One simple habit to drastically improve your sleep

We all know sleep is important, but what do you actually do about it? There are a slew of apps and gadgets out there from sleep trackers, white noise machines, high tech ear plugs, weighted eye pillows, and guided sleep meditations designed to carry you off into the land of nod. Yet so many of us still feel tired on waking. In our grasping at gadgets, there’s one culprit disguising itself as a help when really it’s perpetuating the problem. Screens. 

You’ve probably heard it before, the blue light emitted from our devices blocks or suppresses a hormone called melatonin that regulates sleep. Melatonin is produced in response to darkness, which signals to the body that it’s time to prepare for sleep. On the flip side, light decreases melatonin production, signalling the body to prepare for being awake. So aimless night-time scrolling or Netflix binges can turn into restless sleep. But you need to wind down before bed, you say? Blue light is not the only consideration when it comes to night-time-tech. The passive intake of information continues to stir cortisol from the content we are processing, keeping the body wired and on alert. It’s this 24/7 stimulation loop that can cause disturbances in our sleep. 

Yet it’s not just screens at night that pose the problem. Many of us are on them at first light too, before we’ve even stretched, brushed our teeth, or thought about that weird dream we had. Our phones perch by our bedside, often buzzing within incoming messages during the night, until they wake us with a techno alarm that we turn off and then do a sneaky check of the emails, scan of the headlines, or clearing of social media notifications. This brings us to one game changing habit to try on this month. 

Ban your phone from your bedroom. 

Not only does this remove the portal of stimulation from right beside your bed, but come morning it will protect your waking moments from instantly starting the cycle again. You’ll be amazed at how mood boosting it becomes to wake up without immediately letting the world in through your screen. The most common protest to this idea is “but my phone is my alarm” which is easily overcome by a cheap store-bought alarm clock or better yet, keep the alarm on your phone outside your bedroom for the added bonus of having to get up and start your day!