Insomnia is one of those universal equalizers that can affect everyone and anyone. The condition — characterized by trouble falling or staying asleep — can be a temporary issue caused by stress or a chronic problem that occurs three nights per week for at least three months.
Chronic insomnia is fairly common, affecting about 12 percent of American adults. So much so, in fact, that several notable celebrities deal with it, too. Here are 11 famous people who’ve spoken publicly about their insomnia, and why it’s so important to get help for this sleep health issue.
First, What Causes Insomnia?
Several factors can contribute to insomnia, including mental health conditions like depression or anxiety, emotionally stressful events like divorce or loss of a loved one, and certain medical conditions like diabetes, heart disease, or those that cause chronic pain.
Other conditions, like menopausal hot flashes or gastrointestinal issues like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), can lead to sleep difficulties. Traveling frequently across different time zones can interrupt normal sleep patterns, too.
If you have problems with sleep, it’s important that you get help as soon as possible. Unaddressed sleep problems tend to get worse and get tougher to treat the more habitual they become.
1
George Clooney
In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter in 2012, the actor, director, and producer George Clooney revealed that he routinely had a “tough time getting to sleep,” and that he woke up as many as five times per night. In another Hollywood Reporter interview in 2017, which was published three months after the birth of his twins, Clooney shared that he had resolved his earlier issue with insomnia, but that it had been replaced by another source of sleep deprivation: being a parent of newborns.
2
Mariah Carey
Singer-songwriter Mariah Carey has talked about her search for sleep for many years. In a 2002 interview with the Guardian, Carey discussed having a breakdown caused, she said, by working too much.
“'The bottom line is that I was severely exhausted,” Carey said. “I've always had trouble with insomnia. It's more falling asleep than staying asleep, especially when I've been performing or doing interviews — there's a certain amount of adrenaline that goes along with that — and when I'd finally unwind and go to sleep I'd be woken in another couple of hours to speak to someone in Australia, and then they'd say ‘Oh, there are just a couple more reporters and they're going to ride with you in the car,’ and there was no downtime.”
In 2018, Carey revealed that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2001, which she attributes to the likely causes of earlier sleep problems. In an interview with People magazine in 2018, she noted that she was getting treatment that doesn’t make her feel tired or sluggish anymore, and that she is “in a really good place.”
3
Chuck Palahniuk
In an article he wrote for the Guardian, the author Chuck Palahniuk shared his theory about insomnia being a sort of muse for creative people like himself. Palahniuk, well-known for his novel Fight Club, whose protagonist who suffers from insomnia because of job stress and frequent travel for work, suggests that writers are inspired by things that are related to shock or suffering. “Fasting works. Rejection, too. Insomnia works wonderfully,” Palahniuk wrote.
According to Palahniuk, Fight Club was inspired by his own insomnia. “In 1993, I found myself stranded in Reno, Nevada, with no money and nowhere to stay,” Palahniuk wrote. “At night I wandered sleepless through the empty all-night casinos and restaurants, exhausted, delirious, and inventing a story about a man who thought he had insomnia but was actually living a double life: whenever he thought he was asleep, his alter ego would venture forth to have all the adventures he, himself, could never consciously dare.”
Palahniuk recognized, though, that the insomnia lifestyle is not a healthy one. “To be honest, Ambien helps me sleep more nights than I care to admit — although I’m uncertain about the quality of that sleep,” he wrote.
4
Renée Zellweger
Jet-setting to different parts of the world for filming and premieres may sound glamorous. But the constant travel that comes with making and promoting a film (shifting time zones and sleeping in unfamiliar places) can be a recipe for insomnia. In 2005, the actor Renée Zellweger shared with W magazine that because of her busy schedule, she often didn’t have time for sleep.
Recalling a 10-day promotional tour for Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason that had her traveling to 10 countries, Zellweger told W, “Your body doesn’t quite register that you’re supposed to eat at a certain time, or that it’s time to sleep.”
5
Roxane Gay
The author Roxane Gay has written short stories, criticism, and essays, including her 2014 collection, Bad Feminism, and her 2017 memoir titled Hunger. Across multiple pieces, Gay has written about her experience with sleep problems, and was quoted in a 2014 interview with Specter Magazine saying, “I suffer from insomnia.”
In an August 2019 interview with the Medium site Elemental, Gay said she is a “night owl” and gets most of her work done from about 7 or 8 p.m. until 2 a.m. “I try to go to bed before midnight, but that rarely happens.”
6
Kim Cattrall
Kim Cattrall has spoken publicly about her experience with insomnia, which has affected her ability to work. In 2015, the actor pulled out of a play she was scheduled to perform in at London’s Royal Court Theatre. The reason, she later disclosed, was insomnia, the BBC reported in 2016.
In another 2016 interview with BBC Radio, Cattrall described her insomnia as “like being pinned down by a three-ton gorilla.” She also shared an entry from her diary during her stay in London, in which she wrote, “I think I’m losing the ability to think clearly. Words are harder to remember without sleep. I can’t grasp, hold on to ideas, thoughts, or even tasks. They’re slipping away from me since I got here, and I can’t sleep. … Without sleep, there is no way to wash away the debris that collects throughout any given day, no way to clear and cleanse the thoughts that bracket morning through night.”
