Submitted by [deleted] t3_z67k9k in books

I’m interested to know what other people have found the relationship between sleeping and reading to be. Particularly whether people who have a bedtime reading routine suffer less with insomnia, anecdotally of course.

Personally, I rarely have trouble sleeping. I have a routine that I get in bed, turn out the lights and read on my Kindle. Pretty soon, I feel my eyes drooping and I’m gone. But the same isn’t true of say, scrolling on social media. There’s something about reading specifically that turns my brain off.

And if I ever can’t sleep, I don’t panic. I just keep reading. It’s like a win-win situation to me: I either read, or I sleep. I couldn’t imagine just staring at the ceiling trying to sleep.

I am wondering if having a bedtime reading routine is linked to better sleep, or have you had a different experience?

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TheWoggleOfOz t1_ixzsgnb wrote

Yep, both my mother and I have this "issue", not that it was one, since childhood. I read a lot of books as a child in daytime and had a night light near my bed that was often turned off after I fell asleep.

These days my spouse has found me snoring with my phone still in claw, and until a few years ago, I would be found also with iPad on face LOL . I sleep very well generally

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MountainSnowClouds t1_ixzsxvj wrote

I can't read when I'm so tired. My mind can't focus. If I'm actually tired I can watch just one episode of a show and still fall asleep. It doesn't wake me up. I'll even stop in the middle of an episode if I'm tired enough. I typically watch TV right before bed and read earlier in the day.

If I'm going to have a night where I can't sleep, it's going to happen no matter what I do. Watch TV, read, toss and turn in the pitch black, take melatonin, whatever. Doesn't matter what I do. If I can't sleep, I can't sleep. If I can, then I can. 🤷‍♀️ It's earlier events in the day that affect my sleep, not what I do right before bed.

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kaysn t1_ixzt7jw wrote

I don't have sleeping problems. But what I've found is that if I'm doing any activity that engages my brain, which includes reading. I won't be able to sleep.

I know some people can fall asleep while reading, often resulting with the book or their device falling on their face. That doesn't happen to me. I will feel tiredness and sleepiness coming on. But if I don't put the book down there will be no sleeping.

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I_love_genea t1_ixzun8l wrote

Yep, same here. Not that I don't get sleepy, but when I'm into a really good book, I just can't put it down no matter how tired I am. Last night (this morning?) I was up until 5 am to finish my book.

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nitrouspizza t1_ixzuvuh wrote

Depending on the book, I do love to read before sleep. Why depending? Because there are genres that activate my brain more than relaxing me, like thrillers or suspense, let alone educative or srudying. I do like fiction though for relaxing.

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BadwolfAtHogwarts t1_ixzvcwl wrote

If I’m reading at bedtime, I lose a significant amount of sleep because I’m more interested in the story than in sleeping. Also, I fully lose track of time while reading, and often think it’s maybe midnight and time to put the books down when I’m reality it’s usually around 3 or 4 am.

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Zikoris t1_ixzyebb wrote

I feel personally attacked by this question, as someone who regularly stays up way too late on weeknights to finish a book and has to get up early for work.

Reading and sleeping are definitely not good friends with each other in my life.

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rudebish t1_iy02ppj wrote

I can read and drop off to sleep and have good sleep but if I'm looking at my phone, I don't get tired until much later and get shit sleep! I don't even look at my phone past 9pm to protect my sleep.

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Zoara42 t1_iy0c5ds wrote

I can't read in bed. If I read in bed, I finish the book. If If I'm reading on Kindle, then I read the next book too, until my body is too exhausted to be awake anymore.

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allysreadingdiary t1_iy0do1q wrote

I am a huge overthinker so reading is just a way of making myself tired :p then i fall asleep a lot easier

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Agomir t1_iy0pxeo wrote

I mainly read in bed and have bad insomnia. It used to be that I would get so into a book the sun would be up before I realised what time it is. Nowadays, I fall asleep while reading, sometimes quite quickly. I love my Kobo for that reason. I often wake up in the morning and fish it out of the bed without having lost my page and without sleeping with the light on.

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pressman57 t1_iy146o7 wrote

After a chapter or two I sleep like a baby. Been reading before sleep since I was a kid.

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JigglypuffSquirtle t1_iy1ekxr wrote

I used to not sleep. Having a bunch of kids changed that for me. I'm exhausted by the end of the day.

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[deleted] OP t1_iy1n7gj wrote

It depends. If its a very interesting book and I'm anxious to see what happens next, it will keep me awake wanting to read it. However, if its something that isn't exactly thrilling me, I may start drifting off. Same with social media for me. If I'm scrolling through boring posts, I get tired. But if I stumble upon some drama or I see that someone has replied to a comment I made on something with a crappy response and it pisses me off, I'm suddenly awake and arguing. So I tend to be very careful with what I allow myself to read or browse if I want to sleep. I have severe insomnia though, so its not all the fault of books/social media.

Also, with Kindles, at least if its solely an e-reader, they don't have blue light like phones do, which can disrupt sleep. I know there are certain settings on your phone to help with that too but idk if everyone knows that.

