Since I switch the phone off …

I have the habit of reading newspapers in bed on my phone. It doesn’t take long and I get tired.
For a couple of months, I have started to turn off the phone completely rather than just putting it on the side. I noticed a huge difference in my sleeping pattern. I sleep like a log if the phone is off.
There are these very rare days when I have to leave the phone on for the alarm. I always wake up several times when the phone is on.
Do you have the same thing noticed?
I wonder what impact a phone has got and why sleep can be affected if the phone is on the side table.

 

Thanks @shiney. No phone, no sleepless nights
Let’s see if someone else noticed a difference.

 

Hi,

Would suggest its not the phone , but you.

Its your inbuilt sensor/alarm system that keeps you on alert when asleep, because you anticipate you might get a message, switching the phone of turns you 'off' so allowing you to sleep peacefully.

You must have good eyesight or are straining your eyes reading the newspapers on such a small device, surely a decent sized tablet would be better and one with a blue light filter which helps your eyes and sleep.

 

My moblie is for emergency only so is off 99.9% of the time
My sleep is mixed but i have other things on my mind which keeps me awake (2-4 hours sleep a night) even our home phone will be unpluded at about 4pm and not put back on till 8 next morning, i hate phone's and i hate people that ring with problem's which are not mine
I'm now getting to hate seeing e-mails coming in as well so i must be a grumpy old man now!!!!
@shiney has now got some compitison but i'm no good at the 3 r's so he beat me

 

Another one here with no mobile phone. However I do usually have my radio on overnight and fall asleep on and off ( tho I often miss what I'd intended listening to ).
Supposedly one needs less sleep the more one ages but how easy it is to "drop off" can often depend on how busy your mind is when you go to bed - at least that is how I find it. Some say that music is a better bet to listen to in bed rather than something which requires your mind to assimilate info. and therefore remain active as such. Having said that, maybe listening to a politician would also rapidly send you to sleep - self preservation in effect

 

I'd say get one, it can be a really useful tool, particularly when outside or driving , almost a life saver.

Doesn't have to cost the earth like the fancy contract Apple phones, we just use a cheap £5 a month Sim service which covers all normal uk calls.

You do not have to stick your personal life onto it like many do, just use it as a mobile phone and for receiving texts for things like appointment reminders for so many key places like Dentists, Doctors etc etc.

 

I haven't got a phone but I suffer from insomnia, so I'm usually awake for hours in the night. I don't think a phone would keep me awake longer.
However I have heard that gadgets left on can disturb one's sleep.

I'm actually thinking of getting a simple mobile phone, but only in case the car breaks down or something like that. I'd only switch it on in such emergencies.

 

I only have a dumb phone @simone_in_wiltshire , and just use it for emergencies. A good tip, from Carole Klein of all people, if you can’t get to sleep, try thinking of as many words as you can ending in -ation. There are loads but I usually only manage to think of 10 or so before I fall asleep

 

Thanks for all your contributions.
Just to make sure that there is no confusion @ricky101, being on alarm happens only a very few times (three time this year when I have had early sessions with Fiji Islands and Australia).
I have had the phone normally on also with no appointments until I started it turning off.
I also have no social media life apart from here and no Messages alarm are turned on. My phone is just an emergency phone and for reading newspapers on bed.

I noticed the change when I started turning it off and whatever it does when it’s on, I wake up (and don’t look at the phone).

 

While a cheap £5 Monthy Sim Card is very good value and recommended for starting with to set up your phone, you can still buy sim cards for your "emergency " situation where an intial purchase of typically £5 or £10 lasts forever, the only constraint is that you have to make a single call once every few months, provider dependant.
see here for providers -

Best Pay As You Go SIM For Light Users: No Monthly Top-Up & No Expiry

 

The only issue is that those calls are much more expensive. I used to have once such phone and ran out of minutes in the only emergency I ever had. I wasn’t able to speak longer than 20 minutes

 

If you believe it is your phone then you could try placing it overnight in one of these pouches which is said to block all signals to and from it, switched on or off.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/SOVIUPRZ-F...one&nsdOptOutParam=true&qid=1732727860&sr=8-3

Have not reseached it, but you could look into your Central Circadian Timing System

 

I fall asleep at 8 whatever happens around me. 20 minutes newspapers reading and then

 

Yes, once happy it works you do need to load up the credit a bit to avoid that.
Also if you turn on Mobile Data and download emails or use a browser it eats up all the credit in literally seconds.

A £5 monthly Sim is still best imho , as most folk will end up using their "emergency only " a lot more than they ever thought once they see how handy it really is.