Getting started with a sleep diary

A sleep diary helps you remember your own nights more clearly

When you say “I have not been sleeping well lately”, remembering each individual night can be difficult. A sleep diary brings together bedtime, getting-up time, how you feel in the morning and daytime habits through brief notes. You can then look at several days instead of just one difficult night.

NHLBI's sleep diary suggests recording sleep quantity and quality alongside factors such as caffeinated drinks, medicines and daytime sleepiness. The notes can also be useful when speaking with a doctor. You do not need a smartwatch or paid app to begin. Paper and a pen can be enough.

The aim is to make changes easier to understand, rather than label yourself a “good” or “bad” sleeper. Complete the simple template below in your own words. It is not a clinically validated scale or a diagnostic test.

What should you add to your diary?

NHLBI's assessment guide suggests noting sleep and waking times, naps, how rested you feel in the morning and sleepiness during the day. Turn that outline into short headings that fit everyday life.

In the morning, as far as you remember

• When you got into bed and when you began trying to sleep.
• Approximately how falling asleep felt.
• Awakenings you remember and whether returning to sleep felt difficult.
• Your final waking time and when you got out of bed.
• How rested you felt that morning.

During the day, with brief extra notes

• The type, approximate amount and timing of caffeinated drinks.
• Approximate time and duration of any nap.
• Times when you felt noticeably sleepy.
• Something specific to that day, such as travel, late work or a different room.

If you note something about medicines you take, keep it as part of your own health record. Do not stop or change a medicine based on these observations. Accurate names and usage information can help when speaking with a healthcare professional.

It is enough to label an estimate as an estimate. Trying to catch the exact minute you fall asleep can make note-taking an unnecessary task. Words such as “approximately”, “brief” and “I do not remember” are useful too.

A simple diary template you can copy

Copy these headings into a note. If bedtime and waking fall on different calendar days, using the date of the morning you woke up at the top can make your records easier to organise.

For a more detailed printable example from a public health institution, you can download NHLBI's sleep diary. Its form and the simple note template here are separate tools. You do not need to keep both at once.

How could you plan your first seven days?

We chose seven days as a practical starting point for trying the habit of taking notes. A healthcare professional may ask for a longer record for assessment. NHLBI suggests that a diary can be kept for a few weeks.

1. Choose one place before you begin. A notebook or a single note on your device. Keep the records together instead of spreading them across several apps.
2. For the first two days, learn what works for your notes. Start briefly. Notice headings you keep leaving blank and make them easier to understand.
3. Over the following days, continue in a similar way. Use the same few words for your morning experience, such as rested, in between or tired, rather than a different scale every day.
4. If you miss a day, continue where you are. Do not fill a forgotten night with exact times later. Write “no record” and move on to the new day.
5. Read the notes in daytime at the end of the week. Set aside a quiet moment for a brief review instead of analysing them in bed each night.

If keeping the record feels tiring, reduce the headings. Bedtime, getting-up time and your morning experience can be enough for a consistent starting page. Add detail when you need it.

Ask three questions when reading your notes

How do my times vary?

Review workdays and days off separately. Beyond a single line such as “I went to bed late on Thursday”, is there a pattern across several days? Consider shift-work and travel days in their own context.

Which small preparation feels easier for me?

You may have found it easier to keep your routine on evenings when your book was already ready. Use that observation as a small choice for the next week. Our evening routine guide offers a few simple steps to choose from.

How is my daytime life affected?

Do not judge the record only by the hours you slept. The NHS notes that how you feel during the day can offer clues about getting enough sleep too. Make room for experiences such as energy, attention and sleepiness in your notes.

Two events on the same day do not prove that one caused the other. A difficult night after late coffee may also have involved work stress or a different room. The diary's value is in showing which detail to explore more carefully, rather than reaching a quick verdict.

If you notice a recurring outside sound, start with our sleep space checklist. If difficulties continue or noticeably affect everyday life, share the notes with your family doctor or primary care clinician to plan an assessment suited to you.

Frequently asked questions

Should I record my smartwatch data or my own experience?

If you use both, keep them under separate headings. “device estimate” and “my note”. You do not need to combine information from different sources into one number as though it were measured with equal certainty.

Do I need to send my diary to EPIDEN?

No. The template in this article is not an online form that collects entries. Store your notes wherever you choose and decide for yourself who you want to share them with.

Will I discover why I sleep poorly in one week?

A week can help you notice some habits. It is not a test that identifies the cause on its own. When needed, a longer record and individual assessment can be used together.

Do I need to write a lot every morning?

Choose a short format you can maintain. A few consistent lines may fit everyday life more easily than a long form waiting to be completed.

Sources and further reading

Sources checked on 7 September 2026. The note template and seven-day starting sequence were prepared by EPIDEN.

• NHLBI, Sleep Diary A printable diary example.
• NHLBI, Sleep Deprivation and Deficiency. Diagnosis Information to record and how it can support an assessment.
• NHS, Sleep problems Daytime wellbeing and the experience of sleep.