Hi,
I would love to share with you some recommendations and a great FREE tool to use. This continues on from my previous post titled:
A Power Of A Good Bedtime Routine
Here is an excerpt with some of the KEY points from the previous article:
- Turning off electrical items an hour before bed, or at least use blue light blocking apps or glasses for your screens. So many people are overstimulated, and this is also something I've witnessed with children.
- In addition, turn off the internet and ensure mobiles are on flight mode (your alarm will still work). Or better still, turn it off! Another option is to use an old-fashioned alarm clock and keep your mobile in a different room completely.
- If your mobile isn't off, any notifications coming through WILL disturb your sleep. In addition, avoid checking your phone during the night.
In today’s post, I would like to address the first bullet point. Most of us are already aware that excessive use of computers, smartphones, and tablets can lead to poor quality sleep. This is because our brains are overstimulated and the blue light affects how we sleep.
The amount and the quality of our sleep is vital to how we perform the next day. And it is something everybody wishes they had more of! In my career, I have worked with many people with sleep problems, including sleep deprivation and insomnia, and I've seen how this has affected nearly every area of their lives.
The recommend amount of sleep is between 5-9 hours per night. However, it is not just the amount of sleep, but the quality that is important.
Many studies have shown that adults today have far greater issues with sleep than in the past. Experts believe this is due to the artificial light being emitted by our screens.
Artificial lighting is not beneficial for our circadian rhythms (more about this on my first post here). And the LED lights in screens are even worse! This is because LED lights produce a colour that's far bluer than fluorescent and incandescent lights.
Blue light has been linked to reduced melatonin as well as increased alertness. Not only does it keep you from getting sleepy, it makes you more stimulated.
I would personally like to recommend f.lux to you. It is a free app that helps fight the harmful effects of blue lights by making colours warmer and more natural, acting as a blue light filter. I have been using it for at least four years and have noticed a considerable improvement.
Personally, it helps me begin to feel tired, as before with the overstimulation, I could keep working very late into the night. Does this sounds familiar to any of you?
There are many similar applications available, and with the latest versions of iOS it is a pre-installed setting that you can activate through the display settings.
It may look a bit weird at first, as your screen will be more orange. The warmer colours aren't great for colour related work, such as colour correcting or video editing. But it is easy to temporarily disable it when you need to.
You can find out more about f.lux here: https://justgetflux.com
I really hope you enjoyed reading this, any questions or comments, please write them below.
With love Lisa Marie ❤️
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