Digital sunset at 9 p.mroutinedaily

This is a practical daily routine. Use “Digital sunset at 9 p.m.” as a small habit you can repeat.

The reason my eyes are clear even at 10 p.m. is because I'm looking at the screen an hour before I go to sleep. Blue light filters are helpful, but ‘Just One More’ is the one that disrupts my sleep the most.

Digital Sunset is when the screen turns off at 9 p.m. It is a ritual to leave your smartphone, tablet, and laptop in another room as the sun sets.

It's not a complete digital detox, but a one-line rule: 'Do not start new screen input after 9 o'clock.' If you already have it on, just turn it off at 9:30.

Digital Sunset is not about quitting social media, but about making your body remember that ‘there is an end to screen time at night.’

9pm, time to turn down the screen

At 9 o'clock, I put my smartphone on the charging stand in the living room and go into the bedroom. Leave the alarm on, but not next to the bed. Turn off your tablet and laptop at the same time.

If there is something that needs to be checked after 9:00, I will only do it for 10 minutes at 8:50. One rule, ‘don’t look after 9 o’clock’, prevents scrolling past 11 o’clock.

If you live with family, you can help each other by designating the living room charging station as 'smartphone home after 9 o'clock'. Keep the bedroom a screen-free space.

When the 9 o'clock alarm rings, it's a practice to stop 'just one more episode'. If you follow it for two weeks, your bedtime will often be 20 to 30 minutes earlier.

Keeping tablets and laptops out of your bedroom reduces temptation after 9 p.m. Your body only needs to remember ‘9 o’clock = screen ends’.

After 9 o'clock, what to do instead

Book, paper notes, light stretching, herbal tea—fill 30 minutes with things you can do without a screen. TVs can be put under the same rules. Watching and turning off the ‘9 o’clock news’ is also part of sunset.

If you follow it for about two weeks, it often helps you fall asleep earlier. If you keep the same rule until 9:30 on the weekend, your sleep on Monday night will be less disturbed.

You can start at 9:30 at first. The important thing is to help your body remember that screen time at night has an end.

9 o'clock alarm, one line rule

Set just one alarm for 9 o’clock. When it rings, go to the charging station, go to the bedroom—once the sequence becomes ingrained, it requires less willpower. Digital Sunset is not about ‘tolerating’ but rather ‘setting an end time.’

Urgent communications after 9 o'clock will be made by phone. Most messages can be checked in the morning without delay.

Instead of a charging station in the bedroom, set up a ‘phone home after 9 o’clock’ spot in the living room. Without screens in your bedroom, the 30 minutes it takes to fall asleep is much shorter.