If I could bottle one habit that lifts your mood, sharpens your brain, steadies your appetite,

protects your heart, and reduces those, why did I walk into this room moments?

It would be sleep. Not hustle, not a new planner, not that detox elixir on your FYP,

good, boring, consistently adequate sleep. When I talk about other good things for you, like

engaging in social activities or working out, people often reply, but that costs money. Yet sometimes when I mention the

fundamentals, I get the eye roll. You keep wanting me to talk about free or low-cost things that

help with your mental health, and I'm here to make the case for sleep. Welcome back to savvy psychologist.

I'm your host, Dr. Monica Johnson.

Every week on this show, I'll help you face life challenges with evidence-based approaches,

a sympathetic ear, and zero judgment.

When I first started hosting this show, I talked about the mental health bank.

Basically, it's the concept where you want to know what are the deposits, so for example, things that add to your capacity, and what are the withdrawals?

Things that have a cost to your system.

Withdrawals aren't bad.

Attending your kids' soccer game after an extremely stressful workday can be a withdrawal.

And if you have enough funds in the bank, well, you can handle it.

Well, now it's time to think of sleep like it's your health's 401K.

Small, steady deposits that compound over time.

Let's start by getting enough sleep.

For most adults, enough means at least seven hours on a regular basis.

That's not a flex goal, it's the floor.

Two heavyweight groups, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the

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