Whether your sleep pattern has been disrupted, or anxiety around the pandemic is keeping you up at night, you are not alone. 50% of British adults reported that their sleep patterns had been affected during the coronavirus outbreak.

But which cities across the UK are struggling the most to get a good night’s sleep? Researchers at OTTY Sleep crunched the numbers to find out!

Getting a good night’s sleep is so important for our physical and mental health, but amidst the global pandemic, more and more people are struggling to get a good eight hours. According to the study, London is one of the top cities in the UK struggling to get a good night’s sleep. There are ways that people have tried to support a restful sleep by using practices like meditation, as well as looking into cannabis-based products, you can learn more about that over on websites that are knowledgable in this area. People are trying to do what they can to fall asleep and stay asleep without constant worry and anxiety keeping them up.

Londoners are facing three of the most common nocturnal nightmares on Google. Recording the highest search volume for ‘sleep amount’ throughout the UK, which has seen a 7300% increase during the nationwide lockdown. Followed by ‘back pain’ with a 5100% increase and ‘parasomnias’ with an increase of 3100%.

Where in the UK is suffering the most with common sleep issues?

Sleep Anxiety – Birmingham

Sleep Amount – London

Back Pain – London

Parasomnias – London

Sleep Apnea – Glasgow

Night Terrors – Brighton

Can’t Sleep – Liverpool

Nightmares – Glasgow

Sleepwalking – Liverpool

Narcolepsy – Cambridge

We’ve spoken to Counsellor Kerry Quigley accredited by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy about the effects of sleep and anxiety.

“Over time, a poor sleep pattern can also contribute to mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and insomnia.

Improving the quality and the amount you sleep can enhance every aspect of your life and overall well-being. It is an investment that builds upon emotional resilience and therefore your ability to cope with life stresses.

Sleep is critical for brain function and has a profound effect on cognition, mood, and alertness, therefore boosting motivation and learning.

A good night’s sleep is the foundation that enables you to be fully present in your life.”

Methodology: Taking a seed list from the most popular sleep complaints via Mumsnet and Reddit, OTTY analysed each search phrase by comparing search results from AHREFS and SEMRUSH to find the number of monthly searches across the UK.

Using Google Trends OTTY has worked out the % increase between 2004 and 2021 for the regional sleep issues. The same methodology was used for Lockdown by comparing 2020 data with the year before.