Keep Your Phone Out of the Bedroom: A 2-Hour Sleep Upgrade

What if the best sleep and energy upgrade you could make costs nothing—and starts with putting your phone in another room?

Your phone may be one of the last things you see at night and the first thing you see in the morning. That seemingly harmless habit could be interfering with two of the most important transition periods of your day: the hour before sleep and the hour after waking.

Try this instead: leave your phone outside the bedroom overnight. Charge it somewhere else, use a traditional alarm clock, and don't pick it up until you've been awake for about an hour and, ideally, have spent some time outside.

Why nighttime matters

The obvious concern with screens before bed is light. Blue-enriched light can suppress melatonin, the hormone that helps signal your body that it's time to sleep.

But the bigger issue may be what you're actually doing on your phone.

Scrolling exposes your brain to an endless stream of news, social media, work reminders, entertainment and emotional stimulation. Your body may be tired, but your brain is still processing everything you've just consumed.

Removing the phone eliminates the temptation before it starts. You're not relying on willpower to ignore a device sitting beside your bed—it simply isn't there.

There's another benefit: reclaiming your bedroom as a place for sleep rather than stimulation.

Protect the morning, too

The first hour after waking deserves just as much attention.

Your body naturally experiences a rise in cortisol after waking, helping transition you from sleep to alertness. Morning light also provides an important signal to your circadian clock, helping establish the timing of your sleep-wake cycle.

Instead of immediately checking email, news or social media, try giving your brain a chance to wake up before the world starts demanding your attention.

Get outside. Get some natural light. Move your body. Drink some water. Have a conversation.

Then pick up the phone.

Make it easier, not harder

The simplest way to succeed is to remove the decision altogether.

1. Buy a basic alarm clock. Your phone doesn't need to be your bedside alarm.

2. Create a charging station outside the bedroom. Make that the phone's permanent overnight home.

3. Establish a one-hour screen-free window before bed. Read, stretch, talk with your spouse or simply relax.

4. Get outside in the morning. Aim for natural light before reaching for your phone.

5. Move shared screen time earlier. If you enjoy watching videos with your spouse, do it on the couch rather than in bed.

You don't have to eliminate screen time. You simply need to protect the two bookends of your day.

Your phone isn't going anywhere—and neither are the notifications.

But they can wait.

Give your brain an hour to wind down at night and an hour to wake up in the morning. Your day should begin with your own thoughts, not someone else's notifications.

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