Whether due to hormones or social pressures, many women report needing more than eight hours of sleep per night. This impression is corroborated by science.
Sleep is a universal human need, but biological and social factors shape how it influences each person. Studies indicate, for example, that Not only do women sleep differently than men, they also need more sleep.
DW spoke to women from various regions of the world, who shared stories of poor sleep and reported the effects of so-called “sleep deprivation”.
Sana Akhand, for example, was heading a human resources department in the New York technology sector when she reached a point of exhaustion, realized it was affecting her mental health, and felt forced to leave her job.
“I used to have a glass of wine and collapse in front of the television every night,” he told DW. “I was exhausted.”
Today, sleep is non-negotiable for Akhand’s well-being. It’s also one of the reasons why she decided not to have children. Every night, he goes to bed at 10pm and sleeps nine hours. “I wake up around 8 am. That’s what my body wants”, he concludes.
What science says about biological sex and sleep
Women sleep, on average, between 11 to 13 more minutes per night than men. Some studies suggest that they may need up to 20 additional minutes to sustain complex functions during the day, such as multitasking, emotional regulation and the menstrual cycle.
During the first half of the menstrual cycle, the follicular phase, the increase in estrogen levels improves sleep quality and increases REM sleep – a phase linked to dreams, memory and emotional processing. But in the second half of the cycle, the luteal phase, the increase in progesterone can cause drowsiness and, paradoxically, worsen sleep – with more nighttime awakenings and up to 27% less deep sleep.
Shantani Moore, coach of body intelligence in Los Angeles, told DW that she organizes her daily routine based on her menstrual cycle and sleep patterns.
“It’s something I work on consciously,” Moore said. “When I don’t get enough sleep, it’s like a toxic marriage between being electric and exhausted. Then comes the confused mind, bad decisions, irritation with your partner, saying ‘yes’ to things you shouldn’t… it all adds up.”
The weight of social structure
In addition to biology, social and structural factors also affect how and how well women sleep.
Sabrina, who lives in Karachi, Pakistan, and asked for her name to be changed in the report, said the demands of everyday life were a major source of exhaustion. He says he used to only sleep six to seven hours a night, feeling that this was not enough.
“To feel rested and keep my mind at ease during the week, I need 12 hours [de sono por noite]. It’s more than the average of eight,” said Sabrina. When she can’t sleep that much, she tries to compensate with naps, which sometimes last hours. “A 30-minute nap can turn into four hours.” She states that it is not only the work that burdens her, but also the constant mental and domestic effort.
“In the morning, I iron clothes, prepare breakfast and lunch, clean the house and make dinner. And when I’m too exhausted to do this, I start to blame myself mentally. I feel lazy, even if it only takes 10 minutes,” she says. On weekends, when she visits her family, she sleeps between 12 and 13 hours straight, without interruptions.
Experts say this burden is not just anecdotal, but systemic.
“Women suffer more from disorders related to shift work, in addition to working more unconventional hours, suffering more from the negative effects of this,” said Emerson Wickwire, a sleep specialist at the University of Maryland, in the USA.
“If we consider [o horário] from 9am to 5pm as a working day pattern, this means that, compared to men, women work outside these hours, including social demands,” Wickwire explained to DW.
Clara Paula, a self-employed professional in Berlin, seems to have found a solution as a freelancer. He tells DW how flexible schedules allow him to sleep more when he needs it.
“Now I sleep seven, eight, even nine hours,” said Clara. “Nobody forces me to be in front of the computer. I start later, take breaks and finish faster.”
But it’s not just about the number of hours, it’s about the quality of sleep. Research indicates that the female physiology It makes women need to sleep more soundly than men.
“By this, we refer to corn are N3the deepest phase of non-REM sleep, and usually more REM sleep as well,” explained Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, sleep psychologist and clinical investigator at Penn State Health in the US.
Even in controlled laboratory studies, where healthy men and women are monitored without stress or sleep deprivation, women consistently sleep longer and more deeply. “That’s where the idea that women may biologically need more sleep comes from,” Fernandez-Mendoza said.
This set of factors may be linked to the biological resilience – a protective system observed in other areas of research, such as cardiovascular health and longevity. “It is natural that, when a body has the capacity to generate life, it needs to be protected. A woman needs to be able to sleep and function even while carrying another human being”, highlighted the psychologist.
Despite this biological resilience, women report symptoms of insomnia twice as often as men. According to Fernandez-Mendoza, this begins as early as puberty. “Around the age of 11 or 12, girls begin to report more difficulty sleeping than boys, and this trend continues into adulthood.”
Can sleeping in help?
“Sleep in [nos fins de semana] It can help you recover from poor sleep and make you feel more alert”, explains the sleep psychologist. But this does not mean that the body has fully recovered.
“It may alleviate drowsiness, but it may not reverse the accumulated effects on health,” said the psychologist.
Studies show, for example, that cognitive functions, such as attention and reaction time, take much longer to recover.
