Just Wait One Hour

What is the first thing you do after waking up in the morning? Do you reach for your phone? Is it right by your head, on your nightstand? Or do you have to walk somewhere in your house first? Personally, I sleep with my phone in another room, but after I eat breakfast in the morning, the first thing I do is grab my phone, typically about fifteen minutes after I wake up. Is your morning similar? Different? Well, according to research conducted in the past year, it is recommended that you wait at least an hour after waking up before checking your phone. Why?

First, by checking your phone so early in the morning, your brain skips over a vital stage in its wake up process. According to “Why You Should Stop Checking Your Phone In The Morning (And What To Do Instead)” by psychologist Jay Rai, the brain moves through four different types of waves: delta waves, theta waves, alpha waves and beta waves. The delta waves occur when your brain is in a deep sleep, the theta waves are described as occurring during a “daydreamy state,” the alpha waves occur when the brain is awake but not completely processing information, and the beta waves are when the brain is awake and alert. When devoid of technology, the brain can progress through these stages at its regular pace, making sure to pass through every single one so it can reach the beta stage. However, if it turns to devices, like a mobile phone, so quickly after waking up, the brain might skip the theta and alpha waves due to the resultant increase in stimulation that your brain was not accustomed to while sleeping. After skipping these stages in its wake-up process, the brain can become distracted later on in the day, leading to a decreased performance in school or the workplace. 

Similarly, if you use your phone right before bed, your brain is going to have a difficult time settling back into that delta waves stage, which it needs about eight hours of sleep to achieve, according to “Delta Brainwaves Explained: The Benefits & How to Trigger Delta State” by Sarah Hill. The stimulation from scrolling on social media or checking your email can cause your brain to remain more active, thereby keeping it in that beta waves stage and preventing it from  progressing back through the alpha and theta waves stages. Hill continues to talk about the benefits of entering the delta waves stage while one sleeps: they improve immunity, reduce stress levels, heal the body, release melatonin and DHEA hormones, and improve cognitive function. Seems pretty useful, right? However, these waves only occur in the later hours of sleep, which is why the delta waves typically need about eight  hours. Additionally, by using your phone right before you go to sleep, you are not only eliminating possible time that could be spent in that restful state needed to achieve the delta waves stage, but you are also keeping your brain stimulated and preventing it from progressing back through the other stages. Therefore, doctors and scientists suggest staying off devices that emit a blue light for about one hour before attempting to go to sleep. Goeff McKinnen, in his article “5 Proven Strategies: How to Stop Using Phone Before Bed for Better Sleep,” suggests reading a physical book, since it offers an escape from the “digital world.” He finds “turning the pages of a book [to be] incredibly soothing and relaxing.” However, McKinnen recognizes that technology is impossible to escape in this “digital age,” so he recommends getting blue light-blocking technology like blue light glasses which can reduce the exposure to the blue light. 

Overall, the recommended time spent between sleep and accessing technology is about an hour, since that period gives the brain time to move through its stages naturally and keep the body healthy, although some researchers recommend putting your phone away two hours before heading to bed. If one does not wait and instantly uses technology after waking up, or doom scrolls right before bed the night before, the body can experience negative impacts later in the day. For example, according to the blog Unplugged in its post “Why you should stop using your phone in the morning,” some of the negative effects include a disruption to the sleep cycle, increased stress, more distractions throughout the day, and a higher dopamine baseline for the day, meaning when you instantly open social media in the morning, “you’re more likely to keep chasing the dopamine spikes from social media throughout the day.” Bijin Jose, in his article “Why you shouldn’t reach for your phone first thing in the morning,” also says that some of the negative effects of technological use first thing in the morning are increased anxiety and irritation, as well as a feeling of less productivity throughout the day. These effects can easily be avoided by waiting just an hour to access social media or check your email. Instead, Rai suggests engaging your brain in other ways in the morning. For example, taking the time to exercise or meditate or set goals / intentions for the day, even making a cup of coffee, would be more beneficial to your brain than instantly opening up your phone. 

So tomorrow morning when you wake up, just take into consideration how long you wait in the morning before checking your phone. Ten minutes? Thirty minutes? An hour? And remember, if you just wait one hour, the whole course of your day could be changed.