Are devices in your bedroom costing you quality sleep?

Connected devices and why you should banish them from the bedroom

In our ever connected society, we’re surrounded by ways to stay in touch with the world around us. Our bedrooms, which should be places of rest and renewal are now just another place to check our phones, tablets or laptops. If it’s not the constant lure of social media, the temptation to binge-watch a box set in bed leaves many of us turning on the TV rather than turning over on our pillow.

Keeping you alert for longer

Once your head hits the pillow, it generally takes around thirty minutes for your brain to wind down and settle into restful slumber. With your mobile in your hand, however, your brain is constantly working as you browse through Facebook, respond to that urgent tweet and chuckle at a few cat videos. An hour later and you’re still awake. Fast forward to the following morning and what little sleep you did manage to get leaves you feeling fatigued for the rest of the day.

At bedtime, plug your phone in to charge, but leave it alone from there. It’s unlikely that there’s anything happening so late that’s more important than getting a good nights sleep. You’ll be glad you did.

The bane of blue light

No matter what device you have in your bedroom, if it has a screen of any kind, it almost certainly emits blue light. This sounds fairly harmless, however, your sleep hormone, melatonin is suppressed by blue light. Some studies indicate that blue light can have the same effect as a cup of coffee. This, in turn, means that you get less sleep and that the sleep you do get is less restful. If possible, it’s probably best to have no screens at all in your bedroom, but if you can’t quite wean yourself off checking your phone before sleeping, check to see if there’s a setting to inhibit the blue light it generates, to give you a chance of a better night’ sleep.

Notification Nightmares

Once you’ve got to sleep, that doesn’t mean your favourite devices can’t distract you. The pops, pings, beeps and buzzes of myriad notification may not always wake you up, but they can easily reduce the quality of the sleep you get. If your phone has a helpful flashing LED to let you know there’s an unheeded ‘like’ on your favourite social platform, it’s surprising how bright this flashes against the pitch blackness of your bedroom at two in the morning.

Getting good quality sleep is essential for good health and our sense of wellbeing. While technology improves our lives in so many ways, it’s important to realise that it can sometimes be harmful too. As with all things, there’s a time and a place for it. At Longbeds, we want you to get the best quality sleep possible and we’d humbly suggest that bedtime is not the time and place for technology.