Hello everybody! Welcome back to my blog!

I have seen that my post about sleeping well was pretty successful, which means that people want to know about it. That is great, because sleeping well is as important as eating well or exercising. You can read it again or check it out if you missed it out, just click in the link!

The three must do’s part 2: sleeping well

Remember the absolute protagonist of the post was Sauron?

We recently adopted another cat, this time a sweet female called Pandora. They do know how important it is to sleep well!

Today, I want to focus on one of the biggest problems of this century in the first world: the device.

Nowadays, we all have a phone, a laptop and a TV as basics for our lifestyle. We even find ourselves going to the toilet with our phones scrolling down on Instagram. Could you imagine if the people we are following could see us in that very moment?

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The problem with the usage of the phone is quickly becoming a major societal issue. We have been told that technology is the hero of this era, we can access a lot of information, we can stay updated and being in touch with family and friends has never been so easy. And it all comes from a very little thing! My mum still keeps her very first mobile phone. She has a briefcase and everything. I have held it, and it’s heavy. Trust me, that iPhone 12 Pro Max is tiny in comparison.

Nevertheless, we took this into an extreme.

We have been given this little piece of everything, but we haven’t been told how to use it properly.

Social media and this rush to be constantly updated and on top of everything has made us feel like we need to check our phones constantly, reply to that WhatsApp right away and like the last pictures our friends or idols shared. If you haven’t seen that last TikTok or YouTube video, you are out. I have seen myself out of many conversations with my friends because I barely use Instagram, meaning that I am not on top of the last trend.

This anxiety to be constantly updated has made us go to bed with our phones. It’s the very last thing that people do worldwide before falling sleep. What we don’t know is that our beautiful devices hide one of the biggest enemies of your sleep: the blue light.

This blue light is a very powerful form of light that boosts attention, alertness and reaction by reducing the hormone melatonin, the one in charge of putting us to sleep. Your brain stays awake and, even though you eventually fall asleep, it will take longer for you to go into the deep phases of your sleep, the ones that help you rest. This also leads to a reduced amount of cycles during the night. A healthy adult needs about 4 to 6 full cycles every night. The length of each cycle varies, but it’s around 90 minutes. Just in case you didn’t do the maths, that is about 6 to 9 hours of sleep every night.

Real case: you wake up at 6 in the morning and you find yourself scrolling down on Facebook at 12pm. You turn off your phone and go to sleep. You might get 6 hours of sleep, but you won’t get the minimum 4 full sleep cycles.

Now, that all make sense, but what can I do? There is literally nothing to do at the end of the day but watching YouTube or scrolling down on Insta. Not to mention those people that work until late. I wonder what my grandma used to do before going to sleep when she was my age.

Experts in the subject say that we need at least two hours device free before going to sleep. I reckon these guys don’t know which century are we in. The reality is, we are lucky if we can think of one hour at the end of the day with our phones out to sight. And of course there are people that will be like: “oh no I forgot to set up the alarm! Well, now that I have my phone on me…”

It takes time to lose the habit. But Sanchi Says is here to give a piece of advice.

• Enjoy (real) social interactions.

This might not work if you live alone, but a lot of people live with family or friends. The last hour of your day, invest time with them. It could be a good moment to talk about your day, share stories, tell them some dramas that might be going on. Get a cup of rooibos or milk (tea or coffee are off limits if you want to fall asleep) and enjoy with them. If you live with your partner, focus that last hour on them. This might be tricky if they don’t want to join you in this special journey, but I am pretty sure that they will be delighted, especially your parents, who don’t know much about you since you became a teenager.

• A nice skin care routine.

This one is a must for me. I even make Harry do this with me. At the beginning he felt funny, now he even starts the process himself. It’s lovely. I will write about the importance of skincare in future posts, but this is the moment in which you can pamper yourself. You can do it alone or with someone. Start with a nice wash using appropriate products for skincare, followed by eye cream and a moisturiser. If you don’t know about skincare but you are into it and want to learn, I recommend you see a dermatologist. In the meantime, there are some really good dermatologists you can find on media, like @dr.anamolina. Her content is in Spanish, but you’ll find a lot of quality information about skincare.

• Meditation or other type of relaxing exercises.

Gentle yoga, stretches or a good meditation may help you enhance sleep. Avoid vigorous exercise at least a couple of hours before going to bed. To start with meditation (which is not easy matters) you can download one of those free apps, although I’d recommend you to start meditating during the day and avoid using the app at night. Remember, our main goal is getting away from the phone.

• To read.

I can’t think of a better way to entertain ourselves a little bit and stay away from the phone. This might also be difficult at the beginning if you are not a huge fan of books, but there is always a book for every person. We all have hobbies or things we like, and nowadays we have thousands of books about every subject. Even if you’re not a fan of books, you can read a comic book or a magazine. You just need to find your type. Reading a book has been linked with an increase of melatonin, the hormone of sleep.

• To listen to a book or a podcast.

This is just for experts, just for those that are capable of using their phone just to press play and stop. If you feel tempted to also check your social media, stick to the other ideas. The podcast apps, as well as the audiobooks apps normally have a sleeping time option or a timer. Set a timer and finish your day with a good story right in your ears (please don’t bother your partner if you share a bed).

• Slow down on everything you do.

Whether you are trying just one of these things or many of them, try to do them slowly. By the simple act of slowing down, it will take you longer to do these things, meaning that the time you spend away from your phone lengthens.

I will share with you my own personal pre-bed routine in a future post, and the things that work for me.

Thank you very much and see you next Sunday!