Sleep Divorce: Do Separate Beds Make for Happier Couples? Here’s what science says

According to a recent Hilton 2025 Trends report, a growing number of couples are adopting “divorce while sleeping” on vacation, opting for separate beds to prioritize relaxation and personal space. Now, according to a report from the National Post, while sleep divorcing is a pretty old-fashioned method of sleeping, it appears to be particularly popular among millennials. Read also | Divorce during sleep: Sleeping in separate beds – good or bad for you and your partner?

Here’s what researchers have to say about sleep divorces and other strategies couples are trying to use to solve sleep problems.

Millennial couples are sleeping apart to stay together

A 2023 study by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine found that 35 percent of 2,005 adults surveyed sleep in a different room “sometimes” or constantly to accommodate a bed partner — nearly half (43 percent) of millennials do. 20 percent of respondents reported that they sometimes slept in another room, and 15 percent said they did so all the time.

The study found that men are more likely to seek refuge from their partners on the couch or in the guest room, with nearly half of men (45 percent) reporting that they sometimes or constantly sleep in another room, compared to 25 percent of women.

More research

According to a 2016 German study published in Pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, sleeping together had its evolutionary advantages (feeling physically and emotionally safe from potential attackers), and co-sleeping can be an expression of intimacy, sleeping as a couple is not always beneficial benefit of “pair functioning”. Moreover, snoring, twitching, restless legs, apnea, overheating, or other nocturnal disturbances in one partner may be problematic for the other.

“Studies show that up to 30 percent of a person’s sleep quality (or lack thereof) depends on their partner’s sleep,” according to an educational note published by the Society for Sleep Research.

Interestingly, in one 2017 study, researchers from the Ohio State University College of Medicine found that if both partners slept less than seven hours in the previous two nights, the couple was more likely to behave more negatively when discussing marital problems.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor for any health concerns.