Could YOU be an 'Elite Sleeper'?

For years I considered myself a bad sleeper. It’s something I’m not very good at, like physics, cryptic crosswords and dealing with difficult trades­people. Sleep is not in my skillset.

And, understandably, there are negative connotations with this line of thinking. Like a perennial yo-yo dieter, convinced that all of life’s problems would disappear if only they were a stone lighter, I’ve spent a sizeable part of my adult life telling myself I’d be a much better mother, wife, daughter, sister, employee, boss, runner, cook and poker player if I could get that magical eight hours of uninterrupted shut-eye a night.

The truth is, since having children — both now in their 20s — I rarely get more than six hours. I can get by on four or five, as long as I haven’t drunk any the night before. I haven’t set an alarm clock for more than 25 years, apart from for early flights (when I’m usually awake anyway because I’m so nervous/excited).