Universal · Behavioral

Sleep Hygiene Checklist

The 12 habits that actually move the needle on sleep

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Sleep is the lever. Better sleep makes every other intervention work better. These are the evidence-based basics — pick three to start. Two weeks of consistency beats a perfect plan.

Day

Bright light on your face within 30 minutes of waking.
Cap caffeine 8–10 hours before bed.
Move your body — even a 20-minute walk shifts sleep that night.
If you nap, before 3pm and under 30 minutes.

Wind-down (90 min before bed)

Dim the lights. Overhead off, warm lamps on.
Stop work and email. The brain needs an off-ramp.
Light food only. Heavy meals delay sleep.
Alcohol earlier and lighter — it fragments deep sleep.

Bedroom

Cool (65–68°F / 18–20°C), dark, and quiet. Earplugs and an eye mask if needed.
Bed is for sleep and sex only. Not for scrolling.
Phone in another room — or at minimum, do-not-disturb and across the room.
Same wake time every day. Same wake time is more important than same bedtime.

If you can't sleep

After 20 minutes awake, get out of bed. Sit in dim light. Read something dull. Return to bed only when sleepy. This breaks the brain's link between bed and being awake.

My two-week tracker

Habit

Same wake time

Morning light

No caffeine after 2pm

Phone out of room

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About this worksheet

Sleep hygiene is the foundation layer of CBT for Insomnia (CBT-I) and the first-line intervention for garden-variety poor sleep across every clinical population. Environment (dark, cool, quiet), timing (consistent wake time first, bedtime second), wind-down (60–90 minutes off-screens, off-work, off-arguments), stimulants (caffeine cutoff, alcohol reality-check), and daytime factors (morning light, exercise timing, nap discipline). This worksheet is the printable checklist version — one page, no filler, the moves that actually have evidence behind them. Give it to any client whose sleep is a factor in their presentation (which is most of them). It's not a treatment for chronic insomnia on its own — for that, the client needs the full CBT-I protocol with sleep restriction and stimulus control — but as a starting point and a reference sheet, it does more clinical work than a conversation about sleep can.

When to use it

First-line intervention for any client whose sleep is a symptom or exacerbating factor — depression, anxiety, ADHD, trauma, chronic pain.
As psychoeducation before starting CBT-I, so the foundation is in place before sleep restriction begins.
For clients who report 'poor sleep' but haven't examined the basics — most of them get meaningful improvement from hygiene alone.
Not sufficient for chronic insomnia on its own — refer to full CBT-I when symptoms persist despite good hygiene.

How to use it

1
Walk the checklist together
Client marks each item as already-doing, sometimes, or not-doing. The 'not-doing' rows are the working list.
2
Pick two changes, not ten
Sleep hygiene fails when clients try to change everything at once. Two changes, held for two weeks, then re-evaluate.
3
Anchor to wake time first
Consistent wake time — including weekends — is the single most-evidenced move. Bedtime follows from wake time, not the reverse.
4
Track for two weeks
Pair with a sleep diary. Subjective 'I slept badly' is often unreliable; the diary shows the actual pattern.
5
Escalate if needed
If two rounds of hygiene changes don't move the needle, the client likely needs full CBT-I (stimulus control + sleep restriction) or a medical workup.

Frequently asked questions

What is sleep hygiene?+

The foundation-layer set of behavioral and environmental practices that support good sleep — consistent wake time, wind-down, dark cool room, caffeine cutoff, morning light, exercise timing. First-line behavioral intervention for poor sleep.

What are the 12 sleep hygiene tips on the checklist?+

1) Same wake time daily, 2) bed only when sleepy, 3) caffeine cutoff ~8 hours before bed, 4) limit alcohol near bedtime, 5) 60-minute wind-down, 6) screens out of bed, 7) dark room, 8) cool room (about 65–68°F), 9) quiet or white noise, 10) morning daylight within an hour of waking, 11) exercise earlier in the day, 12) naps under 30 minutes and before 3pm.

Is sleep hygiene enough for insomnia?+

For garden-variety poor sleep, often yes. For chronic insomnia (3+ nights/week for 3+ months), no — the client needs the full CBT-I protocol with stimulus control and sleep restriction. Hygiene is the foundation, not the treatment.

What's the single most important sleep hygiene rule?+

Consistent wake time, seven days a week. It anchors the circadian rhythm more reliably than any other single move. Bedtime should follow from wake time, not lead it.

How long before improvements show up?+

Two to four weeks with consistent changes. Sleep systems are slow — a week isn't enough to draw conclusions from.

Is this worksheet free?+

Yes. Free printable PDF for clinicians. Sign in to TherapistAssist to send it as a secure client link or add your practice name.

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Worksheet — Sleep Hygiene Checklist — provided by TherapistAssist for clinical use. Not a substitute for assessment or treatment.