What is World Sleep Day?
World Sleep Day is an annual awareness campaign run by the World Sleep Society, an international nonprofit that brings together sleep medicine professionals. It takes place every year on the Friday before the spring equinox.
The first one was held in 2008. In 2026, the organizers counted more than 624 official delegates in 87 countries, and more than 350 activities reported in 60 countries. The goal is to help the public understand why sleep matters, and what can disrupt it.
The 2026 theme: "Sleep Well, Live Better"
The organizers' message is clear: sleep is essential to health. Good sleep helps you stay well and bounce back when life gets hard, while poor sleep takes a toll on both physical and mental health. The campaign suggested three simple steps:
Keep regular hours
Go to bed and, above all, get up at the same times every day, weekends included. Nothing sets your internal clock more reliably.
Make your bedroom restful
A dark, quiet, cool bedroom, and some calm, screen-free time before lights out.
Check whether you feel rested
Ask yourself honestly whether you feel rested during the day. Tiredness or sleepiness that doesn't go away is worth raising with your doctor.
What about sleep apnea? That last step is exactly where sleep apnea gives itself away: you can sleep eight hours and still wake up exhausted, because your breathing stops many times a night without you noticing. If you're drowsy during the day despite getting enough sleep, or a bed partner hears you snore loudly and stop breathing, talk to your doctor.
By the numbers
188,500
people treated for sleep apnea through NIHDI (INAMI/RIZIV) in 2024
+77%
more patients treated between 2018 and 2024
7 hrs
the minimum recommended per night for adults
87
countries took part in World Sleep Day 2026
Sources: NIHDI (June 2025); AASM and Sleep Research Society consensus (Watson 2015); worldsleepday.org (2026).
What you can do
Whether you're a patient, a health professional or just curious, World Sleep Day is a good prompt, but these steps are worth taking any time of year.
Take stock of your sleep
Our online screening questionnaires (STOP-BANG, Epworth, Berlin) take a few minutes. They don't diagnose anything, but they can help you decide whether to bring it up with your doctor.
Take the tests →Share it with friends and family
Plenty of people snore or nod off during the day without realizing it could be sleep apnea. Share this page.
See a doctor if you're unsure
Talk to your GP, who can refer you to an accredited sleep center near you.
Find a sleep center →Look after your evenings
A cool, dark bedroom, regular hours, and screens off for a while before bed: these are the basics of sleep hygiene.
10 sleep hygiene rules →Sleep apnea: a condition people often miss
Obstructive sleep apnea means your breathing stops again and again while you sleep. It is common, and many people who have it don't know it.
World Sleep Day is a good moment to learn the signs:
World Sleep Day in Belgium
Belgium has been on the list of participating countries since 2018. Its country page on worldsleepday.org lists the delegates and activities reported each year: university sleep services such as those at UZA in Antwerp and UZ Gent have taken part, and in 2026 so did BE-SAFE, a European project looking at how sleeping pills are used across Europe.
For activities in a given year, check the Belgium page on worldsleepday.org or your sleep center's website.