Sleepless in Tech: Does Working in Tech Cause Insomnia?
Welcome to the “Insomnia in the Tech Industry” series! If you’re a professional in the tech industry with trouble sleeping, you’re in the right place.
During this series I’ll be sharing stories from a variety of tech workers who’ve been in your shoes, as well as info from other industry professionals like Health Tech CEOs, Psychiatrists, Sleep Specialists, and Sleep Researchers. Together we’re disabling the firewall that protects this topic to discover why sleep is so elusive, what factors in tech industry culture contribute to insomnia, and what you can do to create your own sleep algorithm.
Identifying The Problem
“I don’t know if I have insomnia or not, but I do know that I often find myself in bed just staring at the ceiling thinking about what I’m doing tomorrow.”
"I don't know if I have insomnia or not, but I do know that I often find myself in bed just staring at the ceiling thinking about what I'm doing tomorrow. I don’t know if that would be considered insomnia, but I know it happens a lot." Says Antwoyne, an entrepreneur in Tennessee who provides artificial intelligence business automations.
Like many other tech professionals I’ve spoken to, Antwoyne knows there’s something off with his sleep, but hesitates to label it as a problem.
“I don't know what I would call it.” He says. “I know when I lay down and the TV's off, the computer's off, the phone's down, I'm telling my mind, ‘Hey, I'm trying to get some rest.’ But it says ‘hmm, but what about that power automate flow that you were running yesterday?’ Is that a problem? I don't know. I guess that's why I’m talking to you.. I don't know if it’s a problem or not."
Antwoyne considers himself a very positive person who enjoys being a motivating force in the industry, and when discussing his sleep he says, “I’m an optimist, it could be worse”.
He shares this quality with Randall, a professional in Central Florida, who said about his sleep, “It’s not that bad, I’ll just keep dealing with it. I don’t like to complain. If something is minor I just keep it to myself.”
“it’s probably not as bad as someone else has it”
Randall put off addressing his poor sleep for 5 years, thinking “it’s probably not as bad as someone else has it”, until falling asleep at the wheel caused a car accident. He finally spoke to his doctor and got diagnosed with Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), a sleep disorder that causes trouble breathing during sleep and can lead to heart failure if left untreated.
Stereotypes
So why aren’t we talking about the sleep of tech workers? Why is it so difficult to acknowledge when we’re having trouble sleeping and ask for help or look for solutions?
“Sleeping in is seen as an irresponsible thing”
Ken feels there’s a stereotype around sleep that’s culturally embedded in our society. “It’s seen as a responsible thing for people to wake up early and get started with their day versus sleeping in is seen as an irresponsible thing”.
Ken is a senior graphics engineer who lives with Circadian Rhythm Sleep-Wake Disorder (CRSWD), delayed sleep phase type, meaning that his biological clock is programmed to sleep from around 2-3AM to 10-11AM rather than the average 10-11PM to 6-7AM. With a long history of work in game development, he says his sleeping hours are normalized by the industry.
While Ken sometimes feels judgment from typical sleepers, he’s glad to have found a space in tech where the hours are flexible enough for him to sleep in his own circadian window. "I don't have insomnia now that I live within my natural circadian rhythm. My brain works a little differently than most people and if I don't try to fight it too much, then I won't have insomnia. If I do try to fight it, then I will."
This flexibility supports his sleep needs, but is there also a time when too much flexibility actually promotes insomnia? More on that in the next article.
“I can’t have sleep apnea, I’ve never been told that I snore”
Randall agrees that stereotypes contributed to how long it took him to get help. “There's a stereotype that it's only obese people who get Obstructive Sleep Apnea, but I know people who use CPAP machines (continuous positive airway pressure, the first-line treatment for OSA) who aren't obese. I thought, ‘I can't have sleep apnea, I’ve never been told that I snore’."
Peer Pressure vs. Internal Pressure
Oscar, an experienced tech manager at an engineering firm, has another perspective. Rather than feeling a moral pressure to be “responsible” by sleeping well, he feels pressure at work to do the opposite.
“We don’t have time to talk about sleep”
“The perspective passed down by the generation of Xers and boomers in the tech field is that we don't have time for personal feelings. We don’t have time to talk about sleep or stuff like that. I can sleep when I die. There's too much to be done” he shared passionately.
For Ariel, an infrastructure designer in electrical engineering, it’s an internal self-criticism that keeps him quiet. “I don't talk about it a huge amount. I just think ‘I gotta get myself together’. I see it as what should be an easy fix. It's just not for me”.
We’ve all heard the old adage, ‘The first step in solving a problem is admitting there is a problem to be solved.’ But it’s pretty difficult to identify something as a problem when our environment is reinforcing its normality.
Do YOU have a sleep disorder?
What we’re seeing in tech industry culture is either on the tame end doing the bare minimum to address sleep health by allowing late start times, or on the dangerous end influencing and enforcing behaviors that are damaging to our sleep.
So how can you identify if you may be exhibiting signs of a sleep disorder?
As a sleep specialist I ask a myriad of questions to assess sleep, some of which include:
Do you have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up earlier than you’d like?
Do you feel fatigued during the day, especially around 10-11AM?
Do you find yourself canceling plans with friends or bailing on tasks you’d like to do due to feeling too tired?
Do you notice feeling anxiety or anticipation in the evening, the closer it gets to bedtime?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, it’s time to check in with your doctor or a sleep specialist.
Randall used to drink ice water, chew peanuts, and roll the windows down to stay awake in the car, but still had little memory of the drive home from work. After admitting to the problem and getting treatment, he says fear of accidents isn’t a concern anymore and he has more energy than he’s felt in years. “Don't wait as long as I did or just assume it's something else,” Randall says, “there might actually be something wrong.”
If you’re ready to sleep better, click below to schedule a free consultation.
If these stories connect with you, stay tuned for future articles on topics like #personality #perfectionism #introversion #workfromhome #circadianrhythm #hyperfocus #gaming and much more. Subscribe below to be notified when new articles are released!
