Do This Tonight to Ease Schizophrenia Symptoms Tomorrow

Sleep well, live better with schizophrenia. Create a simple sleep hygiene routine to set your mind and body up for restful shut-eye.

Do This Tonight to Ease Schizophrenia Symptoms Tomorrow

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What You’ll Do

Take five minutes to “turn off” your bedroom by making it darker, cooler, and quieter — all things that may make it easier to fall and stay asleep. Close the curtains, turn down the thermostat (set it at 60 to 67 degrees F), and place your phone, tablet, and any other devices in another room.

How It Helps Schizophrenia

Setting your bedroom up for a good night’s rest is part of sleep hygiene (aka simple habits that set your mind and body up for quality sleep).

Good sleep hygiene is especially important for people living with schizophrenia. The condition can cause dysregulated sleep-wake patterns and poorer quality rest, which can make it even harder to manage symptoms such as mood instability and lack of motivation.

Basically, better shut-eye makes it easier to live well with schizophrenia.

What's Next?

Add a brief, relaxing activity to your wind-down routine. Consider a short meditation, breathing exercise, or simple stretch.

Choose a sustainable time to start your bedtime routine. Going to sleep and waking around the same time each day is good for mood stability and your overall health, so consider starting your turndowns at a specific time in the evenings.

Talk to your doctor if you’re having trouble falling or staying asleep, or wake up feeling exhausted even after going to bed at a reasonable time. Sleep disorders are common in people living with schizophrenia, and your provider can help you get to the bottom of what’s impacting your shut-eye.

Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.

Resources

Solodar J. Sleep Hygiene: Simple Practices for Better Rest. Harvard Health Publishing. January 31, 2025.
Mayeli A et al. Shared and Distinct Abnormalities in Sleep-Wake Patterns and Their Relationship With the Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorder Patients. Molecular Psychiatry. May 2023.
Chaput JP et al. Sleep timing, sleep consistency, and health in adults: a systematic review. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism. October 2020.
Gauld C et al. Sleep and schizophrenia spectrum. L’Encéphale. April 9, 2026.

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 brin...

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Jessica Hicks

Author

Jessica Hicks is a writer, editor, and published research author with a background that spans traditional journalism, health tech, and the nonprofit sector. She has experience prod...

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