Admit it. Your smartphone use is already ingrained in your daily habits, including the activities that circle around your bedtime routines. Instead of relaxing in bed, you're likely reach out for your gadget to check for social media updates.
Before you know it, it's almost 2 a.m. and your mind is still active, despite your body being tired and sluggish. Worse, you've got to get up for a meeting at 8 a.m., and with your current state, you're likely not going to have the best mindset when you face your co-workers.
While smartphones are convenient and useful, a study revealed that their glare can affect sleep quality. It highlights the need for putting phones away from time to time, especially when you're going to bed.
Below are four things to do at bedtime that don't involve fiddling with the smartphone so that you can relax and sleep better:
1. Write down your thoughts.
It might be a good time to cultivate the habit of actually keeping a journal using pen and paper - even when blogs and social media exist. The act of writing down feelings is a good way to clear mind clutter and negative thoughts. No one has to read what you wrote except you. Some experts even suggest dumping what you've written in the garbage later on. "By physically throwing away or protecting your thoughts, you influence how you end up using those thoughts. Merely imagining engaging in these actions has no effect," psychological science study author Richard Petty said.
2. Listen to music.
A study has determined that certain types of music can correct sleeping disorders and improve sleep quality. Create a bedtime playlist with songs that should be ideally 60 to 80 beats per minute. The songs should also have tranquil melodies and low registers. However, as a matter of preference, you can also enjoy your favorite songs before going to bed to help you sleep better.
3. Indulge in adult coloring.
Coloring books for grownups are believed to have therapeutic benefits. The act of coloring repeating patterns helps lower the heart rate and calms the brainwaves, thus allowing the body to relax and let sleep take over. Keep a book and a set of pencils by your bedside table, so that you'll reach for this instead of the smartphone during bedtime.
4. Read a book.
Ditch your iPad or similar gadgets and go with reading an actual printed page. Like coloring, reading helps reduce your stress levels and heart rate, and it is regarded by experts as the "ultimate form of relaxation," cognitive neuropsychologist Dr. David Lewis said. "It really doesn't matter what book you read, by losing yourself in a thoroughly engrossing book you can escape from the worries and stresses of the everyday world and spend a while exploring the domain of the author's imagination," he added.
