Corona Daily 138: Should Go to Bed, but Not Yet

The Latin “cras” meaning tomorrow is the root of the word procrastination. We were aware of the word since we were students, faithfully postponing studying for an exam month after month, until a deadline provoked us into action. (My 2007 article on procrastination is still not outdated). For writers, perfectionism is often a major reason for procrastination. The writer wants to write that great novel, so great that it never gets written.

Procrastination is defined as a voluntary delay of an intended act despite knowing you will be worse off in the long run for not acting. I know a CEO of a mid-size company, who is sick of his current employer. Every time we talk, he says he wants to prepare a top-class resume, meet headhunters, update his LinkedIn profile. Last two years, he hasn’t managed to do any of it. And he can’t explain why.

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Today, I want to talk about only one aspect of procrastination, and how it has been affected by the pandemic.

In 2014, Kroese and others from the Netherlands first published a research paper on Bedtime Procrastination. The paper studied the modern tendency of delaying going to bed. This form of procrastination has some peculiarities. Unlike other tasks we keep postponing (and eventually not do at all), going to bed is a question of when and not if. Secondly, sleeping is not something we want to avoid, like going to a dentist. Delaying sleep is technically called an intention-behaviour gap. We simply engage in a trade-off of pleasures and prefer other activities (like Netflix binge watching, online games, Instagram, senseless browsing) before going to bed.

Students and women are the two most vulnerable groups. Students are young, usually unemployed, textually active. University students are capable of postponing sleep till sunrise or beyond. For them, artificial lighting has eliminated the distinction between darkness and light.

Women everywhere perennially suffer from time poverty. Working women are engaged in additional unpaid work at home. A mother may get some peace to read or watch, only once the children are in bed. Plus, she has the morning alarm to feed, prepare and send them to school on time.

In a global research, 62% adults complained of sleep deprivation. On average the weeknight sleep for them was 6.8 hours. Hectic work and school schedule were mentioned as the two culprits.

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Pandemic and lockdowns have added fuel to the fire. The increased stress, anxiety and depression have led to aggravation. In a multi-nation study, 40% of the population complains of sleeping difficulties during the pandemic. Patients with active covid-19 have higher rates.

Revenge bedtime procrastination is a 2020 term originated in China. People who don’t have much control on their daytime life refuse to sleep early in order to regain their sense of freedom during late night hours. With technology, the boundary between work and home was already blurred. With work from home, it has vanished. You have spent the day working for someone else (employer), now you want to have your revenge by having your own time.

This should not be confused with insomnia. Revenge bedtime procrastination is a deliberate act of postponing sleep, in order to relax. (Though you may regret it the next morning).

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Sleep deprivation is a common technique used for torture. And now we inflict it on ourselves. Several solutions are suggested to fight this phenomenon. You may want to appoint an accountability partner (usually a spouse, unless he/she wants to binge watch with you). Digital curfew for the family is an option. I recommend setting a going-to-bed alarm and respecting it.

While-in-bed procrastination is an extension of the problem. Bed is meant only for two things: sleep and sex. Social distancing and sex drive generally don’t go together. Screen time must be avoided before as well as in bed. Now work and leisure are all on lit screens, making sleeping difficult. The presence of electronic devices in bed ruins the quality of sleep.

Having said all this, if it is any comfort to you, I must mention that procrastination is one disease for which no drugs or vaccines are yet developed.  

Ravi