The Many Ways Late-Night Gaming, K-Drama, And TikTok Fests Are Harming One’s Health

You get home late in the evening and decide to de-stress by bingeing your favorite Korean drama series on Netflix or firing up NBA 2K24 to shoot some virtual hoops. After all, you deserve a little fun after a long day of work. Maybe you’ll even spend an hour watching TikToks and Instagram Reels or adding items to your Shopee or Lazada carts. So, you put off sleep, and the next thing you know it’s already 2AM. But your alarm is set for 7AM, leaving you with only five (5) hours of sleep. This all-too-familiar scenario is the cycle of revenge bedtime procrastination.

This happens when people intentionally delay their sleep to “reclaim” a few hours of me-time and entertainment usually with their devices, as a response to their busy and stressful lifestyle. Rosalina Espiritu-Picar, MD, a Sleep Medicine Specialist at Makati Medical Center (MakatiMed), warns that revenge bedtime procrastination leads to poor sleep hygiene that makes sleepless Filipinos more prone to health woes.

“Those who don’t sleep enough, the first thing you’d notice is their lack of attention. It’s harder for them to stay awake,” shares Dr. Espiritu-Picar. “They tend to make mistakes. They’re clumsier, especially with regards to hand-eye coordination. They also tend to make poor judgments. They tend to become more impulsive in their decisions.”

The Sleep Medicine Specialist adds that insufficient sleep can lead to obesity and cardiovascular issues, elevated blood pressure and stress hormones, and compromised immune system, emphasizing that sleep sets off all the physical and biological processes in time with the circadian rhythm.

“What happens when you’re sleeping is repair, restoration, and recovery. That means your body uses that time when you’re asleep to repair damage and reduce the oxidants or the oxidative stress. It also tries to make sure that your hormonal systems are working well,” she notes. “When you’re sleeping, it’s also the time that your brain cells are actually forming and consolidating memories. That’s how important getting enough sleep every night is.”

This is why Dr. Espiritu-Picar underscores the benefits of preventing sleep deprivation by maintaining good sleep hygiene or a basic set of rules that help enhance sleep. So how do you improve your sleep hygiene, especially when oppas, TikToks, or virtual NBA teams are calling? Here are some tips:

Respect your rhythm. Dr. Espiritu-Picar shares that a consistent sleep and wake-up time helps regulate your body’s internal clock, or circadian rhythm. This makes it easier to fall asleep and wake up, leading to deeper and more restorative sleep. “It means it will really make you sleep and wake up at a certain time. So, the closer we are to that natural rhythm, the better,” she explains.

When deciding on a sleep time, remember that sleep requirements also differ per person, some need only 7 hours of sleep while others require 9 hours. How do you know if you’re getting enough sleep? The doctor shares it’s all about the amount of alertness or wakefulness you have during the day.

Create “personal time” before bed. Instead of scrolling, gaming, or streaming yourself to sleep, the MakatiMed specialist recommends carving out at least two hours before bedtime for calming activities such as reading an actual book, meditating, or taking a warm bath to signal to your body that it’s time to wind down.