BBC's multitasking star Amol Rajan opened up about his challenging work/life balance, admitting to Kate Thornton on her White Wine Question Time podcast that being a working parent means "living with guilt, you can't do it all, and that you're constantly knackered".
However, Good Morning Britain's Richard Madeley has offered him an unexpected tip.
Richard, surprised at Amol's sleeping arrangements considering his early starts for The Today Programme, shared his own tactic: "I think Amol Rajan's wife must be a saint. When I'm doing GMB, I sleep in the spare room."
But Amol was quick to reject Richard's advice, reflecting on his lack of alternative sleeping spaces due to his family size — "There isn't a spare room. I've got four kids."
He also shared his battle with chronic insomnia, further explaining why he wouldn't give up sleeping beside his wife after a particularly traumatic experience, revealing: "The first time I did The Today Programme, I had a dreadful, dreadful panic attack, and I've got really serious insomnia."
Despite this, he admits that his troubles might be seen as a luxury to many: "I've got a great job, I have a great time, but I've got dreadful insomnia, and insomnia is a very, very big problem."
Amol opened up about his struggle with sleep deprivation due to the challenge of dealing with both early morning shifts and the responsibility of being a father to four young children.
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He told Kate: "I think that sleep is the single most easily neglected part of your health. I just think it's an incredibly important part of longevity, of sorting out your mental health, keeping your heart healthy, and learning to sleep. I don't sleep very much because I have to wake up early, and I've got four young kids."
He also joked about his wife's understanding nature, saying: "If I didn't sleep with my wife, I'd sleep even less. [Richard] is right, she is a saint, she absolutely is a saint, she's absolutely amazing and hugely understanding. Maybe it's time for me to take to the sofa! "
In a light-hearted conclusion, Amol suggested synchronising schedules with Richard, when he also presents Good Morning Britain, saying: "I could synchronise our rotas, so that when he's on GMB, maybe me and Richard could sleep together.
"Then when he gets up for GMB, I get up for Today, and it'll be sorted, it'll be fine... we could top and tail!".
