{"id":1067,"date":"2024-03-23T16:56:37","date_gmt":"2024-03-23T16:56:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/?p=1067"},"modified":"2024-03-23T16:56:37","modified_gmt":"2024-03-23T16:56:37","slug":"i-removed-all-tech-including-my-tv-and-phone-from-my-bedroom-over-5-years-ago-my-sleep-has-never-been-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/?p=1067","title":{"rendered":"I removed all tech, including my TV and phone, from my bedroom over 5 years ago. My sleep has never been better."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"4267\" alt=\"a man sleeping on his stomach in bed with an iPhone next to him\" charset=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/65fb08c82417f97b87cdb188?format=jpeg\" height=\"3200\"><figcaption>The author, not pictured, removed all tech from his bedroom to sleep better.<\/p>\n<p>Yasinemir\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>I needed to sleep with my TV on and my phone next to me, which contributed to my insomnia.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>I wasn&#8217;t getting a great night&#8217;s sleep because I always associated my bedroom with tech activities.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>My sleep improved drastically when I removed all the tech from my bedroom.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When I had insomnia, I truly believed having the TV on in the background helped me <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/sleep-hacks-to-optimize-business-performance-2023-7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sleep better<\/a>. Sure, I&#8217;d occasionally dream I was in an old sitcom or wake up suddenly by a loud commercial, but I truly felt I <em>needed <\/em>that digital &quot;white noise&quot; to slow down my busy mind.<\/p>\n<p>While the TV was initially seen as a sleep aid, it wasn&#8217;t helping my insomnia overall. My <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/good-sleep-routine-avoid-burnout-2023-10\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sleep schedule<\/a> was still erratic. I never knew what time I was going to fall asleep officially. Morning alarms were also met with grogginess, headaches, and existential dread.<\/p>\n<p>Although my digital distractions would eventually tire my brain and knock me out, it wasn&#8217;t leading to the consistent and quality <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/guides\/health\/rem-sleep\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">REM sleep<\/a> everyone needs to recharge themselves and be ready for the next day. I decided to make a drastic change.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>My digital distractions were just an emergency plan<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>For me, technology was becoming an emergency plan for sleep. It was &quot;helping,&quot; but only enough to achieve the bare minimum. It was about survival instead.<\/p>\n<p>I falsely believed that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/impossible-to-break-phone-addiction-iphone-required-apps-2023-8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">I needed my phone<\/a> at arm&#8217;s length to get a good night&#8217;s rest. I thought: &quot;What if I get an important email at 3 a.m.? What if my social media post goes viral on the other side of the world while I sleep?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Feelings of FOMO took over. I always wanted to be connected because I didn&#8217;t want to miss anything that may happen. I couldn&#8217;t turn my mind off anymore, and I was addicted to the easy dopamine hits. My <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/guides\/health\/mental-health\/sensory-overload\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">mind was over-stimulated<\/a> and over-active as I lay in bed, scrolling.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>I struggled to associate my bedroom with sleep<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I found that I spent too much time in my bedroom doing things other than sleeping.<\/p>\n<p>I spent hours of my waking day in my bedroom, whether it be watching television, playing video games, reading on a tablet, browsing social media, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/i-stopped-checking-email-every-morning-reduced-stress-better-productivity-2020-4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">checking emails<\/a>, or doing late-night work on my laptop.<\/p>\n<p>The problem was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/guides\/tech\/how-to-fall-asleep-better-sleep-products-apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">my sleep environment<\/a> was too stimulating. It wasn&#8217;t conducive to winding down and relaxing. My brain associated my bedroom with a cornucopia of different activities, so my first thought when walking in wasn&#8217;t, &quot;Time to go to bed,&quot; but, &quot;What should I do now?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>During my lazy years, I would even eat dinner or a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/late-night-snacks-that-are-good-for-you-2018-5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">late-night snack <\/a>while watching Netflix. There were no clear boundaries between &quot;sleep&quot; and other daily activities. Everything just blurred into a heavy fog of half-awake and half-asleep.<\/p>\n<p>My mind never knew when it was officially time to rest. Without setting clear boundaries for myself, it was easy to rationalize, &quot;One more click, one more episode, one more level\u2026&quot; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/guides\/health\/revenge-bedtime-procrastination\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Putting off sleep<\/a> for another 15 minutes didn&#8217;t seem like much when it was already 1 a.m., and I was at least under the sheets. But then, another couple of hours passed by.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>I took out all the technology in my bedroom<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Over five years ago, my bedroom underwent a complete transformation; I got rid of the TV, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/video-games-xbox-playstation-spider-man-movie-business-trouble-why-2024-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">video games<\/a>, phone, and all other digital distractions.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s a completely minimalist approach. All I technically need is a bed, dresser, and night table. Years later, the only electronic device in my room is a small digital clock. I also have a tapestry and plant in there, too.<\/p>\n<p>At first, the change was really shocking. Something felt strangely off while I lay in bed those first few nights without my phone or the TV blaring. I tossed and turned in the uncomfortable silence and started to second-guess my decision. I experienced weird &quot;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/what-your-smartphone-is-doing-to-your-brain-and-it-isnt-good-2018-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">phantom vibrations<\/a>,&quot; where I<em> <\/em>felt my phone send a notification despite not having it on me.<\/p>\n<p>But after a challenging couple of weeks, my mind began to adapt to the new bedroom. I learned to associate it with my &quot;sleep space&quot; and nothing else. Over time I fell into a natural rhythm where I would instinctively fall asleep and wake up around the same time every day. I haven&#8217;t used an alarm clock for years now.<\/p>\n<p>Getting rid of tech in the bedroom wasn&#8217;t the <em>only<\/em> thing that improved my sleep habits (exercise and diet helped, too), but I believe it was a major change that contributed to my sleep success over the years.<\/p>\n<p>I certainly have no plans to bring screens or tech back into the bedroom anytime soon.<\/p>\n<div>Read the original article on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/improved-sleep-after-removing-phone-tv-tech-bedroom-2024-3\">Business Insider<\/a><\/div>\n<p>\nFuente: https:\/\/ift.tt\/s3CtOxM<br \/>\nPublicado: March 23, 2024 at 07:12AM<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The author, not pictured, removed all tech from his bedroom to sleep better. Yasinemir\/Getty Images I needed to sleep with my TV on and my phone next to me, which contributed to my insomnia.\u00a0 I wasn&#8217;t getting a great night&#8217;s sleep because I always associated my bedroom with tech activities.\u00a0 My sleep improved drastically when&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[91],"tags":[75,76,77],"class_list":["post-1067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-news","tag-noticias","tag-viral"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1067"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1068,"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067\/revisions\/1068"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hectorkott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}