Comments | nasu_dengaku: Sleep experiments with low blue lights... progress report

nasu_dengaku

Sleep experiments with low blue lights... progress report

Dec 05, 2010 21:50

I posted earlier about my experimentation with blue-blocking glasses to help improve my sleep. I ended up not enjoying the experience of wearing the glasses, but I realized that I could achieve similar results by setting up red and orange colored night lights in my house. This was especially nice to add to my bathroom, as it now allows me to use ( Read more... )

personaldev, sleep, health

Comments 19

Another option... paulmakepeace December 6 2010, 07:04:59 UTC

In the week preceding my week of intensive training in DC recently where I was going to fly from 8am under instrument conditions for 5+hrs a day (i.e. having to stay alert while getting my ass kicked hard) I pre-adjusted to EST by going to bed 30mins earlier each night. First time in my adult memory I've been to bed before 10pm while not actually ill :) Anyway, the only way I got this to work was cutting computer usage after 8pm and using very low light.

I'm envious of your 19min sleep latency...

Re: Another option... nasu_dengaku December 6 2010, 07:13:22 UTC

I have trouble going to bed early, but the blue-blocking environment, especially if I do it rigorously, is a *huge* help to this.

Also, getting to 19 minutes took a hell of a lot of hard work and experimentation. I used to average around 60.

g_w_s December 6 2010, 07:38:36 UTC

I just wanted to let you know that I'm enjoying your research quite a bit. I've started using f.lux at home as well. My sleep habits are fairly out of wack.

If you're able, candles produce a very nice yellow light for nocturnal illumination and are quite relaxing as well.

Have you seen this?

http://sleepyti.me/

nasu_dengaku December 6 2010, 07:50:15 UTC

Thanks!

Candles are nice to use from time to time and I very much like the visual appeal created by their slight flicker, but they do set things on fire if tipped so they require constant attention. I'm amazed society made do with them as primary illumination up until the early 1900s. :-) The stories about the first electric streetlights and how everyone was blown away by their brightness are fascinating.

As for sleepyti.me, I don't think people's sleep cycles and sleep latencies are accurate enough to make the times it suggests very useful. Most of the sleep tracking devices offer adaptive alarms, which are better at accomplishing the same goal.

ashliana December 7 2010, 00:58:17 UTC

Neat. I've downloaded f.lux. A small step, but perhaps it will indeed help my sleep. I'd like to approach my sleep as methodically as you do, as I have serious sleep problems that have quite damaging effects on mental functionality, but it's hard to do... I guess this is a step forward. I've also found that there are a # of apps on the droid that do similar things to the device you describe in another post of yours -- so perhaps I will start tracking my sleep better to see what's wrong. The real issue I seem to have, though, is that some nights I just can't get my body to relax in bed (even if I meditate before bed or masturbate/have sex), and it's particularly triggered if there are any sounds in the first 20min or so after I go to bed, which I've found to be a sort of the "magic window" where I need to fall asleep, and if I fail, I'm up for many hours later despite fatigue ( ... )

ashliana December 7 2010, 00:58:53 UTC

Interesting - I just installed f.lux and my eyes and face immediately feel more relaxed, too.

nasu_dengaku December 7 2010, 01:05:37 UTC

Sweet. You should try Nocturne too -- I find it works even better

nasu_dengaku December 7 2010, 01:14:26 UTC

The options for reducing snoring are sadly not all that simple. If the snoring is due to allergens causing mucus buildup, your partner could try taking allergy meds (but not drowsy-inducing ones like Benadryl) before bed to reduce the buildup ( ... )

Thread 8

2700k ext_349672 December 8 2010, 16:34:52 UTC

I've been wondering lately why it is that people (myself included) seem to have such a preference for 2700k lighting in their homes when the 6500k stuff, which is much closer to actual sunlight, has been available for quite a while. I'd been thinking that it was just what they were used to but I find that 2700k has a persistent attraction even after I make an attempt to get used to 6500k. My personal aversion to 6500k lighting seems to start after dinner time and get stronger as it gets later.

After reading this I'm wondering now if there might be a wired-in aversion to blue light in the evenings because of this sleep related effect. Maybe spectrum adjustable LED lighting is more useful than I thought...

Re: 2700k nasu_dengaku December 8 2010, 18:08:16 UTC

That's a good point. It would be cool to have bulbs that automatically adjust their spectrum based on local time.

I certainly really enjoy having orange lighting in my house in the evenings.

neph13 December 15 2010, 03:19:07 UTC

thanks for the flux tip...been working quite well for me this past week.

On the snoring tip, I snore due to a deviated septum. My left nostril is more narrow than the right, which causes breathing issues. I have had some success with the BreatheRight strips, but it isn't 100% effective. The more powerful style of the strips works good, I do notice I breathe much easier at night, and can tell a huge difference when I take them off (like I feel like my oxygen intake is decreased by 25%)