How Many Hours of Sleep Do You Actually Need?

[Daisy]

One of the common questions asked by many people regarding sleep is how many hours of sleep do you actually need?

If you do a lot of physical and mental labor you need to sleep more than the person who works on average job. If you are not well, for instance, you have fever; you need to sleep more than a normal person because sleeping more helps you to recover faster. In order to find out how many hours you need to sleep, let’s look at the following data:

• Newborns (0-3 months) sleep just few hours at a time, and need 16-18 hours of sleep.

• Infants (4-12 months) need 12-16 hours of sleep and their body understand the night time and day time sleeping

• Toddlers (1-2 years) need 11-14 hours of sleep, they sleep well at night and take naps in the day.

• Preschool (3-5 years) need 10-13 hours sleep, they might either be night owl or early bird

• School age (6-12 years) need 9-12 hours of sleep, they tend to go into deep sleep

• Teens (13-18) need 8-10 hours of sleep; they tend to stay up until late hours

• Adults (19-) need to sleep at least 7 hours, they get less sleep over the years, dream sleep (see a lot of dreams during the sleep) as they get older.

[Ravenfreak]

I try to get around at least 6 hours of sleep on weeknights. I try to go to sleep a bit earlier, but it just doesn't seem to work out lol. On my days off I get around 7 or 8 hours of sleep since I can sleep in a little bit.

[Heatman]

As an adult, I know at least good 6 to 7 hours of sleep is very good but unfortunately I have not been getting that much for more than 7 years now. I can barely sleep 3-4 hours everyday. There are some days I don't sleep at all till the next morning. My sleep pattern have been wrecked.

[Riberet19]

I personally sleep between 6-8 hours depending on the day, if I sleep less than 6 hours, the next day I will be extremely tired, as if I sleep more than 8 too, so I always try to sleep those hours although sometimes it costs me a lot to get to sleep.

But I think this also depends on the person, I have seen people who sleeping 4 hours are perfectly the next day.

[The Raven]

That depends on when I feel asleep. If I go to sleep early, I would say 8 hours, but if I sleep late, then most likely 6-7 will be just fine. It also depends on my dreams because I always dream. Every single day. I read that dreams often occur at 1am because the brain goes in REM phase of sleeping. Sometimes the issue is when I dream and keep waking up around 2am, 5am, or 6am. It interrupts my sleep and I wake up very tired despite going to bad earlier.

[deucher]

I don't know why, but I very often sleep more than 9 hours and I am already 21 years old. I always go to bed around 10pm but it doesn't help and I still fall asleep very sleepy. Even though I have a regimen that I follow.

[Rex]

The optimal amount of sleep varies by age and individual needs. Generally, adults need 7-9 hours per night for optimal health. Teenagers require 8-10 hours, while younger children need more, ranging from 9-14 hours depending on age. Consistently getting the recommended amount supports cognitive function, mood regulation, and overall well-being. Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to health issues like obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

[Kennysplash]

I do very fine with consistent 6 hours of sleep on a daily basis. Sometimes I get occasional one hour of sleep every afternoon as well. Sleeping more than 7 hours for an adult can be counterproductive too.

[Bizdustry.com]

Probably only about 6-7 hours because I have a busy work schedule. It’s enough sleep to function and on my non working day I make up for any lack of rest if my body feels tired. Best way to do it.

[Ginger]

I prefer to sleep for at least 7-8 hours but there are times when I sleep for only 6 hours or so but that does not happen often and ideally I try to sleep for minimum 7-8 hours.