All the ways to sleep better
A sleeping pill should not be your first step. The best proven fix for insomnia is a short skills program, and many sleep problems have a physical cause worth ruling out. Below is every option, in order.
Insomnia counts as chronic when you struggle to fall or stay asleep three or more nights a week for three months. Lots of people have it, and it responds well to treatment. Guidelines rank a special form of CBT first, before medication.
We sort the options by how strong the research is. Each card tells you what the approach is, what it involves, what studies found and who offers it.
Whole Wellbeing Atlas lists providers. We do not give medical care. Bring this guide to your doctor or therapist and decide together. In a crisis, call or text 988 (the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline). You can also go straight to the closest emergency room.
Written by the Whole Wellbeing Atlas Editorial Team and reviewed on September 29, 2026. You will find every source at the bottom of the page. How we write and check our guides.
Find these options close to home
Type your ZIP code and we will show local providers under each approach.
Best evidence
Clinical guidelines name these first. This is the place to begin.
CBT for insomnia (CBT-I)
A program of 4 to 8 sessions. It resets your sleep schedule, teaches your brain to connect bed with sleep again and calms worry at night. It is the recommended first treatment for chronic insomnia.
Sleep apnea evaluation
Loud snoring, gasping at night or feeling sleepy all day can be signs of sleep apnea, which has its own treatment. A sleep test at home or in a lab will tell you.
Good evidence
Solid trials support these. They pair well with first-line care.
Short-term medication
When CBT-I is out of reach or does not do enough, some prescription sleep medicines help for a short time. Take them with a prescriber's guidance, at the lowest dose that works.
Regular exercise
Staying active on a regular basis gives you better sleep and helps you drift off sooner.
Some evidence
The studies are smaller or mixed. Many people like these as extras next to their main care.
Mindfulness meditation
Compared with people given sleep education or a similar comparison program, those in meditation programs slept better.
Tai chi and yoga
Slow, gentle movement that helped sleep in several trials, most of all for older adults.
Acupuncture
It may help sleep, but a Cochrane review judged the trials too small and too different to give a firm answer.
Emerging or specialist
Research is still under way, or these are kept for when first treatments fall short.
Melatonin and supplements
Melatonin can help with jet lag and body clock problems. Sleep guidelines advise against leaning on it for chronic insomnia. There is little evidence for magnesium or CBD.
Check with a doctor first if
- Snoring loudly, gasping in your sleep or nodding off at the wheel: get tested for sleep apnea soon.
- Poor sleep along with low mood or nonstop worry: treating the depression or anxiety often brings sleep back.
- Physically acting out dreams, or legs that feel they must move at night: book a visit with a sleep specialist.
Sources
- Annals of Internal Medicine, 2016. American College of Physicians guideline
- 2021 guideline, American Academy of Sleep Medicine
- Diagnostic guideline, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 2017
- Pharmacologic guideline, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 2017
- Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 2015. Kredlow et al., meta-analysis
- Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2019. Rusch et al., meta-analysis
- Cochrane Review, 2012. Cheuk et al.
Do you provide one of these?
Listing is free. Show up under your approach, in your ZIP code, right beside the research.