Waking up in the middle of the night and being unable to go back to sleep is one of the worst feelings. But a neuroscientist seems to have found an easy fix.
Getting adequate rest is important for your overall well-being. A recent study shows not getting enough sleep can harm yourself, others, and your mental health. If you’re used to looking at your phone screen every time you wake up in the middle of the night, do this instead.
Neuroscientist’s ‘favorite tool’ for falling back to sleep
Neuroscientist and Alzheimer’s researcher Dr. Robert Love uses a talking alarm clock to go back to sleep easily and it costs as little as $22 for a pack of two on Amazon.
He explains in one of his TikTok videos that the device – which says the time on pressing a button – stops you from looking at your phone screen, which is quite disruptive to your sleep. The neuroscientist instead uses the alarm clock to learn the time and goes back to sleep upon realizing it’s not morning yet.
Dr. Robert further explains that sleep is essential for a healthy brain, and people who have sleep disturbances are at greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
- STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE: Bed expert’s 10-minute rule you need to follow when picking a new mattress
As exposure to light from your phone can make it harder for you to fall asleep, he suggests simply listening to the time by pressing the button on the talking alarm clock to go back to sleep.
If you’re used to taking your phone to bed, it’s time you ditch the unhealthy habit as it can pose several health risks. No wonder dreamscrolling – doomscrolling’s kinder sister – is a much preferred habit.
Risks of taking your phone to bed
As much as you like to stare at your phone until your eyes shut close, taking it to bed can greatly impact your health.
As the Cleveland Clinic notes, Doomscrolling is one of the many harmful consequences of going to bed with your favorite device. For the unversed, doomscrolling is the tendency to consume negative news while mindlessly scrolling through social media.
The infamous habit can stimulate your brain and delay your REM sleep, keeping you up beyond the usual bedtime.
Furthermore, the blue light the phone screen emits imitates the daylight, keeping you more alert when it’s time to rest. As well as your vision, artificial light is also bad for your sleep. The best practice is to stop using your phone at least an hour or two before hitting the sack.
Dr. Robert Love is a neuroscientist, researcher, and educator with over 2.1 million followers on TikTok. He “specializes in helping people prevent Alzheimer’s disease with science” and is leading a research team investigating a new FDA drug to help reverse Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.
