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You wake up in the middle of the night feeling thirsty or want to go to the bathroom, so you pick up your phone, glance at the time, then get up and drink a glass of water, and then go back to bed, thinking about continuing to sleep. However, you find that you can't sleep at all, and your mind keeps thinking about what you want to do the next day, or some inconsequential trivial matters, and the more you think about it, the more annoyed you become, the more annoyed you become, the more you can't sleep, and in the end you can only stay up until dawn, feeling like you haven't slept well all night.
If you've had this experience, then you probably didn't know that you've actually committed two sleep taboos: watching the time and drinking water. These two seemingly inconsequential actions can have a big impact on the quality of your sleep and your physical health.
Why do you wake up in the middle of the night, don't look at the time, don't drink water, and what is the science behind this? In this article, I will reveal to you the dangers of these two sleep taboos and how to avoid them.
1. Looking at the time can disrupt your biological clock
The biological clock refers to a time system inside your body, which can regulate your sleep and wake cycles, as well as your body temperature, hormones, blood pressure and other physiological functions according to the changes in light and darkness in the outside world.
When you wake up in the middle of the night and glance at the time, your brain receives a signal that it's time for you to wake up, activating your awakening center and putting your body into a state of readiness for activity.
This way, you will feel nervous and have difficulty sleeping. Moreover, this signal can interfere with the normal functioning of your body clock, making your sleep and wake cycles irregular, causing your body clock to be disrupted, which can affect your physical health.
2. Drinking water will increase your metabolic burden
When you wake up in the middle of the night and drink a glass of water, your body will begin to carry out a series of metabolic activities, such as digestion, absorption, excretion, etc. These activities deplete your energy and increase your body temperature, which can affect the quality of your sleep.
And, these activities can also irritate your bladder and make it easier for you to want to go to the toilet, interrupting your sleep. If you drink water frequently in the middle of the night, your body will form a habit that will speed up your metabolism, which will affect your physical health.
3. How to avoid these two sleep taboos
Since these two sleep taboos can have a big impact on your sleep quality and physical health, how can we avoid them?
With expert advice, there are two things we can do here: change your bedtime habits. If you want to avoid waking up in the middle of the night to watch the time and drink water, you need to change your bedtime routine and put your body and brain into a state that is suitable for sleep.
Specifically, you can do a few things: stop using electronic devices such as cell phones, computers, televisions, etc., an hour earlier, because these devices emit a blue light that inhibits your secretion of melatonin, a hormone that promotes sleep, and if you don't have enough melatonin, you will feel difficult to fall asleep.
Do some relaxing activities before bed, such as reading, listening to music, meditation, yoga, etc., which can help you release your stress, calm your emotions, and relax your muscles, thus making it easier for you to fall asleep.
Avoid stimulant beverages such as coffee, tea, and alcohol before bed, as these drinks can put your nervous system in a state of excitement and affect the quality of your sleep. At the same time, avoid drinking too much water, so as not to increase your metabolic burden and urge to urinate.
Adjust your sleeping environment. If you want to avoid waking up in the middle of the night, watching the time and drinking water, you need to adjust your sleeping environment to make your sleeping environment more comfortable and quiet.
Specifically, you can do a few things: put your phone, alarm clock, and other devices that show the time in places you can't see, or turn them to silent or night mode so that you don't get distracted by the prompts of the time and don't have the urge to look at the time.
Generally speaking, the temperature is 18-22 degrees Celsius, the humidity is 40-60%, the light is dim to dark, and the noise is quiet to faint, such an environment is most conducive to sleep.
Adjust the sheets, quilts, pillows, etc. of your bed to a comfortable level that suits you, generally speaking, the sheets and quilts should be clean, soft, and breathable, and the pillows should be moderate, supportive, and comfortable, such a bed is the most conducive to sleep.
epilogue
Waking up in the middle of the night to watch the time and drink water is an experience that many people have experienced, but you may not know that these two seemingly inconsequential small actions can actually have a big impact on your sleep quality and physical health.
Watching the time can disrupt your body clock and make it difficult for you to fall asleep, and drinking water can increase your metabolic load and make you more likely to want to go to the toilet. In order to avoid these two sleep taboos, we should pay attention to changing our bedtime habits and adjusting our sleep environment to allow our body and brain to enter a state suitable for sleep.