I sleep terribly.

I have for years now and, though it’s not the worst it’s been, but it’s pretty bad. I sometimes lie in bed for hours, just waiting to fall asleep. Even when I’m absolutely exhausted and know I’m ready for sleep.

Stress, mental health issues, an ever-planning mind 

I can’t lie and say that I sleep badly for one specific reason. I’m a night owl and tend to want to be working late at night, which is hindered by the current house renovation. So maybe I feel like I’m forced to go to sleep a little early for what’s good for me. And yes, I do get anxious and overthink things, leaving me laying awake some nights.

But I do think, potentially, that:

Blue light from the digital screen is impacting  my sleep

I’ve done my research. Read article after article, studies. You name it. I’m more convinced of the negative effects of blue screen light than not. I think. And so I do feel that my sleep is being massively impacted by the fact I’m on my phone and laptop all the time. ⠀
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For most people, it might be as simple as “well, get off your phone. Look at screens less before bed” – and that is something that I’m trying to do, replacing nighttime and morning phone scrolls with reading instead.

Switching off from a digital freelance life

For me, not being on my phone or laptop isn’t really an option right now, at this point in my life and career. Business is busy. I’m at that strange have-to-much-to-do phase where I can just about get everything done but I’m juggling multiple work projects for clients – be it social media, writing, editing, whatever. I’m not going to flourish without working on a screen for multiple hours a day, every day. 

So I’m going to try the next best thing. Making sure I climb a lot, trying to keep stress to a minimum, eating well, getting outside as much as possible, and:

I’m going to start wearing blue light blocking glasses

Every day. For a month, anyway.

I’ll let you all know how it goes in 30 days time.

shared by our customer Rachel Sarah.