Kids dislike being told to take a nap, while we'll do anything to just close their eyes for 5 minutes. It's a hard thing to do for most adults to sleep at 10 pm, wake up at 6 am, then eat well or exercise. Work gets in the way most of the time, and it's difficult to prioritize which one first, especially with so many things running in our heads late at night. Endless work, house chores, constant worry or fear, and many other uncertainties we tend to think about. It's difficult to sleep when there are so many things running through our head, feeling that we're running out of time while there's a lot of things to do in one single day. To maintain relationships with close ones, we tend to make sacrifices and that usually is sleep. Distractions like social media can also be one of the factors, as some people do not have much time to access social media and keep up with the news during the day. Even when we do sleep, it's usually not as well as we used to have when we were young.
According to Alessandra Edwards, a performance expert, revenge bedtime procrastination is popular among people who feel they don't have control over their time and are seeking for a way to reclaim some personal time, even if it means staying up late. Refusing to go to bed early and spend the rest of the evening doing whatever they want as a form of payback. But for those who are actually tired and wanting to go to sleep, they struggle to do so. It is as if their body chooses not to sleep and wind down, wanting to stay awake although already laying in bed. The 2019 Phillips Global Sleep Survey found that 62% of adults are having a hard time staying asleep and this might cause drowsiness later in the day.
There are many solutions to overcome this sleep phenomenon. Alex Dimitriu, MD, a board-certified psychiatrist and sleep medicine expert, believes that the art of sleeping is not by trying so hard, but focusing on breathing. Practicing breathing through meditation can be as easy as sitting in a quiet place and spending five minutes of deep, purposeful breathing or listening to music you enjoy. Other solutions can come from your room temperature, keeping a regular sleep-wake cycle, avoiding beverages such as alcohol or caffeine a few hours before bedtime, and not taking a nap after 3 pm might do you wonders. If you still find it difficult to sleep, there's no harm in seeking help from experts.
