In this week’s Sleep Diaries, a 53-year-old project coordinator wonders why she always feels as if she hasn’t had enough sleep.

A little about me:

Age: 53

Occupation: project coordinator

Number of hours sleep you get each night: 5 or 6 hours

Number of hours sleep you wish you got each night: I’d like to get the recommended 8 hours

Any officially diagnosed sleep-related problems: no, but I sleep on my front a lot.

How much water you drink on average per day: I drink at least 7/8 glasses of water

How much exercise I do on average per week: most days I go for a walk of at least 4,000 steps

Day 1

I finish work at 6pm, and sit down half an hour later to a dinner of chicken casserole. After eating, I send some more emails and shut down my PC. Then, I head to the supermarket to do my food shopping (and grab myself a coffee and pastry while I’m there, as an evening snack).

I get home at 9.30pm, and, despite fighting off a headache, unpack shopping before sitting down to watch TV.

Bedtime is at 11pm, but I do spend some time on my phone looking at news, apps and emails. Then, 40 minutes later, I start reading a book as I think about tomorrow.

As such, I don’t turn the lights off until just after midnight. But it’s not an easy night’s sleep; I feel cold, so get up to add blanket. Then, I wake up as I’m too hot, so I hop out to open a window. It’s not long, though, before I’m too cold again, so I get up, shut the window, and finally fall asleep

Time management impact on sleep: a sleep expert on how improving your habits can help you get a better night’s rest