Have you ever felt like you don’t have enough time to do what you want during the day, so now you turn your bedtime into your free time? Today, let’s learn about something called “Revenge Bedtime Procrastination”!
In this article, we’ll take a look at:
Thanks for reading Station 101! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.
What is Revenge Bedtime Procrastination?
Causes and Outcomes
How to stop it?
Before you read: This article is mainly based on my own observation and research, information from various sources will be used for reference but it might contain holes and shortcomings. If you are having severe trouble with your sleep, professional help is recommended.
1. What Is It?
According to ADDitude, “Revenge Bedtime Procrastination” refers to the act of deliberately putting off sleep for short-time enjoyment derived from leisure activities such as watching Netflix or scrolling Tik Tok. The term itself was first used in 2014 by Dutch social and behavioral scientist Floor M. Kroese in one of his research on the relation between procrastination and sleeping behavior [1].
It is a common psychological phenomenon that has been studied and observed in a wide range of population, including adolescents, college students, and adults. This phenomenon likely occurs among individuals with busy schedules during the daytime, prompting the need to sacrifice sleep for some little free time as a way to make them feel like “I still have some control over my life”.
And as you can already tell, having procrastination as one of your personality traits also means that you are distracted more easily anywhere, anytime.
“According to researchers, there are three key factors that differentiate between bedtime procrastination and staying up late:
The individual experiencing bedtime procrastination must be decreasing their overall sleep time every night.
There must be no reason for them to stay up late (such as location or sickness).
The individual must be aware that the loss in sleep is impacting them negatively, but they do not care to change their routine.” [2]
Another thing to bear in mind is that, while most people believe “Revenge Bedtime Procrastination” is just basically people who don’t want to sleep early, there are two different forms of bedtime procrastination: Delaying getting into bed (bedtime procrastination) and delaying the act of sleeping once you are in bed (while in bed procrastination).
2. Causes & Outcomes
Is there any particular reason for this to happen? Apparently yes. Let’s take a look at each.
Causes
a. Poor Self-control
Ah yes, the number 1 reason, also the most common reason.
Self-control is supported by either motivation or sense of responsibility. An adult that lacks self-control will more likely give in to impulsive behavior and emotional disturbance, which in turn can contribute to feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression.
In this case, people who go to bed early are generally rely on their motivation, for example, you have an important job interview early tomorrow so you need to take a rest, or you’re too tired to think of anything else outside getting comfortable in your bed. However, as this motivation can easily be manipulated by multiple factors such as stress and digital entertainment, some people don’t usually feel like going to bed like they planned to.
The moment when you find yourself sitting on the fence, wondering if you should sleep or spend another 1 hour watching the next episode of your favorite Netflix series, it means these factors has outweighed your ability to control yourselves and stay motivated. You will then find it hard to tear yourself away from the TV, and only decide to call it day just because it has got too late and you’ve become too tired to continue watching the next episode.
Basically, you try to delay going to bed until the balance shifts in your favor: tiredness, less distractions, etc.
b. Emotional Disturbance
Do you ever feel too sad to sleep? Or things at work didn’t turn out as you expected and gave you a hard time sleeping? Or most importantly, you tend to overthink way too much?
To some individuals, bedtime procrastination is how they cope with emotional challenges, serving as a “a solitary time for introspection, reflection, or emotional release” [3]. Under some specific circumstances, most people would require some “alone time” to process their thoughts and emotions throughout the day without any distractions, and night time seems to be the perfect fit.
It isn’t just that. As people keep feeding on their emotions at night, their bedtime procrastination gets worse, their sleep duration and sleep quality decreases, further triggering more negative emotions that might worsen their anxiety and depression. [4]
Individuals who suffer from insufficient sleep are more susceptible to poor performance and higher stress. Besides, sleep deficiency also goes hand in hand with concentration and memory problems and a lot of other health problems.
c. Escapism
Bedtime procrastination also serves as a form of escapism for your overcrowded schedules during the day.
Most people will think of bedtime as their own coping mechanism towards stress, anxiety, or an overwhelming list of tasks. Therefore, people might resort to utilizing late-night hours as a means of evading these challenges as well as getting a brief respite from the demands of everyday life.
In other words, people who are tend to use their late-night hours as a way to restore balance and reclaim the freedom and control they don't have in their day.
d. Other Reasons
What else can keep you up at night so willingly? There are a lot.
