Here are a few observations I have made when it comes to going to bed on time.
Bedtime Alarms
I set up an alarm that reminds me when my target bedtime has arrived. Many times when I am lost in an activity, the alarm makes me remember that I made the commitment to go to bed on time.
I only allow myself to dismiss the alarm when I lay down in bed. Before laying down I am only allowed to snooze it for 8 minutes. To dismiss the alarm I need to solve a puzzle which takes 10s, making dismissing more convenient. Make sure to carry your phone around with you at bedtime.
This is probably the single best thing I have done to improve my sleep hygiene.
Avoid Hard to Stop Activities
It is hard for me to go to bed when doing any engaging activity that I just want to finish up. For example:
Finishing up some Nixos, xmonad, exwm, etc. configuration.
Programming such that I get something working.
Watch a video and feel I need to watch it to the end.
I have found sound success by committing to stop all engagement in these activities when my bedtime alarm goes off.
Don’t Fail by Abandon
Once I get past my bedtime by a bit, I am likely to go past my bedtime by a lot.
Somehow it feels like I have already lost. “Did I go to bed on time” is binary.
[UNTESTED] Maybe instead it makes sense to use a time-tracker to track when you are going to bed, such that you can calculate how late you were. Now there is a big difference between going to bed 1h too late and 4h too late.
[UNTESTED] Potentially one could use a sleep right that then automatically records when you sleep. Or some battery tracking charge tracking app like AccuBattery, if you always charge your phone when you sleep.
[UNTESTED] Try to sleep
At the target time, try to sleep for 5-15 minutes. If you can’t sleep, you are allowed to get back up. You can use a very subtle self dismissing alarm for notification.
How to Sleep
Here are a few observations I have made when it comes to going to bed on time.
Bedtime Alarms
I set up an alarm that reminds me when my target bedtime has arrived. Many times when I am lost in an activity, the alarm makes me remember that I made the commitment to go to bed on time.
I only allow myself to dismiss the alarm when I lay down in bed. Before laying down I am only allowed to snooze it for 8 minutes. To dismiss the alarm I need to solve a puzzle which takes 10s, making dismissing more convenient. Make sure to carry your phone around with you at bedtime.
This is probably the single best thing I have done to improve my sleep hygiene.
Avoid Hard to Stop Activities
It is hard for me to go to bed when doing any engaging activity that I just want to finish up. For example:
Finishing up some Nixos, xmonad, exwm, etc. configuration.
Programming such that I get something working.
Watch a video and feel I need to watch it to the end.
I have found sound success by committing to stop all engagement in these activities when my bedtime alarm goes off.
Don’t Fail by Abandon
Once I get past my bedtime by a bit, I am likely to go past my bedtime by a lot.
Somehow it feels like I have already lost. “Did I go to bed on time” is binary.
[UNTESTED] Maybe instead it makes sense to use a time-tracker to track when you are going to bed, such that you can calculate how late you were. Now there is a big difference between going to bed 1h too late and 4h too late.
[UNTESTED] Potentially one could use a sleep right that then automatically records when you sleep. Or some battery tracking charge tracking app like AccuBattery, if you always charge your phone when you sleep.
[UNTESTED] Try to sleep
At the target time, try to sleep for 5-15 minutes. If you can’t sleep, you are allowed to get back up. You can use a very subtle self dismissing alarm for notification.