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Many of us get stuck in gadgets before going to bed, and some even check our smartphone in the middle of the night for no particular reason. But these are not the most harmless habits. We are figuring out what they can lead to and how to still learn to fall asleep without gadgets.
Firstly, you can't just stop watching cat memes and videos on TikTok. Media and social networks are literally "sharpened" so that we consume as much content as possible and cannot stop. Their algorithms are set up to stimulate the production of dopamine, a hormone that promises us quick pleasure and makes us click on links, post posts and wait for likes. As a result, "One more video and sleep" easily and imperceptibly turns into "How is it three o'clock in the morning?!".
Secondly, gadgets literally deprive us of sleep. The glow from the screen prevents How Electronics Affect Sleep / Sleep Foundation melatonin production. People who use smartphones, laptops and tablets before going to bed spend more time falling asleep.
It turns out that we rest less, which means that our quality of life decreases, and the risk of developing physical and mental disorders increases.
Social networks spur the fear of lost profits (FOMO) — a condition due to which we constantly worry that we are not in time somewhere, lagging behind friends, acquaintances and just random people in some ways.
Those who stick to gadgets a lot tend to Relax, Turn Off Your Phone, and Go to Sleep / Harvard Business Review waking up in the middle of the night and grabbing your phone or tablet again. Moreover, this is a vicious circle: a person relieves anxiety when scrolling through a feed on a social network, but thereby deprives himself of sleep and becomes even more anxious.
And finally, the news, which is often not very pleasant, which is raining down on us from almost every corner of the Internet, can make anyone nervous.
It's good if gadgets don't cause you any problems and you're with them, that without them you sleep like a baby at least seven hours a day. But if you have trouble sleeping, it's worth trying to at least reduce screen time. Here's what recommends for this Relax, Turn Off Your Phone, and Go to Sleep / Harvard Business Review psychologists.
Just getting into bed, turning off the lights, covering yourself with a blanket and falling asleep can be difficult. Think about what a pleasant and relaxing activity you could replace sticking in a gadget.
Maybe it's reading, needlework, drawing or coloring, listening to music or relaxing sounds, keeping a diary. It is advisable not to use the backlight of the screen at the same time: the researchers found out A.-M. Chang, D. Aeschbach, et al. Evening use of light-emitting eReaders negatively affects sleep, circadian timing, and next-morning alertness / PNAS that someone who reads a paper book before going to bed falls asleep faster than someone who reads from a tablet or other gadget.
Most of us use an alarm clock on our smartphone: the gadget lies on the bedside table or under the pillow — it beckons to be taken. You can protect yourself from this temptation and put your phone to charge in the next room, and use an electronic watch or a fitness bracelet as an alarm clock.
Some are so addicted to gadgets that they almost never let them out of their hands. And if they do release them, they grab them again in response to any squeaking. And it doesn't matter what's there: an important message from work, a notification about a new like, or spam from some application.
Larry Rossen, a psychology professor at California State University, suggests Relax, Turn Off Your Phone, and Go to Sleep / Harvard Business Review connect the willpower and, after hours, do not watch notifications immediately, but take a pause and gradually increase it. At first it may be just a minute, then five minutes, then 15. This way you can practice mindfulness and concentration, which means it will be easier for you to break away from the phone before going to bed.
Doctors recommend that you do not use devices with a glowing screen an hour before bedtime. If you can't do this yourself, you can install an application that monitors the use of your phone or tablet and configure it so that access to certain functions is blocked at certain times.
If you can't fall asleep, remember any song you like and mentally repeat it several times.
Another life hack that doctors recommend is to forcefully compress the muscles, and then sharply relax. You can also try breathing exercises, meditation, muscle relaxation.
Prolonged problems with falling asleep are a symptom of insomnia and an excuse to go to a doctor who will prescribe an examination, prescribe medications and, possibly, offer to undergo psychotherapy.
