Resist the urge to hit snooze
While sleeping in is tempting, it's actually the worst thing you can do, says Sonia Ancoli-Israel, PhD, director of education at the UCSD Sleep Medicine Center: “The truth is, after one bad night of sleep you should change very little in your routine. You should still get up at the same time you do every other morning, even if it's the weekend."
A consistent wake-up time is key for maintaining your circadian rhythms, the patterns in your physiological processes that affect everything from your energy to your immunity, metabolism, even creativity. Sleeping late throws your body clock off for the rest of the day—and when your regular bedtime rolls around, you may not feel tired yet, setting you up for another night of insufficient sleep.
What's more, snoozing for a few extra minutes in the a.m. isn't going to make you feel better, Ancoli-Israel adds. It may actually leave you more dazed than before. (Here's how one Health editor learned to quit the snooze button for good.)