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flowerpanes t1_iy21d8t wrote

I always read before sleeping, unless I am truly exhausted. Definitely on my Kindle, that way I can keep the light level down. I read till my eyes get tired and normally get to sleep quickly. I think reading is a good way to let the brain get into a slower tempo, I never would allow my husband to put a tv in the bedroom for instance since the sound/light/action would just keep me awake.

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KiwiTheKitty t1_iy21fdt wrote

Planned on going to bed at 1 am at the latest last night. Started reading and put away devices at 11 pm. Ended up going to bed at 3 am...

That's how it usually goes for me. When a book is good, I just don't want to stop

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cadmiumredorange t1_iy23wzg wrote

Reading before bed can be a double-edged sword. Sometimes it helps me sleep, especially if I can't sleep because of anxiety about something. Getting my brain to focus on the story helps me not fixate on whatever is keeping me from sleeping.

However, sometimes the book is what keeps me from sleeping, and I'm a zombie the next day regardless

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jess2888 t1_iy298fn wrote

Since I’ve started listening to audiobooks at night I’ve had an easier time getting to sleep.

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jayrocs t1_iy2vfqq wrote

If I'm enjoying the book I'm reading I'll stay up till 430am before realizing I've ruined the day.

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-Mimsical- t1_iy35x6b wrote

This! Although there's nothing like being on holidays and then reading until you hear the morning birds - knowing you still get to sleep in

When you have work in the morning it's much less amazing

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LastAd298 t1_iy36gsl wrote

there's a fine art of choosing the right book to read before bed. Can't be too exciting or you won't fall asleep and can't be too boring that you give up

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JeniTheVamp t1_iy3bub7 wrote

Reading definitely keep me up at night. I can’t sleep if I start to read. I always need an other chapter but I never see the transition between chapters because I’m too invested. For me, it’s either sleeping or reading. Both is not an option.

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Autarch_Kade t1_iy3jrq9 wrote

Reading takes some mental effort. If you're already sleepy, then it's going to be more tiring on top of it. Like running a marathon then climbing a hill after.

Sometimes I read before bed, sometimes during the day. Sometimes I can barely keep my eyes open, sometimes I can stay up all night eager to finish a book.

It doesn't really change my sleep when it happens. I just don't try to force reading when tired, no matter the time of day.

I imagine that if I wasn't tired yet and was reading, eventually I'd get tired in the same way that if I wasn't tired yet, and kept laying in bed with my eyes closed, eventually I'd get tired.

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flowerchimmy t1_iy3vzk1 wrote

Perhaps unrelated, but I think my massive list of books I’ve read contribute to my vivid and crazy imaginative dreams

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SaltandSilverPC t1_iy3zi28 wrote

I do not find that reading puts me to sleep. If I'm reading, I'm reading until I decide to turn out the light and then fall asleep. I can read before bed, but only a book I've read before so I don't feel compelled to stay awake and keep reading.

But my boyfriend will read until he falls asleep. Like literally read until the book is open but his eyes are closed and he's snoring. I have to reach over, take the book, and turn off the light because that's it, he's out. He only gets a few pages in a night. I find it the weirdest thing because I don't think I've ever done that in my life.

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Bigstar976 t1_iy45d9g wrote

When I wake up n the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep I read and it helps.

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[deleted] OP t1_iy4oe3l wrote

I can only read books that have no significant arc of suspense right before bed. Otherwise I will (a) stay up and finish the book or (b) put the book a way, but be to hyper to sleep.

I also figured, that when I read a book in one sitting in the afternoon or evening I won't be able to sleep very well that night. I will just get to invested and I have a hard time letting go of this feeling evene after finishing the book. So I have to constrict my reading time or read those books during holidays :D

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lilly288 t1_iy553oe wrote

My answer to this is definitely influenced by the fact that I deal with chronic fatigue, but I have a similar experience to you: Reading on my Kindle makes me pass out!

Usually if I'm reading elsewhere in the house, physical or ebook, I'm all good. I can stay up far too late, despite my eyeballs suffering from exhaustion, but only if I'm elsewhere in the house. But once I settle in for bed and start reading on my Kindle (especially if it's a reread or a cozier book), I'm out relatively quickly. Pretty sure my partner wakes up most days with my Kindle next to or under him.

On the rare occasion I can't sleep despite reading in bed, I either switch over to a lighthearted audiobook or a bedtime Podcast (like Nothing Much Happens).

I think reading in bed likely creates an association for me like bedtime = reading, then sleep. Plus, reading really soothes my anxiety, which helps me sleep.

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testcaseseven t1_iyevlrl wrote

I’ve tried reading before bed and all it does it get my brain going so I end up deep in thought to the point where I can’t sleep for the next hour or so. I try to leave a 1-2 hour gap between reading and going to sleep, if possible. I’m never super invested in social media and it’s a mindless activity for me so it usually helps me go to sleep (unless it turns into doom-scrolling, lol).

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Superb_Tiger_8376 t1_iyew6oy wrote

Watching TV is bad for me but reading makes me tired. I once did it a whole month without watching TV and it was best sleep I ever had. I could easily get up at 5 and I had no problems falling asleep. I honestly did not even miss TV until I started watching again. It is really weird. I wonder how life was before the Internet and TV. I can only recommend anyone to exchange reading for phone activities or TV stuff.

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