Devices and Sleep

Hello, it's Eve here. Welcome to this guided exercise focused on our relationship with our devices. So this is a good exercise to do during the day before bedtime hits, and I know that you're having to use your phone in order to access this exercise, but ultimately, technology isn't bad. In fact, it has so many good uses, but it's our relationship to it that can be problematic, especially if we find ourselves glued to our screens right before bedtime. Life is really busy, and there can be a feeling that we need to stay constantly connected to our devices, and as a result of that, we've developed some quite bad habits, and one of those habits is to react to every single little thing, every sound, every vibration that comes from our phone or our computer, and when it comes to sleeping, technology has gotten really good at keeping us awake as the blue light that radiates out from our devices starts to shift our sleep rhythm, keeping us awake for longer, as the body believes it's still meant to be awake. In addition to that, if we're, say, checking social media or receive a text from a friend right before bed, it can trigger the release of the hormone dopamine, which makes us feel happy, and it triggers the reward system in our brain, making it really hard to quit that device, and some things that I have found really helpful to shift my relationship with my devices before bed are trying to minimize screen time right before bed. Now, that doesn't mean you can't use technology, but try to be conscious if your eyes, in particular, are glued to a screen. Having a warm bath or shower, this is a personal favorite of mine, as it really helps to wash away the day, doing a wind down exercise, and you can check these out in the sleep section of the app, writing three things down that you're grateful for or listening to relaxing music and, of course, meditation, which is what we're going to do now. This exercise is about learning how to be more responsive and a little less reactive when it comes to our relationship with our devices. We're going to use a technique called noting. It helps you to see when the mind is getting distracted, whether that's in our thoughts or in actions, like feeling the need to be constantly connected to our devices, and rather than simply following it, going with it, we take a moment to realize, oh yeah, actually, there's a choice in this moment. We can either let it go, or we can choose to engage with it, and by practicing this on a regular basis, it will hopefully help you to have a slightly better, healthier relationship with your devices, especially when it comes to getting a good night's rest. So putting all of that aside for a moment and getting comfortable wherever you are sitting or...