10/14/2025

The Sleep Thief

When you’re sleeping, your brain does some of its most important work

When Shakespeare wrote "To sleep, perchance to dream," was he thinking wishfully? Remember when you could sleep anywhere, anytime? Your head hit the pillow and you were out until morning. Seems those days vanished somewhere between middle age and retirement, replaced by nights spent staring at the ceiling, performing word games on your smartphone, and tapping your charging Apple Watch to check on the time until it was light.

The cruelest trick of getting older is that right when you need sleep the most, your body says, "Nahhh." You discover you've forgotten how to actually fall asleep. The most maddening part? You need that sleep now more than you did when you could sleep through a rock concert. The times you do catch yourself nodding off might merely be in the middle of a segment of Antiques Roadshow because ancient dolls and Patek Phillipe watches don’t hold your interest.

It's when you're sleeping that your brain is doing some of its most important work—like a cleaning crew that only comes out at night, tidying up all the mental clutter, removing the waste, and getting everything ready for the next day. Your body repairs itself and your immune system recharges. Miss out on sleep, and it’s like skipping routine maintenance on your car. Eventually, things start to break down.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Psychology Today.