Raise your hand if….
…You’ve ever fallen asleep watching Netflix in bed…
…You’ve ever laid in bed, in the dark, scrolling on your phone…
…You’re used to having multiple lights on before you go to sleep…
Earlier this week I gave a presentation on sleep habits, specifically looking at how technology can play a role in disrupting our biological sleep cycles.
If you don’t mind, I’d like to share some highlights and nerd out about time for a couple of minutes.
We exist with biological clocks all throughout our bodies. These biological clocks exist on genetic, cellular, and psychological levels (to name a few), and function as innate time keeping systems.
Perhaps you’ve heard of the circadian rhythm? Circadian rhythms are a function of our biological clocks. They are rhythms that exist in roughly 24 hour cycles and influence physical, behavioral, and mental changes. Our sleep-wake cycles come from our circadian rhythms.
Light is an external cue that impacts the functioning of our circadian rhythms. When we introduce excessive amounts of light into our evening and nighttime environments, we run the risk of disrupting the natural cycle of our circadian rhythms, potentially disrupting our sleep cycle and sleep quality.
This is huge because sleep disruptions are associated with significant consequences. They link to reports of decreased wellbeing, mood vulnerability, and lack of attention. On a long-term scale, sleep disruptions have been found to correlate with depression, anxiety, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other mental health issues and neurodegenerative diseases.
So, what are we doing before we sleep?
For many people, the time between getting into bed and actually falling asleep is now intervened by various technologies.
As we think about all this, we can work to build awareness of our own sleep habits, how they impact our wellbeing, and how they influence the way we want to show up in the world.
The following are a handful of questions I’ve been reflecting on as I consider the implications of this sleep research.
We can work to build awareness of our own sleep habits, how they impact our wellbeing, and how they influence the way we want to show up in the world.
Reflecting on Your Sleep Habits
What are your time habits around bedtime? What do you typically do before you go to bed?
How do your sleep habits promote your health and how you want to be in the world? How do they detract from your health and how you want to be?
If you could make any changes to your sleep habits, what would they be?
What strategies could you use to help implement your desired sleep habit changes?
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