Keith Roach, M.D., syndicated columnist

DEAR DR. ROACH: In one of your columns, someone asked if it was helpful to just rest during the night, and how did that compare to sleeping if one is unable to sleep.

You said just resting was not that helpful, that one really needed sleep. I wanted to ask about “restless” minutes as recorded by a fitness watch. Restless minutes are separated from awake minutes, so I am referring only to the times when I’m moving but still asleep. Why are these subtracted from actual sleep time? I usually have no trouble sleeping and wake up on my own within six hours, but I’m always surprised because my fitness watch subtracts these restless minutes from the time slept. They often add up to around 30-45 minutes. — A.T.

ANSWER: “Restless sleep” isn’t a term used by sleep experts, and I am not sure what your sleep device is registering. It could be that you are indeed asleep and moving around — this might be normal but could also be a manifestation of restless leg syndrome. You may also be awake, or nearly awake, for a short time and not remember it — this can be an issue in people with obstructive sleep apnea.

I don’t want to leave you with the idea that you have abnormal sleep. Consumer sleep monitors are not perfect, and the device could be misreading what is happening. If you feel like you sleep well, and you aren’t sleepy during the day, even when doing something uninteresting for a prolonged period, odds are that you are sleeping just fine. I have had many patients get so worried about what their sleep monitor says that it has adversely affected their sleep!

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