One of you is asleep by nine, the other is wide awake at midnight, either in a creative flow or working a shift. How do different sleep schedules affect your relationship and sex life, and should you really go to bed at the same time as your partner? Relationship expert Gabriella Killeen speaks with three couples of night owls and early birds about how they've made different bedtimes work
I’ll start with a slightly unromantic confession: I love getting up stupidly early, before everyone else is awake, and beginning my day in silence – it's a ridiculous creative flow I only seem to get before 6am. The price? I also tend to go to bed early to make sure I can function properly the next day. My partner, on the other hand, loves staying up late, which means while I’m half asleep on the sofa by 9pm, his evening is just getting started.
But our schedules aren’t that far apart. Many couples, for whatever reason, be it mismatched circadian rhythms or clashing work schedules, have completely different routines and needs, which could end up having an effect on their sex lives and intimacy. So how do couples solve it? Is going to bed together a pillar of intimacy, or are we just sacrificing our routines for togetherness? I spoke to three couples to find out how they make different sleep schedules work.
Related: Should you get a sleep divorce? Three couples on how sleeping apart affected their sex lives