Bedtime Procrastination: Here’s How To Stop It and Go To Bed… Yeah Right

If you're a busy parent who spends time working, by the time it's all said and done you might only have 32 minutes of "me time" before you need to hit the sack. And that can mean procrastinating when it's time for bed. At least that's what a new article on INC. says.

Ya know, watching one more Law and Order rerun. Scrolling through Facebook one more time. Or listening to one more album before calling it a night. Wait, that's my excuse and I'm not even a parent. All these things can fall under bedtime procrastination.

Bedtime procrastination, according to INC., is when we stay up later than we really should and sacrifice sleep to take care of ourselves.  Well, it's not really taking care of ourselves, it's just making us more tired and cranky the next day.

INC. says there are three things we can do to avoid doing this:

• For each hour you work during the day schedule a ten-minute self-care break. The idea behind this is that you'll feel more satisfied with your day, and be less prone to procrastinate at the end of your day.
• At bedtime, many of us want to scroll through social media one more time. Instead, lay down and set a timer on your phone for ten minutes. Then close your eyes. Odds are you'll forget about wanting to scroll through Facebook.
• Remind yourself what you did throughout the day. The idea behind this is we'll remember the good things about our day, not just the bad things. And at night when you look at the list you'll feel that sense of accomplishment and sleep better.

Personally, I don't know if I buy a lot of this. The truth is sometimes life is a whole bunch of work and not much leisure. And sometimes taking that hour for one more Law and Order rerun, scrolling through Facebook one more time, or in my case, listening to one of my favorite records is just what the doctor ordered. Even if I do wind up a little sleepy the next day. The problem is stopping at one. Right? Whose with me?