Sleep Habit Plan
General Goal
My general goal is to improve my sleep. Since having my baby boy, I have developed many habits that get in the way of achieving a good night sleep. I do not think I have slept for 8 hours straight in over a year, and it is not all Rowan's (my son’s) doing. He sleeps better than me most nights. I know that sleep is an important part of maintaining health and memory, so I would like to focus on developing healthy habits around bedtime.
The habits surrounding my bedtime will be the most difficult to change, because I am often very tired by the end of the day, and I have lost my will-power by to change my bad habits. I believe that through habit awareness, and inserting new behaviors into current habit loops, I will be able to transform my bedtime routine.
Goal‐Habits Analysis
Current Sleep habits:
Co-sleeping with my baby- Cues: Rowan comes to me when he's tired, and then falls asleep near me. The reward is that I know he will sleep well near me, and I enjoy the comforting feeling of having him nearby.
Screen time before bed- This really is a reward in itself. Once Rowan gets to sleep (the cue), I am excited to get on my computer and read. It is my adult time, my "me" time. I have a difficult time getting on my computer when Rowan is awake because he wants to grab and play with my devices. I look forward to this time, but the blue light of my devices interferes with achieving restful sleep.
Waking up in the middle of the night- When I wake up in the middle of the night, I often lay in bed and think about all the things I could be working on (cue). I will often open up my computer and work or play in the wee hours of the morning. I get things done, and achieve a sense of accomplishment (reward), but end up feeling tired the next day. This all perpetuates my bad sleep, because then I am into a routine of waking up at one in the morning.
Target Habit(s)
I would like to start transitioning my son into his crib. After he falls asleep (new cue), I will move him into his crib.
I would like to put away screens the hour before bedtime, and try to use my phone (which has a blue light filter) for the evening time.
I will not pull out a screen in the middle of the night. Instead, I will begin keeping a book on my nightstand to read.
Target Habit(s) Analysis
I will mostly be working to change existing habits. I want to change my current bad habits into healthier behaviors, like reading from a book in the middle of the night, rather than reading from a screen. The habits I aim to end are looking at blue light devices near and during bedtime, and co-sleeping with my child all night long. The new habits include putting devices away an hour before bed, using a blue-light filter in the evening, moving Rowan to his crib as soon as he falls asleep, and reading from a book in the middle of the night (and not from a device). I think making these changes would improve my sleep greatly.
The cue for getting on my screens is when Rowan falls asleep. I am often anticipating this moment, because then I get to enjoy time looking at content that I enjoy (reward). It is my unwind time. I do not move Rowan to his crib at this time, because I want him to stay asleep. Oftentimes, moving him results in waking him up. By bedtime, I am tired and want a break, so I justify keeping him in bed with me. I also enjoy snuggling with him once I am ready to go to sleep, which is a reward. The main problem with co-sleeping is that whenever he wiggles or shows any restless signs in the night, I wake up. He usually settles back down, but then I am awake, thinking, and eventually opening my blue light devices. This routine has created a very unhealthy bedtime habit.
Habit Change/Learn Plan
In order to build a new pathway in my brain, and develop a new healthier habit loop, I will try and keep the cues and rewards similar. I need to look for and recognize my cues surrounding bedtime and development new behaviors around my bedtime routine. Getting a good night sleep will be a new reward, and so will the feeling of accomplishment when I do these healthy behaviors for myself.
My new bedtime routine will be blue-light filtered technology in the evening, and then by 8pm, I will put all my screens away for the night. I will have a book that I enjoy on my nightstand, so I am not tempted to pull out my phone before bed or in the middle of the night. I can still read and relax, I just need to begin eliminating the blue-light that disrupts my sleeping patterns.
Once my son falls asleep (old cue), I will put him in his crib. I think there will be a couple of rewards related to this. Instantly, I will have a sense of relief (which is a current reward), and be able to stretch my body out in my bed. I will still be able to get on my device for a short period (old reward), but I will be modifying the routine around it. This new habit will help me sleep better because my son’s nighttime wiggles will not wake me up throughout the night.
In order to prevent going back to my old habits, I will also do my best to keep my stress levels low and keep balance in my life. As stated in chapter 3, many people will fall back to their old habits during times of stress. I think this will be true for me, especially since I am dealing with my bedtime routine. By nighttime, I often do not have much energy or will-power and I can justify more screen time to myself (“I worked hard today”, “I deserve it”) or justify not putting Rowan in his crib (“I don’t want him to wake up”, “He needs his sleep too”). If I put him in his crib, and he does wake up from that transition, I must delay my reward of taking out my devices.
In order to truly change these habits that I’ve developed, I need to keep my larger belief in mind: that taking care of myself and getting better sleep should be a priority in my life. I will share my goal with my husband, because I think his support and encouragement will be valuable in changing these habits. I will also get support from my classmates, through an online discussion community. With habit awareness, personal belief, and community support, bad habits can be replaced, and new habits adopted.
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