Better Sex. Better Sleep. Better Health. 3 Reasons to Give Your Bedroom a Digital Detox.

Did you know the average person spends over 33 years of their lifetime in their bedroom? That’s more than working, eating, socializing, exercising and vacationing combined.

On my platform Tech Wellness, I’m all about helping people find balance with the technology that permeates every part of their lives. We focus on EMF’s, cyber security and privacy, the effects of blue light from our screens, online addiction and making a healthy digital home.

These days we’re obsessed with detoxing our bodies from junk food and our minds from the stresses of life, but why aren’t we thinking about detoxing our most precious spaces from the toxins of technology?

I believe that balance begins by being mindful of where, when and how you’re using technology. If you’re looking to create a healthier relationship with technology, there’s no better place to start than where you spend most of your time… your bedroom.

Here’s my three top reasons why :

Better Sex

Great sex and deep intimacy requires or allows intense focus. There’s nothing like the tantric meditative state that we can achieve when we allow ourselves to Be Here Now. Magical sex, meaningful conversation or the tactile high tend to happen easier and more often- without distraction.

Here’s a tech-life balance tidbit that I found particularly crazy: A recent survey of over 1,000 healthy Americans showed up to 17% admitted to checking their phones during sex. What? What could they possibly be hoping to see on the screen???

Even if you would never think of reaching for the phone during lovemaking, research shows that the mere presence of your smartphone is distracting. Even if it’s just sitting there, turned off and turned screen down. The more you “need” your phone, the more you’re distracted by it.

Smartphones occupy what’s called a “privileged attentional space,” similar to how our brains perceive the sound of our own names being called out.

So if our smartphones are calling out to us if they’re just sitting in the same room with us, they’re best kept out of sight and out of mind when you’re ready to focus and delight in your partner.

If you’re wondering if there’s research proving that it’s better to not be distracted during lovemaking, another study shows that non-erotic thoughts can really effect performance and satisfaction, for both men and women. And a major source of those types of thoughts — it’s your most personal, personal possession — your smartphone.

So, definitely yes.

Better Sleep.

Raise your hand if your phone is the first thing you see when you wake up in the morning? If you said no, there is a good chance you’re lying… In that same cellphone-attachment survey, 75% of people said they sleep with their phone next to or near their beds. Almost half of those surveyed claim that they wake up to look at it 2–3 times in the middle of the night. That’s what I call maximum distraction. Another 35% admitted that looking at their phone before bed affects their quality of sleep. It’s probably not a big surprise to learn that science is proving them right.

The luminous blue light that comes from our screens can also really slow down our melatonin production. Melatonin is an important hormone made in our pineal gland that the quality of our sleep. In fact, ANY artificial blue light — from TV’s tablets, e-readers, etc., stops the melatonin from being released in our bodies and can ruin the quality of your sleep.

Actually any blue light source-even the bright blue sky- suppresses melatonin. But unlike natural light, device blue light is on when our screens are on — that’s stopping us from getting the natural melatonin our bodies are making that regulates our circadian rhythms and helps us to get a delicious rejuvenating sleep.

There are so many studies showing the connection between Orange or Coffee Colored blue light blocking glasses and better sleep. One in particular, a 2018 study from Columbia University found significant improvements in sleep, compared to clear lenses, in individuals with insomnia symptoms. The participants simply used blue blocking amber glasses for the 2 hours preceding bedtime for one week.

We’re all all about providing you with solutions that are science-backed — no fear, no myths from Tech Wellness. You’ll find all of our blue light and sleep studies here in our Research Section.

Better Health.

Of course, we know that better sleep means better health. And, as you can imagine, better/more sex means better health (and better sleep. Can you see where this is going?). But if we really want to use our sleep time to do everything possible to keep us healthy, we need to step away from our wireless devices.

Hundreds of peer-reviewed scientific studies from around the world have proven beyond a doubt that EMF’s (electromagnetic fields), which are the information carrying radio waves that transmit information of all sorts to all our devices, can cause a biological impact on our bodies.

Personally, I look at EMF’s as another environmental toxin that I need to avoid, like pesticides, second hand smoke and even too much sun. So my best advice is a phrase that’s been my mantra for over a decade, “distance is your friend” — do what you can to avoid EMF sources such as phones, WiFi, and wireless devices as much as possible.

Creating a safe place in the room we spend the most hours of our lives is a fabulous place to start!

Easy steps to give your bedroom a digital detox

Beat the blues For restorative sleep.

Don’t let digital Blue light interrupt your body’s natural sleep cycle. The National Sleep Foundation recommends powering down all devices 2 hours before bed. If that seems impossible, pop on some protective blue-light blocking orange glasses in the evening and nighttime hours.

Give your WiFi a rest.

Switch your Wifi off at night to encourage less “connected” time, AND also less EMF radiation time. Try this handy WiFi Kill Switch that lets you power off with one click and no need to get close to the nasty wireless energy.

Say no to device distraction.

I’m a big fans of keeping your phone outside of your bedroom while you sleep. Try setting up a charging station in another room and going old-school waking up with an analog alarm clock. If you absolutely MUST have your phone close by, switch to airplane mode before you turn in to limit EMF exposure.