Your alarm just went off. Ugh. Still tired, you groan and press snooze a couple more times before eventually forcing yourself out of bed. After doing the math, you realize you technically slept enough hours (even though you could definitely sleep more). Maybe youve even been trying to go to bed earlier and feel frustrated you arent reaping the benefits yet. What gives?

One potential reason: Your sleep hasnt been as solid as you think. Its been junk sleep, aka not long enough or high-quality enough to nourish your brain and body. For example, maybe you slept a full eight hours, but it wasnt deep, or you kept waking up throughout the night.

The term junk sleep has over 36 million views on TikTok , but if you havent heard of it before, how can you know youre dealing with it, what causes it and how can you beat it?

Signs Youre Experiencing Junk Sleep

For many of us, waking up feeling tired is a given. It makes sense we need a few minutes (and a few cups of coffee) to fully get going. But at what point is inadequate sleep to blame and a problem we need to address?

You wonder if you even slept and if youll be able to function.

If youve ever woken up and questioned if you actually fell asleep, you know what were talking about here.

You might wake up and feel like you didnt even sleep, said Kristen Casey , a licensed clinical psychologist and insomnia specialist. You wake up feeling unrested, groggy or irritable. This type of sleep doesnt help us restore our bodily functions and causes difficulty for our functioning the next day.

In other words, its not your run-of-the-mill desire to rest longer just because your bed feels so comfortable.

Youre not doing too hot emotionally, mentally or physically.

On the note of functioning, youre struggling. You might feel extra anxious, depressed, forgetful, easily distracted or irritable, according to Phil Lawlor , a sleep expert at the mattress company Dormeo. Long-term, you might notice you get sick more easily, experience chronic pain, have digestive or cardiovascular issues, or feel extremely fatigued.

Additionally, you may notice changes in your eating patterns. Another less-known symptom is that you may eat more than usual, added Nicole Eichelberger, a certified sleep expert specializing in insomnia and a consultant at Mattressive . This is because sleep deprivation even one night of it increases levels of ghrelin , the hunger hormone.

You dont really believe in the importance of sleep and sleep hygiene.

Casey loves helping people look at how they think about sleep, since our thoughts can impact how we feel, behave, and experience the world, including the sleep world, she said. For example, if you believe sleep isnt important, you might not prioritize your sleep routine or care about waking up at the same time each day.

This perspective doesnt have to be an explicit I hate sleep and sleep doesnt matter, either. It can look more subtle or entail revenge bedtime procrastination, for example, which is putting off sleep on purpose because you want more leisure time. (Understandable, but unhelpful!)

As a result, Casey added, you may not practice solid sleep hygiene , such as adding a restful buffer before bed.