My Oura ring starts reminding me to “wind down for a good night’s sleep” long before I’m thinking about going to bed. I ignore the prompt and then typically sleep like shit. Maybe I should listen?
What’s a typical wind down routine even look like?
I asked ChatGPT, and here’s the suggestion:
- Dim lights and turn off bright screens 30–60 minutes before bed
- Do something calming: light reading, gentle stretching, or deep breathing
- Avoid heavy snacks, caffeine, and intense exercise late at night
- Set a consistent sleep/wake time
- Keep your room cool, dark, and quiet
That doesn’t seem difficult EXCEPT for two little words in #5… DARK & QUIET.
I’m one of those people that turn on the TV in the bedroom. I keep the sound low and fall asleep to serial killer actions as background noise. It’s a habit I formed some 50 years ago and when I don’t have that TV on, my mind wanders around to worrying about nothing.
There are other outside stimuli that will try to wreck your wind down routine!
My challenges look like this:
I often am at the computer before I go to bed… I can try NOT doing that. Instead, I’ll read a bit to cover #2 above. No more coffee or iced-tea late, and I already have a consistent sleep/wake time, even though it’s certainly not conventional. I already like my bedroom cool… to the point of opening a window in there during the wintertime.
How about you join me in creating a bedtime wind down routine?
If you already have one in place, good for you!
Now you know: In 1897, an Arctic expedition tried to reach the North Pole in a hydrogen balloon but the craft crashed after just two days. The crew died while trekking across the ice, and their fate remained unknown until their camp was discovered 33 years later, complete with diaries and undeveloped photos.