get there instantly, but having a fixed target keeps you from drifting
- Shift your schedule gradually (the least painful method). The wake-up time matters more than bedtime. Don’t sleep in to “catch up”
- Get morning light ASAP. This tells your brain: “This is morning now”
- Cut late-night stimulation. Right now, your brain thinks 2–4 a.m. is prime time
- Be strategic with caffeine. If you wake up late, don’t “stack” caffeine to compensate—it’ll delay sleep even more
- Avoid naps (temporarily). Feeling tired during the day is actually helpful—it builds sleep pressure
- Make your bedroom a sleep-only zone. Train your brain to associate bed with sleep
- Use consistency—even on weekends. Sleeping in “just this once” can undo several days of progress
- Consider a short-term assist (optional). Melatonin (0.5–1 mg) taken 3–4 hours before your target bedtime
- Be patient with the rough days. Most people fully reset their schedule in 1–2 weeks if they stay consistent.
I took note of everything ChatGPT laid out and slowly started working it into my daily (and nightly) routine. Instead of gaming until the birds started chirping and the sun was coming up, I cut off late-night sessions on weekdays.
I also stopped taking daily naps and eased up on the caffeinated drinks I used to rely on for a quick energy boost after waking up.
Now, I’ll admit I still sleep in on weekends — if I’ve got zero obligations, I’m taking those extra hours. But once I started putting ChatGPT’s sleep advice into action, I could feel myself getting better.
I put ChatGPT’s 7-Day Sleep Reset Plan into action, and it did wonders for me
For the next week, I tasked ChatGPT with a new mission: “Build me a 7-day reset plan based on my 9:00 a.m. wake-up time.”
The chatbot’s follow-up response detailed an easy-to-follow process that I instantly put into action.
For the first day of my rebooted sleep program, ChatGPT told me to wake up at 2:30 pm and head to bed at 4:30–5:00 a.m. It also advised me to get bright light immediately after waking (opening curtains, stepping outside), adopt some sort of light movement only (walking, stretching), avoid caffeine after 8:00 p.m., and start winding down at 3:30 a.m.
I figured ChatGPT advised me to do this on the first day to ease my body into adjusting to this new sleep schedule—it wouldn’t make much sense to start waking up early in the morning just one day after leaving my prior sleeping pattern behind.
The remainder of ChatGPT’s daily approach to fixing my sleeping routine is as follows:
- Day 2: wake up at 1:30 p.m., dim lights after 2:30 a.m., and go to bed at 3:30–4:00 a.m.
- Day 3: wake up at 12:00 p.m., your bedroom should be cool and dark, and go to bed at 2:30–3:00 a.m.
- Day 4: wake up at 10:30 a.m., dim your screen after midnight, and go to bed at 1:45–2:15 a.m.
- Day 5: wake up at 9:45 a.m., start winding down at 12:15 a.m., and go to bed at 1:15–1:45 a.m.
- Day 6: wake up at 9:00 a.m., stay consistent even if sleep was rough, and go to bed at 12:45–1:15 a.m.
- Day 7: wake up at 9:00 a.m., lock in with my new rhythm, and go to bed at 12:30–1:00 a.m.
By the fifth day of my initial week as a reformed sleeper, I started feeling less tired and a bit rejuvenated during the day. ChatGPT’s planning did a good job of helping me get accustomed to new times for waking up and turning in for bedtime.
The takeaway
While it was an uphill battle trying to quit taking midday naps and avoid getting stuck in a late-night YouTube documentary vortex, I ultimately overcame my unhealthy sleeping habits.
Over the course of seven days, I took each bit of recommendation ChatGPT gave me on bettering them and put its seven-day sleep plan to good use. I got here out all the higher for it and am grateful to my chatbot for giving me a sensible methodology meant to assist me really feel much less drained.
To date, ChatGPT has offered me with a workout plan meant for beginners. And with its newly equipped plan to assist me get extra sleep and rid myself of that sluggish feeling, I’m wanting ahead to a wholesome 2026.
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