Do iPhones/iPads and energy laps prevent me from sleeping?
It was reported in the Daily Telegraph (full article here) that modern energy saving lamps could be stopping people from drifting off to sleep. The article follows a recent story about electronic devices such as iPads preventing sleep for the same reasons (full article here)
As we switch over to energy saving devices, including the lamps in our bedside lights, it would seem that we are convincing the body that it is daytime and of course the brighter that the light is the more blue light that is entering through our eyes. Blue light is predominant with the morning Sun light which naturally begins to wake the body. It does this because the chemical melatonin production is suppressed which then prevents sleep. So now blue light being present at different times of the day confuses the body and mind.. As more people take to checking emails, reading and watch films or TV with mobile devices in bed, in itself I believe addictive, this bluelight issue is amplified.
I also have a slightly different view on the subject. Whilst I would agree of course with what has been reported, it is my opinion that by using devices in bed we are causing our brains to become much more active. Usually, we would put on low light, watch some TV or talk downstairs before becoming tired and retiring straight to bed. It is like the effect when you become tired while driving. When you stop at the service station and grab a coffee or just visit the loo, the pattern has been disrupted and your mind re-awakens - to the point that will sustain you through the rest of your journey or until you become fatigued again. What the devices bed time use does is allow us to do now is to re awaken the mind and allowing it to become much more active.
Once the mind is awake again and, if this happens regularly, then the mind becomes conditioned to stay awake at a time that you would usually try to sleep. It is a catch 22 situation! You would like to sleep but can't so you watch a movie or check the internet - the mind becomes active and so forth...
With hypnotherapy we change the thought process, patterns of behaviour and intervene the conditioning to ensure that sleep becomes a natural event again. So, if switching the lights off isn't working - ring me at thoughtlounge TODAY. 07970977146
