Here's How Much Sleep Moms Actually Need

As a mom, my ideal vacation isn't a theme park or a tropical island beach — it's more like a quiet hotel room down the street where, like a vampire, I can shut the daylight with thick curtains and just sleep. I want to sleep for days. Sounds amazing, doesn't it? Most moms can multitask and manage their homes, jobs, partner, kids, friends, and family, all on little to no sleep, but it can be exhausting — you know it's hard out here for a mom. So how much sleep do moms actually need?

According to The National Sleep Foundation, adults between the ages of 18 and 64 should get between seven and nine hours of sleep per night. The recommendation includes a new minimum and maximum, which outline that adults in this age range should get no less than six hours, and no more than 11 hours of sleep per night. For a mom, it's easier said than done.

Being a mom is like working a full-time job, but for 24 hours a day, and seven days a week. Moms are always in manager mode, even when they're sleeping. They go to bed preparing for the next day, and fall asleep, but not too deep, just in case an "I need you, Mom" situation arises in the middle of the night.

A National Sleep Trends Report, released by the smart bed maker, Eight, showed that moms experience greater sleep challenges than dads, because of frequent interruptions and trouble falling asleep. The study suggested that a mother's sleep suffers because her amount of deep sleep decreases substantially.

The National Sleep Foundation recommended that in order to get better and longer sleep, moms should get help from family and friends to occasionally take over their nighttime routine, which can include bottle feeding pumped breast milk for breastfeeding moms. Mom should also avoid distractions like bright lights or lumpy pillows, should try to sleep when their kids sleep, and should pay close attention to their sleep patterns to find out how much they're snoozing and to make sure they have no underlying sleep issues.

Moms end up sacrificing not only quantity, but also quality of their sleep. (So unfair.) It's important to try to get some good rest, which is both long and deep. Asking for help from your family and friends and trying to relax should help you catch those needed ZZZs.