I’m trying to stop being a night owl. I start wearing blue blocking glasses at 11:00 pm, stop eating at 8:00 pm, expose myself to very bright lights as soon as I get up in the morning, and (as I’ve done for years) take melatonin as soon as I try to fall asleep and sleep in a very dark room. Any other ideas for how to shift one’s sleep schedule?
Wouldn’t you want to take melatonin before you intend to go to bed? It doesn’t get absorbed instantly, and the cycle won’t be influenced immediately either.
Shift incrementally. If you are waking up at 7am now, set your alarm to 6:45am the next day. Move in 15 minute increments until you are waking at your goal time. This works better for me than trying to shift my sleep an hour at a time, which will lead to a big sleep deficit. 15 minutes shouldn’t impact performance too much & the modest amount of sleep lost each day will help you get to sleep earlier.
Also 11pm seems pretty late to start wearing the glasses. f.lux usually turns my monitor orange at about 6pm.
I’m trying to stop being a night owl. I start wearing blue blocking glasses at 11:00 pm, stop eating at 8:00 pm, expose myself to very bright lights as soon as I get up in the morning, and (as I’ve done for years) take melatonin as soon as I try to fall asleep and sleep in a very dark room. Any other ideas for how to shift one’s sleep schedule?
Wouldn’t you want to take melatonin before you intend to go to bed? It doesn’t get absorbed instantly, and the cycle won’t be influenced immediately either.
How long before I want to fall asleep would you suggest? I take sublingual 3MG.
I am not entirely sure, but 20-30 minutes sounds reasonable. If you feel sleepy before then, well, you can just go to bed a little bit earlier.
Shift incrementally. If you are waking up at 7am now, set your alarm to 6:45am the next day. Move in 15 minute increments until you are waking at your goal time. This works better for me than trying to shift my sleep an hour at a time, which will lead to a big sleep deficit. 15 minutes shouldn’t impact performance too much & the modest amount of sleep lost each day will help you get to sleep earlier.
Also 11pm seems pretty late to start wearing the glasses. f.lux usually turns my monitor orange at about 6pm.
Val recommended this article.