I stopped sleeping with my phone in my bedroom, and it’s a game changer

Waking up is one of my least favorite things to do. It takes a lot of effort to get out of bed most days, no matter how many alarms I set or what time I go to bed at night. When I was still a kid, my mom made a joke that a tornado could blow through our house and that I would still be asleep. I’m a heavy sleeper – I fell asleep once before a flight took off and slept until the announcement came that we were coming down – and I can not tell you how many times I have been late to go to class not, work, doctor appointments, and more because I could not get up.

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I stopped sleeping with my phone in my bedroom, and it’s a game changer

When I heard that experts recommend keeping your phone and other devices out of your bedroom at night, I was intrigued. Slowly scrolling through my phone has always been part of my morning routine. How would I ever get out of bed without having it there to help me wake up? What if I miss an important text from my mother or an email about work? My phone is also my alarm, so how would I make sure I wake up on time? Despite all this, I decided to give it a try. I just wanted to see what would happen if I went to bed and woke up without my phone being at arm’s length.

For seven nights, I sleep with my phone in the living room, instead of next to my bed. I would look at it before bed – sometimes even go and look again after brushing my teeth – but only again the next morning. I turned off my notifications so I would not hear any enticing ping from the other room. And I decided to at least take my morning medicine, go to bathroom and shower before going to check my phone every day. Here’s how it went down.

What happened when I took my phone out of my bedroom?

The first night was strange. Apparently I check my phone repeatedly right before I go to bed and as soon as I wake up, because I was still stabbing after it while doing my nightly routine. My brain knew it was not in the room, but that did not stop me from trying to find it physically.

Because I usually use my phone as an alarm, I had to ask Alexa to wake me up. It did not go exactly according to plan. For some reason, my Echo Dot has the white sound I make playing at night, instead of sounding an alarm. This subtle change certainly did not wake me up, so my husband – who is still sleeping with his phone on the side of the bed – had to do it. I’m a slumber, so naturally I wake up. My normal routine is to doze off a few times and then browse Twitter, Facebook and my email before getting out of bed.

When I dive right into my phone, I feel anxious and stressed. Although it was initially difficult for me to get out of bed the first morning, I felt happier than in weeks. I was able to focus on getting ready for the day instead of what I just saw on social media, and it was a great mood.

The second night was a Friday, so I stayed in bed late. I do not know what time, because I did not have my phone, but I just got lost and relaxed. My kids woke me up in the morning and crawled into bed with me, so it was not hard at all to get up.

The next night was the hardest. I stuck to my phone again and had dreams of checking it out in bed or missing something important because my phone was in the other room. But after a fourth night without a phone call, I got out of bed the easiest time on Monday morning. Alexa woke me up with Christmas music, and I feel so peaceful and happy to move from drowsiness to wakefulness. By the time I finally checked my phone that morning, it hadn’t had the draw it usually did. I just watched it for a few minutes before moving on to the next part of my day, instead of flipping through it endlessly as I tried to get out of bed.

By the fifth night, I was used to sleeping without my phone. For some reason, the excitement of getting maybe unread texts and social media notices was enough to get me out of bed and start my day. Why would I lie around and listen to music when I might miss my girlfriend finally announcing that she’s pregnant or that my Christmas cards are being delivered to my email? There was just too much eager anticipation to check my phone to stay in bed.

The next few nights were a blur. That’s right – I kept this routine long after my week-long experiment ended, because I enjoyed it so much.

What I learned from this experiment

Although my anxiety initially increased without having a phone in my room, I realized that I did not really need it. My subconscious, trapped by every vibration or ping of my device, caused me to get fragmented sleep, and that I stuck my brain in an overdrive on my phone before going to bed. And if I did not reach my phone in the morning, I would get out of bed five to 15 minutes after my alarm went off, instead of the 30 minutes to an hour that had happened before. It’s a big improvement for me, and that means it’s definitely worth it to keep sleeping off my phone.

The anxiety about my phone not being in my room has subsided over time, and I do not plan to bring it back anytime soon. Waking up was just so much easier without it! From now on I’m going to load it in the bathroom that connects with my room instead of the kitchen, and I will not be so strict to shower before I go to look at it. Sometimes you just have to scroll through TikTok while brushing your teeth, OK?

I also ordered the new Echo Dot 4^de Gen ($ 40, originally $ 60) with a time screen to serve as my permanent alarm clock (I no longer stay up half the night without knowing what time it is), and I encouraged my friends to do the same to do. It feels just as free to know that no one can reach me for a while, and that I will not think about my day at work or politics until I have first dressed. Waking up has always been difficult for me, but with this small (yes, small!) Change, it actually got easier. Try it – you may find that it is also your new favorite way to sleep!