Don’t you get to bed before midnight every night? Do you swear to yourself every morning: “Tonight but earlier.”? Then you may have Revenge Bedtime Procrastination.
It’s 10 p.m., you’re tired. Just enough tired to go to bed and sleep for eight hours before you can start the next day well rested. But actually it’s only 10 p.m. … Until twelve o’clock there are easily two episodes on Netflix. Or just surf the net a little? Finally we need some new shoes, oh and this dress is so pretty too … wham, put it in the shopping cart. Well, and while we’re here, let’s see what else we can order. Hups, one o’clock. But now, quickly to bed. Five hours of sleep should be enough. Tomorrow I’m going to bed really earlier …
The eternal vicious circle of postponing sleep
Our days are crammed with appointments, after work we take care of shopping, homework, doctor’s appointments, hobbies and of course whoever has the children. For many people, the end of the day doesn’t really start until around 9 p.m. And then of course you want to somehow enjoy it a little and relax. Unfortunately at the expense of our rest period. The result: the night is short, the stress the next day is all the greater because we are even more tired. According to National Geographic, people who are particularly affected by Bedtime Procrastination have not yet been adequately researched, but interestingly, bedtime procrastinates mainly people who have a lot of freedom of action in their job – for example executives, managers, students and freelancers, explains Dr. Anna Höcker, coach, psychological psychotherapist and expert in stress management and work blockades at National Geographic.
Reasons for Revenge Bedtime Procrastination
Usually it’s about the feeling of catching up on free time that you didn’t have during the day in the evening and at night. A feeling that parents in particular know very well who only have their own time when the kids have disappeared into their beds. The only problem is that time is felt to be too valuable to “waste” it on sleeping, but at the same time there is no more energy to make it really meaningful. Often you just get stuck in social media and the TV program and what was intended as a short-term reward after a stressful day quickly becomes a waste of time for several hours without you noticing. “This happens absurdly, especially when we are already tired or stressed from the day or have experienced a lot of frustration – then cognitive control decreases and it is more difficult for us to regulate ourselves,” says Dr. Anna Höcker.
And then one thing leads to another …
Insufficient sleep leads to even more stress, a guilty conscience and self-reproach. We cannot concentrate very well, we may have headaches, are more irritable and impatient. “What is particularly common is that sleep-deprived people who are overtired during the day tend to poor self-control, which in turn can lead to general procrastination and worsened other health behaviors.” Logical: “If you are overtired and exhausted, you will not be able to bring yourself up to worry about training, exercise or a healthy diet.” In addition, too little sleep leads to the release of the hunger-stimulating hormone ghrelin and can lead to food cravings and unregulated eating.
How do you get out of bedtime procrastination?
1. More time off during the day
If we feel that we are not experiencing enough time-outs and relaxation during the day that we have to catch up on in the evening, we can try to incorporate a little more of this into our everyday life. For example, the lunch break can be used for a walk, or you can plan short breaks at regular intervals that you can plan for yourself. In addition, we should check our to-do list more often for its importance, not everything always has to be done immediately.
2. Establish new habits
When do I want to lie in bed? We should answer this question and set an alarm clock for it. When it rings, it’s off to bed. Or we treat ourselves to an episode of our favorite series and then consistently switch off if we usually get stuck in front of it. It becomes a habit after about three weeks.
3. Journaling
Still brooding in the evening? Then it helps to write down your thoughts for 10 minutes before going to bed. This can also happen completely unfiltered and does not have to be easy to read. The main thing is to get out of your head.
4. Pay careful attention to signs of fatigue
Our body says and actually pretty much what it needs – even when it wants to sleep. We just learned to ignore our body awareness. The good thing, however, is that we can learn it again. Just pay attention to what your body is telling you and go to bed if you feel any signs of fatigue.
5. Make the benefits of sleep clear
And there are a few: regeneration, anti-aging, recovery, relaxation, performance … It pays to get enough sleep!
6. Develop a sleep routine
Not everyone: they need the same amount of sleep. To find out how much you need, you can experiment a little and work out your own sleep routine.
7. Ban cell phone from bedroom
If you still spend a lot of time on social media in bed, it helps to put your smartphone aside half an hour before you plan to go to bed or to ban it from the bedroom completely. An analog alarm clock is then a good investment.
No panic
Basically, of course, it’s not a tragedy if we go to bed too late. But if the level of suffering increases because we don’t sleep enough, it makes sense to take a look at what you can do with your time in the evening. However, if procrastination becomes chronic or excessive, psychological and physical stress increases and you are unsure whether procrastination is the cause of deeper problems, an appointment with a psychotherapist is very useful.
Sources: National Geographic, Business Insider