Getting a Good Night’s Rest Isn’t Easy. Here Are 5 Gadgets to Help

If you’ve found yourself struggling to put your phone down at night, you’re not alone. In fact, you’re a part of the majority — as am I. 

According to a 2023 survey conducted by Sleepopolis, for every three people surveyed, two of those people stated they use their phones before bed. In addition, 42% of those people said they both fall asleep using social media and use social media first thing upon waking up. 

The survey had 1,495 American adult participants. I relate to those who make up the majority in this study as I have long enjoyed playing on my phone before bed and occasionally when I wake up too. 

With many of us using the alarm clock built into our cellphones, it’s almost too easy to turn off or on the alarm and then swipe to check email notifications, social media, news sites and more. As I noticed this habit developing, I wondered if it was affecting my quality of sleep. According to the National Library of Medicine, it very well could be, because when we have exposure to blue light at night, it can suppress melatonin and increase insomnia, a 2017 study found. 

This information inspired me to attempt to overhaul my night routine and make positive changes on my morning routine too in order to feel more rested overall. But I’ll be the first to tell you, it’s not as easy as it sounds. 

The first and possibly most important step was figuring out what a healthy sleep routine is, so I spoke with Katherine Veazey Morris, a clinical psychologist at Mindwell NYC. In addition to helping her patients create healthy nighttime routines, Morris treats insomnia with cognitive behavioral therapy and focuses on overall sleep efficiency to measure a good night’s rest. Ideally, people will have an 85% to 90% sleep efficiency, she says, which means that if they are in bed for 10 hours, they are sleeping for 8.5 to 9 of those hours. 

Whether you have insomnia or are simply sleep deprived, both conditions can wreak havoc on your body. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, not only can sleep deficiency lead to daily issues such as irritability, it can also lead to long-term and serious health conditions such as heart and kidney disease, high blood pressure, depression and more. 

This makes it all the more important to nip any bad sleeping habits you may have in the bud and overhaul your night routine. Below are steps and a handful of products that can help you get a quality sleep tonight. And trust us, your body and mind will thank you for the extra effort.

1. Cool it on the caffeine 

Morris says her very first tip for sleeping better is to stop drinking any and all caffeine after lunch. According to WebMD, it can take up to 10 hours for caffeine to clear out of your body, making it that much more crucial to stop ingesting caffeine at least that many hours before your scheduled bedtime. Unfortunately, there are no nifty gadgets to help you with this step, but here are four tips on how you can start cutting back today. Or you can make the switch to caffeine-free herbal teas. 

2. Create a before-bedtime routine 

Morris says that the key to creating this routine is to base it on how you personally like to slow down in the evenings. That could include reading or relaxing on the couch with your family, then you can start adding in small things that you enjoy doing, which will make a big difference.

“I like to brush my teeth and wash my face right after dinner, right? Because if I get really sleepy, that’s going to wake me back up,” Morris says. 

I took Morris’ advice here and started doing the same thing, and for me it made a world of difference when bedtime rolled around. I also added in light stretching, which helps me relax, and started picking out my outfit for the next day so that my overall morning routine is cut down. For me personally, I learned that I’d rather do more “work” in the evening to prepare myself for the following day. 

You can create your before-bedtime routine however you like, but it is not recommended to do heavy exercise within 3 hours of bedtime. Instead, focus on calmer activities such as reading a book or on an e-reader or journaling.

Take notes while reading on Amazon’s largest Kindle yet. 

3. Put down your phone and turn off the TV 

This step was the hardest for me to achieve, and if I’m being honest, I still have some slip-ups even after weeks of trying to break this habit, but I have learned some helpful tips. The No. 1 goal here is to set a strict bedtime for yourself, then turn off electronics at least 1 hour before that time. 

“One of my rules is, pretty much never, never have your phone in bed,” Morris says, adding that if you want to spend some time in the evening scrolling through social media on your phone, do it on the couch, at the kitchen table or anywhere that is not your bed. 

