I have had trouble falling asleep for several years now. My mind is too wound-up. The time between when my husband stops talking and when his breathing becomes deep and regular is about 30 seconds. Then I lay awake for about one more hour, just replaying the days' events or thinking about how tired I am. So when I heard this solution from the experts I thought all my problems were solved!
Then I realized "no screens" meant no movie, TV, computer or texting before bedtime. Well.
That's impossible. And I find that to be really sad! Often I am doing homework on my computer right up until I go to bed. When I don't have homework screens are so alluring--I just want to check my email, messages, instagram, or photo share one more time. I have realized that almost all of my regular activities revolve around me and a screen. Say hello to the one thing I will spend the majority of my life looking at:
Kind of makes me want to throw up.
Today I want that to change. I am tired, literally losing sleep, because of all of these screens. So tired that I am not even going to come up with a metaphor for how tired I am. So I am going to put the National Sleep Foundation to the test. For one week (I thought about doing two weeks but it made me squirmy), I am going to completely turn away from screens at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
That is means turning off my computer, checking that my alarm is set, satisfying my curiosity regarding messages, etc., plugging in my phone to charge and then reading or washing dishes or tidying for 30 minutes before laying my head down.
One week...
I can do that right?
I'll report my sleep next Monday. I'm looking for how long it takes me to fall asleep, whether I wake up less, and how rested I feel in the morning.
Do it with me!
Love this idea Rose! At the same time I feel the same in regards to how hard it would be. Especially because I have had trouble falling asleep my whole life- and I didn't have screens when I was a kid. So I'm sure it would definitely make the problem a little better, but definitely not solve it completely. Good luck with your personal experimentation though!!!
ReplyDeleteGood luck! I bet the National Sleep Foundation wouldn't have come out with a statement like that without some pretty good research to back it up. Foundations don't like to look foolish, so they make sure to mean what they say. I'm guessing that after you see a difference in your sleep, you will be so happy to make the change more permanent!
ReplyDeleteWe've been talking a lot about the importance of sleep in my SFL 460 class and I've really been trying to get better sleep. I haven't given up screen time before bed, but I have been going to bed by 10:30 the last few days and I've definitely had more energy. I hope your experiment is a success!
ReplyDeleteI want to do this!!!!! Is it working for you? My sleep patterns lately have been awful. I need to change something because I haven't been sleeping well lately! If this is the answer, I am doing it. How's it helping? Please return and report. :)
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