7
Jennifer Aniston
In a 2016 interview with HuffPost, Jennifer Aniston spoke about her trials with insomnia and what habits have helped improve her sleep. Aniston described her insomnia experience as like having a “committee in my head,” she noted. “If I wake up at 3 in the morning, I just start having conversations, and they won’t shut up, and then I can’t get back to sleep.”
“I think it started somewhere in my thirties or even earlier, but you just don’t start to notice the effects of a lack of sleep when we’re younger because we’re so invincible,” the actor told People in 2022. "It began as something that I would just accept, and then all of a sudden you realize the effects of your lack of sleep and how it affects your day, your work, and your mind function and your physique."
One thing that further fueled Aniston’s insomnia? Watching the clock, which she considered "a big no-no," because she started obsessing about the time passing by. "And the more I worry about it, the harder it is to fall asleep," she said.
Aniston said some things that have helped with her insomnia include sleeping with the phone at least five feet away, doing a quick meditation before getting into bed, and doing some stretches and yoga poses. She also recommends turning off electronic devices an hour before turning off the lights.
8
Pete Wentz
The Fall Out Boy musician Pete Wentz described to Rolling Stone in 2013 how his sleep issues led to his abuse of prescription drugs like Xanax and Klonopin. "I was probably physically and mentally addicted," he said. "It started from insomnia and anxiety from flying, then it spiraled."
Eventually, Wentz became paranoid. "I was scared of everything. I thought there were always people listening to me," he confessed. "Like, I had my house searched for bugs. It was crazy."
Since then, Wentz opened up about dealing with bipolar disorder in a 2015 interview with HuffPost. He takes care of himself, he explained, by exercising, meditating, talking things through, and having a schedule with his family.
9
Christina Applegate
The actor Christina Applegate has been outspoken about her insomnia and has worked to help others dealing with sleep issues. In 2017, she told Self magazine that she had lived with insomnia for 20 years. “I could sleep a couple of hours and then be up for four hours and then fall asleep again right before my alarm goes off,” she said.
Applegate said learning more about her insomnia and which daytime and nighttime routines can contribute to it has helped her make changes to improve her sleep. "I didn’t even realize that the contributing factors to my insomnia were simple things that I could start to change," she told Self. This included a five-minute bedtime meditation and staying off her phone before sleep (and if she wakes up during the night).
In 2021, Applegate was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) — a progressive neurological condition that causes myriad symptoms, insomnia being one of them.
10
Rihanna
The singer Rihanna has discussed her sleeping troubles in multiple interviews. In the December 2017 issue of French Vogue, she revealed that her racing mind is the culprit. "I have a lot of trouble switching off," she said.
"Even when I get home early, which means before 1 a.m., I start binge-watching shows or documentaries, which I love. I can’t go straight to bed. As a matter of fact, I only sleep three or four hours a night."
11
Jennifer Lopez
The singer and actor Jennifer Lopez is regularly praised for being one of the hardest-working celebrities in Hollywood. But in a 2022 edition of her newsletter, On the JLo, she revealed how her nonstop lifestyle led to serious health issues, reported Vanity Fair.
“There was a time in my life when I used to sleep three to five hours a night. I'd be on set all day and in the studio all night and doing junkets and filming videos on the weekends," she wrote. "I was in my late twenties, and I thought I was invincible.”
One day, while spending time in her trailer on the set, the lack of sleep caught up with her. Lopez "went from feeling totally normal to thinking about what I needed to do that day — and all of a sudden I felt as if I couldn't move," she continued.
"I was completely frozen," Lopez said. She noted it was a “classic panic attack brought on by exhaustion.” Her doctor said she was dealing with severe exhaustion and needed more sleep. "I realized how serious the consequences could be of ignoring what my body and mind needed to be healthy — and that's where my journey to wellness began," she said.
The Takeaway
- Insomnia is a debilitating sleep condition characterized by trouble falling or staying asleep.
- Temporary insomnia can be caused by stress or anxiety, while chronic insomnia, which happens at least three nights a week for at least three months, can occur from underlying mental or physical health conditions, lifestyle changes, and emotional distress.
- Celebrities like Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, Kim Cattrall, and more have experienced insomnia due to travel between several time zones, exhaustion, and work-related stress.
- Celebrities who’ve reported having insomnia have spoken out about the importance of getting help for sleep health issues.
Additional reporting by Leah Groth.
Meet Our Experts
Alex Dimitriu, MD
Medical Reviewer
Alex Dimitriu, MD, is dual board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine. He helps his patients optimize peak performance by day and peak restorative sleep by night, and he brings a deep respect for science and spirituality into his work.
Dr. Dimitriu has been recognized by The New York Times, Discover magazine, Men’s Health, Cosmopolitan, and NBC News, among other media outlets. He is a medical reviewer for Business Insider and the Sleep Foundation, and is a contributing author to the Encyclopedia of Sleep Medicine.
Katherine Lee
Author
Katherine Lee is a writer and editor who specializes in health, science, and parenting content. She has written for Verywell, where she covered school-age parenting, and worked as an editor at Parenting and Working Mother magazines. She has written and edited numerous articles and essays on science, parenting, and children's health and development for What to Expect, the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences, the American Psychological Association, and Newsweek, among others