I Always Needed 30 Minutes to Fall Asleep, Until I Tried the Sleep Reset App

As a mom of two who has struggled with lifelong anxiety, the idea of sleeping through the night has always felt insurmountable. Whether it’s been a nagging worry, a growing to-do list, or a little one’s cry, something has always kept me from a restful night’s sleep. Over the years, I’ve learned to dread bedtime, filled as it has been with tossing and turning.

So when I discovered Sleep Reset, a sleep aid app available for iOS and Android, I felt the first glimmer of hope that my sleep could improve. Designed as an eight-week program, Sleep Reset combines daily lessons, a personalized sleep plan, and one-on-one coaching. The program is rooted in cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), an evidence-based therapy method that helps change thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that can impact sleep.

I’ve always been intrigued by visiting an in-person sleep clinic, but I could never justify the cost or time I’d need for such a commitment. So I was pleased that Sleep Reset and in-person sleep clinics are built upon similar techniques. Now, one month into using the Sleep Reset app, I have gained invaluable insight into my sleep habits, both good and bad. While working through the program takes some effort, I have enjoyed the experience overall and will likely continue using the app. 

How I Got Started With Sleep Reset 

I got started with the app by completing a 10-minute Sleep Quiz on the Sleep Reset website. Here, I shared my sleep struggles, estimated my average sleep time, noted at what hour I typically go to bed, and detailed the habits I’ve developed related to bedtime, such as scrolling endlessly on my phone.

From there, I was prompted with a QR code to download the company’s app.

While initially, the price seemed steep, I was encouraged to read on the company’s website that its CBT-I techniques, such as sleep consolidation, are recommended by the National Institutes of Health, Harvard Medical School, and others.

The day after signing up for the program, I logged into the app and received a text-based message from my personal sleep coach, Jill. She provided a quick tutorial on the program, sharing that each day I’d log in, answer a few questions about my sleep the night before, and complete a daily lesson. If I had any questions along the way, she told me to reach out at any time.

At first, I didn’t think much of the personal coaching aspect of the app. Initially, I was excited to get started and see results in my sleep—and I didn’t realize how valuable a personal sleep coach would be until I got further into the program.

Shortly after connecting with Jill, I received a page-long evaluation based on the sleep assessment I’d taken just days earlier. In this document, Jill highlighted a few good habits I had, such as limiting caffeine and avoiding naps, and provided a few initial recommendations to start my program on the right foot. These included tips like establishing a morning routine, reserving a bed only for sleep and intimacy, and dimming the lights before bed. 

How I Used Sleep Reset

Now, every morning during breakfast, I complete a daily sleep log and two to three lessons to improve my understanding of sleep science.

The daily logs take two minutes tops and require me to provide rough estimates about when I went to bed, how long it took me to fall asleep, what time I woke up, and how I was feeling upon waking for the day.

The lessons include topics such as sleep anxiety, circadian rhythm, and the bed-sleep connection, which conditions you to treat your bed as a trigger for sleep. I’ve enjoyed reading through these and find they’re written in a conversational tone, making sleep concepts easy to understand.

One lesson I found particularly helpful was dedicated to explaining “sleep anxiety,” which I learned is a conditioned response to struggling to sleep each night. This lesson walked me through why sleep anxiety happens, what it feels like, and what steps I’d need to work through it. I appreciate being able to name a feeling that has troubled me all my life and exacerbated my sleep issues. 

Embarking on My Sleep Reset Plan 

A few weeks into the program, after diligently completing lessons and logging my sleep, I received a personalized sleep reset plan. Similar to my initial consultation document, the recommendations included were based on sleep research and made by the company’s sleep medicine experts.

To begin resetting my sleep according to my plan, I’d first need to commit to a technique called sleep compression, which aims to match the time you’re physically in bed to the number of hours you sleep. Using this tactic, I was given a sleep schedule where I’d go to bed at 1:10 a.m. and set an alarm for 7:15 a.m. While painful, this strategy is supposed to increase my sleepiness and decrease the time it takes me to fall asleep each night.

Feeling hopeless, and frankly tortured, I messaged Jill for a pep talk. I begged her for an end date to the sleep compression phase and, much to my chagrin, she explained it all had to do with my consistency and commitment. 

In short, the closer I stuck to the plan, the less time I’d have to endure this phase. Jill noted that this could take several weeks. She encouraged me to adjust my bedtime to 12:45 a.m. and check in later in the week to share how the process was going. Jill’s permission to set an earlier bedtime felt like a gift, and within days, I noticed it felt just a bit easier to fall asleep at night. Some nights I'd toss and turn for 30 minutes or more, but others felt like no more than 10 or 15.

I appreciate that I can send my coach a quick text message at any time of day to ask for clarification on a sleep strategy or advice for adjusting the program to better fit my needs. While her responses aren’t always instant, (she’s a human being, after all), I typically hear back within 10 to 20 minutes, depending on the time of day. While making significant changes to my sleep has been a bit uncomfortable and overwhelming, having consistent and accessible support from Jill makes the process so much easier. 

I also love the design of the Sleep Reset app. It’s simple, clean, and has a modern feel. And while I didn’t experience app crashes, I did struggle with glitchiness fairly often. For example, the app would freeze or I would tap a button to no avail. However, given all the offerings included, from a personalized sleep improvement plan to one-on-one coaching, a few app glitches hardly bothered me. 

Pros and Cons

The eight-week Sleep Reset program has encouraged me to understand my sleep habits through logging my sleep behavior and learning about sleep science. While this experience has not always been easy, I am beginning to see some results—namely less dread associated with bedtime and less time spent tossing and turning. Here’s what I have liked and disliked about Sleep Reset thus far.

Final Thoughts

I did not anticipate how intense Sleep Reset’s program would be. While working through the lessons and completing sleep logs took only 10 minutes or so a day, committing to changing my habits and implementing the app’s strategies proved to be hard work.

That said, I have really enjoyed the simplicity and straightforwardness of the Sleep Reset program. While the cost is steep, I feel that the app’s offerings—mainly messaging with a sleep coach and receiving a sleep plan tailored to me—are a good value. When I first signed up for the app, I assumed it was powered by AI, not a real human who I could contact directly for guidance and support. I have been so pleased with the personalized aspects of Sleep Reset, and feel like the program truly offers a premium experience.

I would recommend Sleep Reset to anyone struggling with their sleep, as long as they’re ready and willing to commit to a somewhat intense program.