The cover on a recent Psychology Today magazine caught my eye. Menage A Trois, it said, with a photo of a couple in a bed. It took me a minute to notice where the third “person” was. And then I saw it, an iPad resting in between them. Then I started thinking.
Here we are in our busy lives. Tough schedules to keep. Not getting enough sleep. We all know that drill. But did you know that statistics indicate a majority of us go to bed every night with some kind of screen, whether it’s an iPad, a cell phone or other electronic device. I admit that most nights I do just that.
Reading a book in bed is different. The paper it’s written on doesn’t trick your eye and brain into thinking that it’s daylight, and the words on the page help make you sleepy. But a screen does the opposite. It can hype you up if you’re not careful and make it hard to relax and fall asleep.
So the next time you prop yourself against the headboard and reach for that little device, thinking you’ll only be on it for a minute, try to resist. Remember that the “extra person” in your bed will make it harder for you to fall asleep and deprive you of the energy you need to face the day.