The three things you should only do in bed are sleep, sex and sickness.
The sleep, sex and sickness are 3 things that you should only do in bed and is a concept known as the "3 S's," to help you build a strong mental association between rest and your bed, while avoiding activities in bed like working or watching TV which disrupt your sleep patterns.
Your primary function of your bed is for sleep, which promotes good hygiene.
Your bed should also be only used for resting when ill and for sex and intimacy and physical connection.
The single most important bedtime habit is to maintain a consistent sleep schedule and go to bed and wake up at the same time daily, even on weekends, which helps to regulate and maintain your internal body clock also known as the circadian rhythm.
Going to bed at the same time and waking up at the same time each day even on weekends helps improve sleep, improve alertness, mood and overall health more effectively than just duration of sleep.
A relaxing bedtime routine and dark room also help with sleep, but consistency with your sleep schedule is the most important as a steady sleep schedule reinforces the body's natural sleep and wake cycle, optimizing hormone release like melatonin for sleep.
Sleep regularity is also a powerful predictor of better metabolic, cardiovascular and mental health and it's also a foundational habit that makes other good sleep practices, like winding down, more effective.
Waking up 2 hours after falling asleep can also be a result of underlying issues like acid reflux, sleep apnea, anxiety, hormonal changes or caffeine or alcohol intake before bed, or from stress, screen time or even inconsistent bedtimes that confuse the body's internal clock.
Sleep disorders including sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome and even Insomnia can be a cause of waking up 2 hours after falling asleep.
Avoiding blue light from devices before bed also improves your sleep quality and going to bed at the same time every night and waking up at the same time also keeps your internal clock working properly.
Sleep also occurs in cycles of 70 minutes to 120 minutes and brief awakenings are also normal as long as you do fall asleep quickly again.
The most restorative sleep stage is Deep Sleep or Stage 3 NREM or Slow Wave Sleep, which is when your body repairs tissues, builds muscle and bones and strengthens your immune system.
REM Sleep is also vital and one of the most restorative sleep stages, as REM sleep is vital for cognitive functions like learning, memory and emotional processing, with a healthy balance of both being key for optimal health.
During NREM stage 3 sleep or deep sleep, your brain produces slow delta waves, your heart rate and breathing slow and your muscles also relax completely.
This is a restful part of sleep as it's when your body does it's most important physical restoration, growth and immune system support.
And it's very difficult to wake up from NREM stage 3 sleep, which leads to significant grogginess or sleep inertia if you're awakened.
During REM sleep, your brain activity increases, which is similar to being awake, dreaming occurs and your body also focuses energy on cognitive functions and it's essential for learning, emotional regulation and creativity and memory consolidation.
Deep sleep provides physical restoration to the body and REM sleep provides mental rejuvenation, and you need a healthy balance of both REM sleep and NREM stage 3 sleep, along with lighter sleep stages for truly restorative sleep and optimal health.