Falling asleep to your favorite show doesn’t have to ruin your sleep, experts say

While you don't want to expose yourself to the light from screens before sleep, listening to a show or podcast can be done without ruining your night, experts say. whitebalance.space/E+/Getty Images via CNN Newsource

You’ve heard the rule: No TV before bed.

But many people find that it helps them fall asleep if they listen to something –– audiobooks, music, podcasts or TV shows.

A 2018 study found that more than half of people with sleep disturbances use music as a sleep aid.

It is poor sleep hygiene to look at screens to scroll or watch a show before bedtime, but what if you aren’t looking, just listening?

“It’s like Goldilocks,” said sleep medicine specialist Dr. Rachel Salas, professor of neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. “It’s a matter of what works for you … It’s not only the practices of your bedtime routine, but your environment, all the things.”

Everyone is different, and some people might get great sleep if they fall asleep listening to something, Salas said. However, there are some practices to keep in mind to make sure you are maximizing the benefits and avoiding potential pitfalls.

Winding down to sleep

The key to listening to audiobooks, podcasts, music or TV to fall asleep is making sure it is helping you wind down instead of waking you up, said Dr. Shalini Paruthi, sleep medicine attending physician at John J. Cochran Veterans Hospital in St. Louis and adjunct professor at St. Louis University School of Medicine.

“If listening to something actually keeps a person more engaged or awake and therefore replaces sleep time, this can be detrimental to health,” she said in an email. “It is recommended that adults obtain at least 7 hours of sleep regularly for optimal performance.”

On the other hand, a predictable kind of noise can help tell your body it’s time to wind down, Salas added.

“If you find that that’s part of your bedtime routine, and it’s kind of comforting and relaxing … that’s great,” she said.

Try choosing content to listen to that will allow you to transition into sleep, added Dr. Lindsay Browning, a psychologist and sleep expert in Berkshire in the United Kingdom.

“Choose something not too engaging so that your brain isn’t motivated to stay awake and fight sleep to pay attention to it,” she said in an email.

A sleep story may be a better choice than audio of a book you want to read. Shows you have heard before and know how they end might be better than falling asleep to a nailbiter.

When to turn the sound off

A soundtrack for sleep might help you get to sleep, but it doesn’t always keep you asleep if it keeps going all night, Browning said.

“It’s important to set an auto timer to mute the sounds as soon after falling asleep as possible,” she said.

If the show, podcast, or music you are playing has unexpected noises, frequencies or volumes, it might alert your brain to pay attention, Salas said. The startling noise doesn’t always wake you up fully, but it can cause many little awakenings you aren’t aware of. That will disturb your sleep nonetheless, she added.

One steady sound, like white noise or ASMR, can help your sleep quality, especially if you live in a noisy area, Salas added.

“(If) bars close at a certain time and people are outside, walking home and talking or yelling, that’s going to disrupt your sleep,” she said.

A consistent and non-alarming noise can stifle those kinds of ambient noise, she said.

What to do about insomnia

Sometimes listening to something to fall asleep isn’t just a nice part of a bedtime routine –– it’s a way to quiet racing thoughts at night. Some proactive steps during the day may help, Browning said.

“If you find that your brain is too active as you try to fall asleep, which keeps you awake, you could try to address those busy thoughts and worries earlier in the day,” she said.

Methods include having a dedicated time earlier in the day to think about those worries or utilizing cognitive shuffling, a technique that involves thinking up random and non-emotionally charged words to take your mind off of your racing thoughts, Browning said.

“It’s a much better idea to try to learn ways of quieting a busy mind at night that don’t require you to mask those unwanted thoughts with an external sound,” Browning said.

If you are using listening to something to help with insomnia and it doesn’t seem to help after a two-to-four-week period, it might be time to see a board-certified sleep physician and get to the root of the problem, Paruthi said.

“There are several proven therapies that work well for insomnia treatment such as cognitive behavior therapy for insomnia, or when appropriate, medications can be considered,” she said.