“The phone is often sort of a dopamine boost, so that’s certainly not going to make it more likely for you to sleep,” Morris says. 

You can choose different goals for when you want to go to bed depending on your schedule and if it’s a weekend or weeknight, but it is generally recommended for adults to get at least 7 hours of sleep each night. Once your bedtime is set, the goal is to get as close as possible to those bedtimes every single night. That way, you can stick to your routines and continue to grow healthy habits. For me personally, I aim to be asleep no later than 11 p.m. on weeknights. And keep in mind that this means fully asleep, rather than simply lying in bed and using a phone or tablet. 

Investing in a traditional alarm clock is another way to help achieve this step. By doing this, you can place your phone away from your bed, so you’re less likely to pick it up in the evening. (One more tip is to put your phone in do not disturb mode and/or turn off all notifications during this time to not be tempted to go on your phone.) 

Smart alarms can also act as a sound or light machine in the evening and morning to help you improve your sleep quality.

This sunrise alarm offers comforting sounds and lighting at night that could help you achieve your best sleep yet.

If you don’t want to make a large investment, simple, traditional alarm clock for just under $10.  Morris says the only thing to keep in mind if you go the alarm clock route is to make sure you don’t find yourself watching the clock all night. 

“Clock watching is really difficult,” she says. “The second that we start doing math, we start waking up.”

Although I haven’t made the leap to purchasing an alarm clock yet, what has worked for me is to place my phone on the opposite side of my bedroom. This is a win-win for me because one, it keeps me off of my phone at night and two, it forces me to get out of bed first thing in the morning to turn off the alarm and get my day started more quickly without procrastinating on social media. 

4. ‘Put the day to rest’

While step three is the hardest for me, step four is my personal favorite, mainly because I love a list. This step is specifically helpful for people who may feel dread going into the next day due to a long list of errands, chores or other daily obligations. Often, this feeling can keep us up at night. 

Morris says she works with her clients to “put the day to rest,” which is a specific type of journaling, where you can write one line per thought in the evening to help yourself relax. You can do this for however long or short you prefer. 

“For every thought you have, write one line per thought, then what you can do with that is create a list for the next day so that you’re literally putting your day to rest,” Morris says. 

For me, I find it extremely helpful and motivating to write a short to-do list the evening before a busy day. I don’t do this every day, but I like to do it if I’m feeling stressed or if I want to feel like I’ve accomplished tasks on a dedicated weekend. If this style of writing doesn’t appeal to you, there are other ways you can journal at night, including using a dedicated nighttime journal.

Another way I’ve personally “put the day to rest” is by practicing meditation or mindfulness during my before-bedtime routine. If you don’t know where to start with meditation, there are plenty of helpful tools to help, including guided light machines. 

Practice the 4-7-8 breathing method before bed with this sound and light machine. 

Read more: Conquer Your Sleep Troubles With These 9 Calming Yoga Poses

5. The power of sound 

Once you’re in bed, the work isn’t always fully complete. For some, a little extra effort is needed. Sometimes that means wearing a sleep mask if you’re sensitive to light or playing rain, waterfall sounds or white noise on a sound machine throughout the night to drown out any background noise in your home. 

Enjoy 20 different sound options on this portable machine. From rain to birds chirping and white noise, there is something for everyone. 

There are numerous sound machines available, but if you want to combine both of these features, a sleep mask with Bluetooth capabilities could become your best friend.

If you sleep with a partner who prefers to sleep without soothing sounds, a sleep mask with built-in headphones is a great solution.

You may even be able to achieve soothing sounds with the items they already have in your home, such as a portable fan or air purifier that mimics a white noise sound when in use.

Read more: CNET Wellness Editors Reveal Their Favorite Ways to Get Quality Sleep

As with any routine, the most important thing is to find something that works best for you. And while improving our night routine can positively impact the following day, fine-tuning our morning routine matters too.