How to Improve Your In-Cab Sleep to Avoid Drowsy Driving Risks

Driving for long periods of time, anyone will begin to show signs of fatigue. Even the most experienced and skilled truck drivers need a few hours of rest and shut-eye to stay sharp on the road. Drowsy driving can slow your reaction times and even increase your risk of dozing off at the wheel.

Studies have found that after about 18 hours of driving, fatigue begins to resemble the effects of alcohol for drivers, equating 0.05% BAC at 18 hours, 0.08% BAC at 20 hours and 0.1% BAC at 24 hours of driving. It’s no wonder that most trucking companies enforce strict rest mandates and limit the hours per day that truckers can put in behind the wheel. However, it doesn’t matter when you stop if your rest isn’t good quality.

One of the best ways to protect yourself, your cargo, and your commercial truck insurance is to improve your sleep quality in your long-haul truck’s sleeper cab.

Upgrade Your Space

A sleeper cab provides you a space to rest, but it’s just a baseline. You can adapt that bed or padded bench to meet your unique sleeping needs and sense of comfort. Add a mattress cab, bring your favorite kind of pillow, and find the perfect light comforter or quilt that helps you fall asleep. You can add curtains and light strings, put up comforting artwork, or even hang a canopy. Owner-operators have the most flexibility but you can put together a sleep-enhancing bed kit even if you change cabs every now and then.

Block Out the Light

Set up ways to block out the windshield and all windows in your sleeper cab so that the sun, electric lights, and moving headlights don’t disturb your slumber. You can use roll-down shades, pin-up sheets or pull a heavy black-out curtain around your sleeping space. The right solution will depend on both the design of your cab and whether you are able to make emplaced modifications to the interior.

If you want to wear a sleep mask, we advise combining this with secondary light blocking methods, as bright lights can still enter around the bridge of your nose with most sleep mask designs.

Park Somewhere Quiet & Lock Up Tight

Hearing people coming and going or load road noise can make it tough to get good sleep because your mind will tell you to stay alert. Look for quieter places to park and sleep when the time comes. Plan for quiet rest stops or memorize where there are large parking areas in quiet neighborhoods along your usual route. You can sometimes pull to the side of a shady rural road off the main path instead of parking by the highway if no parking area is available. 

Then remember to lock your doors and windows securely. This will ensure that you don’t have to worry about passers-by and can let your mind fully fall into a deep sleep. If you are in an urban area, consider turning on a continuous dash cam. If you are not in an official parking spot, remember to put out your reflectors.

Cool Down the Cab

Humans sleep better when the air is cool and the blanket is warm. Turn on your interior AC to keep the cab cool while you sleep in order to help you enjoy deeper and more rejuvenating slumber. If you don’t want to run the engine or the air while you sleep, run the AC on a strong blast right before you sleep to cool down the cab. However, most modern sleeper cabs have an APU ( aux power unit) so you don’t have to idle the truck for a little cool air.

Use White Noise and/or Earplugs

Block out lesser outside sounds using a white noise machine, a fan, and/or earplugs while you sleep. Not everyone can use earplugs or sound cancelling headphones comfortably in sleep, so white noise is a very useful tool. White noise or pink noise is very useful in helping you sleep if you tend to wake up at the sound of activity around your truck. This is especially true if you sleep at rest stops or in box store parking lots where people come and go at various times of day.

Project it through the truck speakers, your phone, or use a portable white noise machine. Mix up your sounds until you find the right one that helps you get to sleep and stay asleep.

Stick to a Bedtime Routine

When it’s time to sleep, go through the same routine every time. This will help send signals to your brain that it’s time to wind down. Go through the same motions every time you prepare to sleep. Invent a routine even if you don’t think that you need one. Take off your overshirt and shoes, comb your hair, brush your teeth, listen to a particular playlist – whatever you choose will become the signal for your brain to sleep when you lay down.

It’s also smart to practice good sleep hygiene by reducing your caffeine at the end of the day, having a light dinner, and trying to sleep at about the same time every day. These aren’t always options, but do your best to stay consistent.

Take a Walk Before Bed

Sometimes, it can help to wind down and relax for bed by taking a quick walk. Especially if you can find a green space with some trees and sky to look at. Reconnect with the natural world and spend 15 minutes to an hour letting your mind and body relax from the constant vigilance of driving. This also gives you time to let your last dose of caffeine fade and helps you digest your last meal more comfortably.

Never Doze In the Captain’s Chair

Don’t let yourself doze in the driver’s seat. Always park and lay down in the back. This will train your brain to know the difference between the ‘sleep place’ and the ‘no-sleep place’. It’s the same reason you’re not supposed to watch TV in bed because you may have trouble sleeping if you seek entertainment in the sleep place. 

Avoid Screens In Your Bunk

Speaking of which, try to avoid watching TV or browsing your phone in your bunk. This can train your brain to stay up seeking entertainment when you lie down to go to sleep. Instead, enjoy your entertainment in other areas of the cab, reclined in one of the front seats, in a deck chair outside, or even lounging on cushions on your cab floor. Just not in your bunk where you need to sleep on schedule.

Catch Cat-Naps On the Route

If you find yourself getting drowsy during a route, spare yourself a 10-60 minute nap instead of risking sleepiness on the road. It’s better to catch a cat-nap than to make a critical mistake behind the wheel. You can also give yourself leeway to nap if you have just driven through a difficult stretch of road like a storm or icy pavement and need to rest your eyes before taking on the next leg of the journey.

Good Sleep Protects Your Truck Insurance

Improving your sleeper cab and sleep routine are essential to staying alert and awake on long hauls. Your peak performance is also key to maintaining a sterling record on your truck insurance policy. When you are well-slept you can more easily avoid hazards and prevent costly mistakes. Respect your body’s need for good quality sleep and it will reward you with reliable performance. Contact us for trucking insurance and helpful tips. We provide commercial and owner operator insurance in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, Illinois, Iowa & Nebraska.