Not enough deep sleep?

[Onightingale02]

I just got the Fitbit Charge 2 for Christmas. For the days I've had it my deep sleep is always at eleven percent or lower. I'm only fifteen and I know deep sleep is vital at my age. I don't understand if this is a sleep problem or if the Fitbit isn't catching when I actually am getting deep sleep. I also realized I'll wake up many, many times in the night. Usually staying awake about seventy to eighty minutes every night. I assume since I've been waking up so often that that's why I'll sleep much longer. Does anyone have any suggestions of how to fix my sleep? I normally go to bed at a decent time (8:00-9:00) Is anyone else like this?  

[WavyDavey]

Hi @Onightingale02,

Thanks for posting. Now that's an awesome sleep! I'm jealous of the time in bed.

A lot of us get less deep sleep than they we'd like. Feel free to check out our Deep Sleep Thread, which has many tips and discussion.

I think the Fitbit numbers can be helpful, but it's better to go first by how one feels. Are you waking feeling rested? Is your physical performance lagging? When I get too little deep sleep, work in the gym starts to get harder and harder.

As far as the awake times go, Fitbit reports it's normal to have up to dozens of them during the night. They are just short enough in duration we don't remember most of them the next day. Sweet dreams!

[IrisoftheDesert]

I have sleep apnea.  I told my sleep Dr. about the lack of deep sleep on the FitBit.  of course, he said there's no way to get an accurate reading without getting all hooked up in the sleep lab.  However, I said I thought it was 'relative" as it does show different amounts.  I'm not happy with my deep sleep results.  However, it could be a whole other issue.  who knows.  I'm trying everything within my power to gain some DS.  

[IrisoftheDesert]

I'm thinking if you only had around 7-8 hrs of sleep, you'd have maybe 7% deep sleep??? 

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@Onightingale02 wrote:

I just got the Fitbit Charge 2 for Christmas. For the days I've had it my deep sleep is always at eleven percent or lower. I'm only fifteen and I know deep sleep is vital at my age. I don't understand if this is a sleep problem or if the Fitbit isn't catching when I actually am getting deep sleep. I also realized I'll wake up many, many times in the night. Usually staying awake about seventy to eighty minutes every night. I assume since I've been waking up so often that that's why I'll sleep much longer. Does anyone have any suggestions of how to fix my sleep? I normally go to bed at a decent time (8:00-9:00) Is anyone else like this?  

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[craigk4]

There are external factors than effect sleep. Like spending too much time on phones, tablets or computers for example. You can do some simple things that may help your sleep quality. I would check Shawn Stevenson on YouTube. He also has a great book you could use for reference.

[Carolina4]

I am also suffering from same kind of issue. Not enough sleep even at night. 

[KellTann]

There's a health system that I take that improves sleep. I added you so I can send you a message with the link.

[Paddlegirl]

I came across this message when googling deep sleep. I lack deep sleep, but get too much REM sleep consistently. That is characteristic of narcolepsy. I first began experiencing symptoms as a teenager but wasn't diagnosed until my mid thirties after a sleep study. I like the Fitbit for exercising, but mostly got it to help improve my sleep. I try to maintain a consistent bedtime and wake-up time as recommended by my neurologist. On days I run I average 20 minutes more sleep. However, I have yet to find the trick to increasing the amount of time in deep sleep. I can get plenty of sleep, but that deep sleep is what makes me feel rested. After a night REM all night long, I wake up quite groggy. Good luck!

[Rowanak]

I have trouble getting deep sleep too. I maybe hit the benchmark once a week for deep sleep. It's only after a day where I did decent cardio getting heart rate to target range 20-30 minutes. Sometimes I also sleep better if I've been deprived of sleep the day before. Wish I knew the magic trick. Good luck!

[WilsonFitbit]

Hello everyone. @Rowanak Welcome to the community forums! 

I believe that one of the most important thing that you can do to increase your amount of "deep sleep" is to allow yourself adequate total sleep time. Often, individuals will deprive themselves of adequate total sleep. In addition to reducing deep sleep, REM sleep is also shortened.

There is some data to suggest that vigorous exercise can increase or consolidate deep sleep. Some sleep specialists recommend aerobic activities like jogging, running, and swimming. For those who are prone to insomnia, it is best to exercise earlier in the day and not before bedtime.

There are several steps you can take to increase your chances for getting a good night’s sleep. The National Sleep Foundation suggests sticking to a sleep schedule, avoiding naps in the afternoon, practicing a relaxing bedtime routine, and exercising daily among other recommendations. For more information on sleep stages, see our blog posts REM, Light, Deep: How Much of Each Stage of Sleep Are You Getting? and Your Heart Rate Is the Key to Smarter Sleep Stages. Here’s Why.

Hope this helps! 

[Rowanak]

I've already been to this website and tried all these things. Sometimes I can do all the right things and still not sleep well. But I worked for years on night shift and stress/pain has interfered with my sleep quality also.

The OP is saying they sleep a lot but don't achieve enough deep sleep  I though this was interesting. From what I can tell deep sleep tends to occur at the beginning of the sleep cycle. The best thing for me is getting to bed at a decent hour. I am slowly but surely improving sleep duration and quality and have been using the fitbit to track the progress for a few months. It's the main reason I got it really.

[WilsonFitbit]

@Rowanak Thanks for sharing your experience. 

If you haven't done so, I recommend checking the following thread in which other users have provided tips and have also shared their experiences and talked about Deep Sleep. I believe some of the tips shared in the thread can help. Click here to go to the thread. 

See you around.