If you were having trouble falling asleep during the last year, you were not alone. 
Between October 2020 and May 2021, the Life With Corona survey asked participants whether they had experienced trouble sleeping in the previous 14 days. We found that more than half of respondents (55%) were finding it hard to fall asleep at night. 

We see that women were more likely to report difficulty falling asleep compared to men (Figure 1).

Moreover, those aged 35-55 appear to have slightly more trouble sleeping than other age groups (Figure 2).

We also observe some variation across countries, with more than 60% of respondents experiencing sleeping difficulties in Belgium, Brazil, and the United Kingdom. Most other countries in our sample are in the 50-60% range, with Switzerland (48%), Mexico (48%) and Indonesia (40%) being the only countries where at least half of respondents haven’t experienced problems (Figure 3).

The stress and disruption that the pandemic is having in our lives is a probable cause of these numbers. Specifically, current levels of anxiety and depression can explain sleep disorders like sleeping less, having poor quality sleep, or having disturbing dreams.

Are you having trouble falling asleep too? We want to know how the pandemic is disrupting your life. Please share your experience with us and help us collect evidence about the effects of the pandemic in the Life with Corona project.