Struggling to get to sleep knowing you've got to get up in a few short hours is a miserable experience.
But sleep researcher Glenn Landry might have a trick that you probably haven't tried before: wearing sunglasses before bed.
It all comes down to the terrible problem of blue light - the type of electronic light emitted from devices like laptops, mobile phones and even TV screens, to a lesser extent. These affect our circadian clock, which is the system in our body that matches up our behavior with environmental changes like day to night.
Landry suggests wearing sunglasses for two hours before bedtime to trick your circadian clock into thinking it is time to go to sleep. He explained why he does it to CBC News:
"Beginning at eight at night, two hours before the time I want to go to bed, I wear sunglasses. Not because my future's so bright, but because I'm trying to avoid light. I'm trying to tell my clock that this is the end of the day."
Interestingly he also commented that those of us who don't see enough daylight during the day might be missing cues to the brain about being awake or asleep: "It can't be good for us and it's probably leading to increased circadian disregulation."
The added bonus here is that you get to sit in your living room feeling like Bob Dylan, all in the name of your mental health.
