Popular 'Sleep With Me' podcast uses rambling bedtime stories to help people fall asleep

Drew Ackerman tells stories for a living on his podcast. But he won’t be offended if you fall asleep in the middle of an episode. In fact, he hopes you will.

That’s because Ackerman, 44, is the creator of the Sleep With Me podcast -- the show that accompanies listeners as they try to drift off to Dreamland.

In each hour-long episode, Ackerman uses a soothing, droning tone of voice to stumble his way through a bedtime story that features endless tangents to prevent people from paying too much attention. The subjects range from the pleasantly absurd, like a soap opera series based in the North Pole, to sluggish recaps of shows such as 'Game of Thrones.'

“It’s sometimes stuff I’m watching and making it boring or tangential,” Ackerman told AOL. “Or I might have a central idea, then I’ll sit down and record and … just see how it goes. I’ve gotta remember I’m just telling a bedtime story, relax myself and try to go with the flow.”

It’s a method that’s proven to be a useful sedative for many, as Sleep With Me boasts around 2.3 million monthly downloads. The podcast has become so successful Ackerman left his day job in Alameda County, California as a librarian -- a bit of irony given his current role as a storyteller.

Ackerman shares a common bond with many of his listeners and up to 50 percent of the general adult population, in that he struggles with insomnia. He’s tried several new-age solutions, from guided meditation to self-hypnosis YouTube tutorials. Some audiobooks and podcasts have occasionally provided solace, but he was just as likely to keep engaged and stay awake.

“Usually my thing is overthinking or anxiety, and none of that stuff helps me fall asleep,” Ackerman said. “Because once the sound stops, I can’t get out of my own thoughts.”

He eventually came up with the idea for Sleep With Me and started recording the show in 2013. Now, he’s considering expanding it to the stage for a live recording or perhaps even to the small screen.

Unfortunately, the man who acts as a real-life Sandman for many hasn’t yet found a consistent sleep-inducing method for himself since it’s a little distracting to listen to his own voice when trying to sleep at night. But with 650 episodes in the archives (all available for free online), Sleep With Me has helped countless people that share his problem. And although he has trouble getting to sleep at night, his show has been able to get him to drift off -- but not necessarily when he wants to.

“I used to edit it at my lunch breaks [at the library]. So I’d just eat my lunch, and it’d be a warm day and I’d be sitting there editing audio at the computer. It could be pretty tedious, and I’d fall asleep all the time,” Ackerman said. “So it has put me asleep before, just not in the right circumstances.”