Sleeping environment: Apparently, your sleep quality depends a lot on the environment that you live in. Noisy or unfamiliar surroundings can disrupt your sleep and make it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep throughout the night.
Unscheduled sleep habits: People who work on night shifts, either constantly or periodically, are more likely to procrastinate their sleeping as their sleep-wake cycle is disrupted, making it difficult for them to establish a consistent bedtime routine.
Substance consumption: Consuming caffeine, alcohol or nicotine or medications close to bedtime could also interfere with your sleep quality and disrupt your sleeping duration.
Medical conditions: Some medical illnesses such as chronic pain, gastrointestinal disorders, or neurological disorders, can posed challenge to your sleeping pattern.
Outcomes
What are the consequences if bedtime procrastination continues to persist in a long period of time? I believe you have already had your answer to this. Let’s first talk about the short-term and long-term effects that you might face due to inconsistent sleep routine.
Short-term consequences: Daytime sleepiness and concentration problems seem to be the most obvious symptoms of sleep deficiency.
Long-term consequences: Continuous procrastination pre-bedtime might lead to severe sleep loss, and since it is closely linked to one’s ability to self-regulate [5], it will likely become a habit. And once it becomes your daily ritual before going to bed, you are certainly susceptible to get several health problems such as [6]:
Stress & anxiety
Diabetes
Obesity
Hormonal changes
Chronic pain
Immunodeficiency
While all of the above already sound bad enough, immunodeficiency is probably worse. Note that, if you sleep less than 6 hours a day, you are more likely to come down with cardiovascular and metabolic disorders. [7]
3. How To Stop It?
As a person with bedtime procrastination as myself, I couldn’t just tell you to “go to bed early” as a solution. Here’s what I’ve been doing so far:
Schedule a personal time for yourself. Taking a few minutes of break time between each working session could be beneficial.
If any problems stem from poor self-control, it’s best to work on improving self-control first. Turn off any electronic devices and put them on mute before going to bed at least 30 minutes. The more you hold on to them, the more you will find it hard to tear yourselves away from them. This does not only eliminate distractions but also limit blue light exposure that could interfere with your sleep routine.
Cease from consuming food or drinks before bedtime, especially caffeine. Engaging in activities such as reading a book, taking a warm bath, or practicing relaxation techniques like deep breathing can signal to your body that it's time to wind down.
Other methods to be considered:
Avoid daytime naps, particularly if you struggle to fall asleep at night. Adenosine, a compound associated with drowsiness, accumulates when you are awake and diminishes when you sleep. As a result, napping could potentially reduce the levels of this chemical necessary for achieving restful nighttime sleep. [8]
Prepare a comfortable sleeping environment. You don’t have to put on lo-fi soft beat or even ASMR sounds to get a better sleep. Sometimes, all it needs is a soft pillow and bedding.
Apply sleeping method, which was introduced by Lloyd Bud Winter as a routine “created by the Navy Pre-Flight School to help pilots fall asleep.” [9] which involves a combination of mind-body relaxation techniques, including deep breathing, visualization, body-scanning, and muscle relaxation.
It helps if you start by identifying why you prefer staying up late over getting cozy in bed early so that you could pick the most suitable solution to work on yourselves.
If you or someone you know is currently struggle with their night sleep, keep in mind that bedtime procrastination is a common issue that occurs to everyone. However, in case you can’t improve your sleep quality and duration, it’s best to ask for professional consultation from physicians if the problem persists.
An informative and in-depth publication that covers various topics including emotional science, psychology, social issues, general healthcare, all from the perspective of a professional. This is my recent discovery that I highly recommend to everyone.
As I comment at 10pm, I'll also add that for those that don't get outside very much, step outside periodically in the morning and throughout the day. Get sunlight in your eyes without any filter like windows or glasses. The UV rays are filtered by them and our bodies need it to wake up and start our circadian rhythm. Andrew Huberman speaks more in depth about this.
I’m glad to know reading a book is on the helpful list. That is my go-to method for drifting off.
As I comment at 10pm, I'll also add that for those that don't get outside very much, step outside periodically in the morning and throughout the day. Get sunlight in your eyes without any filter like windows or glasses. The UV rays are filtered by them and our bodies need it to wake up and start our circadian rhythm. Andrew Huberman speaks more in depth about this.