People used to talk on the phone ... now they text. People used to talk in their sleep ... now they text. It's called Sleep Texting, and for better or worse, people are doing it.
They say, "Don't text while driving." "Don't text while walking." Now ... "Don't text while sleeping."
While smartphone owners use their devices to text and email throughout the day, some people are taking their addictions to new heights and texting while sleeping, reports say. The phenomenon is on the rise, with sleep disorder specialists reporting that more and more people are texting several times a night while they're asleep.
People get up ... text ... then go back to sleep and never remember texting. Depending on the messages one sends, this can be embarrassing as it comes from a place one does not want to openly disclose, such as a sexual attract to someone, making t a compromising situation for both people.
Aside from compromising situations, sleep-texting may cause health issues as well. In many cases, sleep-texting occurs about two hours after a person falls asleep, when deep, restful REM (rapid eye movement) sleep would normally begin. Most sleep-disorder specialists recommend people get seven to eight hours of sleep each night - lack of sleep has been linked to a number of health conditions, including obesity, heart disease, depression, high blood pressure, immune-system dysfunction and other issues. One can wake up exhausted the next day.
Modern technologies like smartphones have a pervasive influence on modern life, especially among younger users, who may be particularly susceptible to "smartphone addiction." And use of smartphones, computers, video games and other technologies has been linked to pervasive sleep disorders, including insomnia.
To ward off sleep-texting, experts recommend shutting devices down completely before going to bed or, in extreme cases, moving the cellphone out of the bedroom entirely. For optimal sleeping conditions, Werber and other sleep specialists also recommend turning off devices about an hour before going to bed - the bright light they produce can inhibit the production of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin, which is produced in dark light.
Sleep Texting: People Addicted To Phones Text While They Sleep Huffington Post - August 27, 2013
While smartphone owners use their devices to text and email throughout the day, some people are taking their addictions to new heights and texting while sleeping, reports say.
A phenomenon called "sleep-texting" is on the rise, with sleep disorder specialists reporting that more and more people are texting several times a night while they're asleep, according to CBS New York last week.
WebMD writes that teens are especially at risk of "sleep-texting," with more and more kids reaching for the phones during the night, sending texts, and waking up with no recollection of what took place.
"Four o'clock in the morning, 3 o'clock in the morning -- it would just be a sentence of jumbled-up stuff," sleep-texter Megan told CBS New York. "I guess I got up and texted, and went back to bed, but I don't remember it."
Aside from the risk of sending bizarre texts to your contacts, sleep-texting isn't good for your health in that it interrupts deep, restful REM sleep, experts say.
"Sleep is a very important restorative process," Dr. Josh Werber, a sleep and snoring specialist, told US News. "And when we're not fully engaged in it, and not getting the amount we need, we're not having the same restorative effect on our brains -- and that affects our cognitive ability the next day."
Best way to resolve the problem? Experts recommend shutting off your smartphone before bed or even moving your devices out the bedroom entirely. Also wean yourself off using gadgets in the evenings, in that research has shown that light-emitting screens from tablets and smartphone can suppress the release of the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin and enhance alertness, making it more difficult to sleep.
