This is the last thing we need during an already exhausting pandemic: a partner who interferes with our sleep.
Yet many of us lose because our partner snores like a bear or the lids pig. Stay on a phone for up to a few hours. Toss and turn with insomnia. Or have another sleeping scheme that we are constantly trying to adapt to.
Wendy Troxel is a senior behavioral and social scientist at Rand Corp. and clinical psychologist specializing in sleep medicine. In her new book, “Sharing the Covers: Every Couple’s Guide to Better Sleep”, she explores how our sleep as well as our relationship is affected.
I talked to Dr. Troxel about how to negotiate joint sleep problems. Here are edited excerpts from the interview.
How important is sleep for a relationship?