5 Smartphone Apps to Fix Sleep Problems

According to the National Sleep Foundation, a smartphone in the bedroom is one of the main reasons why most Americans are chronically sleep deprived.  While most experts blame smartphones for sleep problems, I personally believe smartphones can actually fix sleep problems.

How My iPhone Helps Me Sleep

As most readers know, I have struggled with sleep for most of my life.  A few years ago, I finally figured out that if I could just do five things religiously, I could finally fix my sleep problems.

What has worked for me, may or may not help you.  If these five tips don't help you, keep reading as there are many more tips later in this article.

1. Strict bedtime of 10 pm

My iPhone helps me keep a strict bedtime of 10 pm.  The blue light coming from my iPhone automatically turns off at 9 pm.  I also get a reminder at 9:45 pm to get ready for bed.

2. 20,000 steps daily

The pedometer app makes sure I stay physically active throughout the day.  I have found that as long as I can hit 20,000 steps daily, my body and mind are finally tired enough to go to sleep by 10 pm.

I realize that these are a lot of steps and are beyond the reach of most people.  Fortunately, most of my patients only need half these steps to accomplish the same thing.

3. Eliminate to-dos

I used to lay in bed at night worrying about all the to-dos hanging over my head.  Fortunately, my phone has fixed this.  By using my iPhone to eliminate, delegate, or reschedule all to-dos prior to leaving the hospital in the evening, my mind is then free to sleep knowing that everything is under control.

4. No caffeine after 12 pm

I love dark chocolate.  The darker the better.

The only problem is that if I have any after 12 pm, it doesn't love me back.  As I am very sensitive to caffeine, I can only eat dark chocolate in the morning if I want any shot at sleeping at night.  Fortunately, iPhone reminders help me to avoid any dark chocolate later in the day.

5. Don’t drink in the evening unless dehydrated

Once I hit age 40, I found that I often had to get up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom.  Sadly, once this happens, I rarely can get back to sleep.  Once again, my iPhone reminds me not to drink anything in the evening unless I'm dehydrated.

My International Sleep Experiment

While these four rules have helped me fix my sleep problems, these rules only work when I am living in harmony with my natural circadian rhythm.  Basically, this is when my daily sleep/wake schedule is linked to the sun.

Unfortunately, as soon as I travel internationally, I struggle with sleep again.  With this in mind, I tried an international sleep experiment this past weekend.

Last Thursday, I flew China to speak at a cardiology conference in Beijing.  As I was only scheduled to be in China a total of 41 hours, I kept my body on Utah time.  This experiment consisted of scheduling all my lectures and meetings either before noon or after dinner China time.

As noon in China correlated with 10 pm in Salt Lake City, I could keep my same Utah 10 pm bedtime.  Thus, when the noon hour arrived in China,  I made my hotel room as dark as possible and went to sleep.  Even my flights were timed so that I could sleep at 10 pm Utah time.

The only downside was that I lived like a vampire in China.  I was up all night and slept during the day.  Fortunately, I have been to Beijing so many times that I have already seen the sights.

Results of My International Sleep Experiment

I’m happy to report that my international sleep experiment worked well.  I didn't have any jet lag or sleep challenges when I returned home.

However, I did feel the constant pull of my body trying to adjust to a new circadian rhythm in China.  I’m sure that another day or two in Beijing would have completely thrown off my experiment.

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