Even if you’re working in an office but happen to sit in front of the laptop all day, adjustments may be needed to be able to sleep well. Make sure you know just how important sleep is for you. Some organs are having a rest, your hormones work to prep you up for the next day, your body regenerates. Your habits, diet, and productivity also depend on how well you sleep.
We’re here to help you with a set of recommendations for the best sleep after a long day at work in front of a computer.
Mind the Content You See and Engage with
Many people spend their breaks on their phones or laptops, even though their eyes are already tired from the screen light. This is a very common thing; a lot of us are hooked on social media. Without maintaining safety on Internet, you may be exposed to content that you don’t want to see.
It may scare you or trigger negative states such as anxiety and grief. Always be cautious about what you see. Such states don’t go away that quickly. When falling asleep, your brain will bring back the feeling, making the quality of your rest worse.
A way out? Use filters, AdBlock, etc., especially if you’re not sleeping well after seeing something online.
Always Mind Your Mental Health
Working as a freelancer, you may encounter certain obstacles when dealing with work and personal life becomes difficult. Even having a regular job in the office may make it difficult to socialize when you have a headache and sore eyes after spending so much time near a laptop.
The lack of socialization, living on the Internet, and other habits may make your mental health worse.
It’s not that the Internet is a bad thing; quite the opposite. But:
You get tired because of the lack of physical activity and would rather spend time online;
You get all kinds of information, perceive it unconsciously, which make you develop a “monkey brain” that is never quiet, which is very tiring;
You lose the benefits of mindfulness, being in the moment, etc.
All of these may cause anxiety as the best-case scenario.
A way out? Take breaks and adopt a habit of mindful meditation.
Spend Some Time Out
Most people who work from home struggle physically and mentally because of the lack of sports in their lives. A sitting way of life is one thing, but when it happens at home, the activities barely hit the minimum requirements.
Plus, not getting enough fresh air and sunshine jeopardizes your physical and mental health.
A way out? After finishing the project, go out, get some extra oxygen by walking in a park. Go out in the sun, get that vitamin D (but don’t forget to use sunscreen). Go for a coffee, call friends, look at the sunset. This will take your mind off work, help your eyes recover, and exhaust your body a little bit so that you’re 100% ready to sleep.
Take Care of Your Eyes
After being exposed to laptop and smartphone screens for hours a day, your eyesight will deteriorate. Address this issue beforehand and go to a doctor. Most likely, the specialist will prescribe you computer glasses or eye drops.
A way out? If you have sore eyes for several days in a row when working and afterward, it’s time to visit a doctor. The causes may be beyond your screen time, but it’s usually one of the reasons. And it’s difficult to fall asleep in such a state.
Balance Laptop Time Before Sleep
It’s recommended to stay away from laptop and smartphone screens for at least an hour before sleep. Your eyes and brain calm down, getting ready to have some good rest. Turn off your TV, make the light dimmer, and just relax.
If you absolutely have to work till late at night, adjust screen settings:
Lower its brightness to the most convenient setting;
Switch on the warm light mode; it’s not that strenuous for the eyes.
And then, before sleep, take some time to relax and breathe, trying to let thoughts just pass by and dissipate.
A way out? Go to the shower, light candles, do aromatherapy, meditate, apply a mask, stretch, etc. You can combine all of this into a nighttime routine, but we’ll talk about it later.
Have Rituals and Maintain Them
Create a special routine and do it every day before sleep. Such habits will let your body and mind know that you’re about to go to sleep. Plus, it will take your eyes off the laptop and let the hormones calm down, preparing to see dreams.
Some people find it difficult to instill new habits and can’t sleep well even after a week of doing the same ritual.
A way out? Give it time. A new habit is created in 21 days. If, after working on a computer all day, you still can’t fall asleep, opt for a mild sedative. But later on, your body will get used to the signals you send it, and the sleeping cycle will be restored.
A Summary
So, how to sleep well at night? Balance work and life, adjust your screen settings, take care of your beautiful eyes. Keep in mind that mental health may deteriorate without you noticing it, check on it regularly. Find beauty around, beyond the frame of your device.
Such a balance will definitely help, making you well-rested, productive, and ready to sleep tight at night. The meaning of good rest is to make sure you’re healthy and ready for a new day. Make the most use of it!
Evidence is mounting that the screen time/sleep deprivation correlation might affect children and teenagers even more than adults. The latest study comes from a high school junior who won the 2013 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair for her research that discovered that adolescents who partook in more than 3.5 hours of screen time a day were more likely to suffer sleep deprivation than those with only two hours of screen time.
So what should you do to reduce the effects of screen time at night to possibly stave off sleep deprivation? Reducing the brightness of your device can help, as well as using amber-colored glasses when watching a screen after the sun goes down. But the obvious answer is to resist watching too much TV or using your smartphone in the hour or two before bedtime. Find some other way to wind down, including reading a book—not on your tablet, but the 20th century way with pages and a bookmark. Not turning on your television or laptop right before bed will give your brain a rest, in more ways than one.
If you think it may be more than too much tv or computer time, contact Alaska Sleep Clinic for a free 10 minute phone consulation.
