Here I am at almost 2am. I went to bed about 2 hours ago, thinking I was doing myself a favor going to sleep a little earlier that I usually do. As it turns out, I am still wide awake and not feeling the slightest bit tired. What do people do when they just can’t fall asleep? Chances are they will utilize some sort of technology.
Technology generally offers a quicker disconnect than any activity not involving technology. It is completely possible to get engrossed in a book or magazine, and remain awake once you have hit the point of being ready to sleep. Watching television however, is a bit less interactive and offers the opportunity to disengage by falling right to sleep whenever needed. Below, I have listed my go-to pieces of technology to utilize when I am unable to sleep.
Television. It is most advisable to avoid any type of show that you would be interested in staying awake and watching. Choose something boring like CSPAN (unless politics is your thing). Watching something boring will hopefully ease the mind, and make the transition to sleep mode go a bit more quickly. I am sure you remember how easy it was to fall asleep during class or in church…I find that listening to politicians talk, makes it that much easier.
The iPod. Music or podcasts are a great way to put other thoughts out and clear the mind. Clearing the mind allows both the mind and body to drift into a more restful state. Like TVs, iPods also offer a quick disengage. The listener can fall asleep at whatever point they feel tired, and not have to worry about getting completely engrossed in a novel or other such piece of literature.
The PC. Logging back onto the computer can be an effective way to ease the mind and become more restful as well. It is advised though, that computer usage be very selective so that the user does not get distracted, and stay up later than necessary. So, stay away from reading extensively or playing games. If you must read, read a blog with shorter posts so that you can give yourself plenty of chances to withdraw from the activity and go back to bed. YouTube is also a good option. The average lengths for YouTube videos, is about 2-3 minutes. It does not take too much mental power to engage in most of the content, and the short length allows you to call it quits when you are ready.
It is also not advisable to write a blog post. Chances are, you will get half way through writing it and realize that it is sleeptime. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the post I had to finish it now. Goodnight.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Haha, “Can’t Sleep” lifestyle, that’s the perfecy way to describe it. I think playing games is OK if you stick to simple, quick stuff like solitaire or snake. Blogging on zero sleep can be a big mistake, just make sure you draft everything and don’t hit publish till you are wide awake!
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Hey. Your blog is coming along nice! Very well written for the masses.
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Another low impact, easy-to-disengage activity for late night is checking your blood pressure. In fact, you can snooze while you wait for the reading! Then of course there is the tred mill which enables you to “snooze while you lose.” It’s a lot like sleep-walking.
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