If You're Doing Revenge Bedtime Procrastination, You're Likely Doing Way Too Much
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Between crushing it at your career, keeping up with your fitness routine, and maintaining a healthy social life, you’ve got a lot going on. Of course, you’ve got to squeeze a lil’ me time into the mix (you can't run on empty!). But if you regularly stay up late to try and find time for yourself at the end of the day, you could be guilty of a phenomenon known as revenge bedtime procrastination.
ICYMI, revenge bedtime procrastination refers to getting “revenge” on your packed schedule by squeezing in downtime at the end of your day—and sacrificing your sleep in the process.
If that rings true for you, know that it's understandable. “People need time to themselves that does not involve work or family responsibilities,” says W. Christopher Winter, MD, a neurologist and sleep medicine physician with Charlottesville Neurology and Sleep Medicine and the author of The Sleep Solution. But revenge bedtime procrastination is more than just staying up late here and there to check out the latest drop of "Selling Sunset"—it is a (bad) habit that you keep repeating, night after night.
Where did this term even come from? It’s hard to be 100 percent sure, but it’s a translation of the Chinese expression “bàofùxìng áoyè,” which means “retaliatory staying up late” and became popular during the COVID-19 pandemic. Basically, people are staying up late to try to make time for themselves, and you’re not the only one doing this.
Okay, so what’s the deal here? Experts explain the potential health impact of engaging in this behavior on the reg and offer strategies for you to kick the habit (without giving up on time to unwind).
Meet the experts: W. Christopher Winter, MD, is board-certified in sleep medicine by the American Board of Sleep Medicine and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He has been involved with sleep medicine and sleep research since 1993, with a special focus on sleep and athletic performance. He hosts the Sleep Unplugged podcast, where he discusses a wide variety of sleep topics.
Kuljeet K. Gill, MD, is a neurologist and sleep medicine specialist with more than 20 years of experience. She is associated with Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital.
Aesha M. Jobanputra, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. She cares for patients with sleep disorders, and her research interest is in sleep disordered breathing in heart failure and cystic fibrosis patients.
Is revenge bedtime procrastination even real?
FWIW, it isn’t a medical term or diagnosis. Instead, it’s a social phenomenon, says Kuljeet K. Gill, MD, a sleep medicine specialist at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital.
That said, it doesn’t mean it’s not real. “Neither is the fact that parents of twins never get any sleep—doesn't mean it's not a real thing,” Dr. Winter says.
Still, there's a general consensus on the definition. "Revenge bedtime procrastination is when one feels like they have either worked really hard during the day and therefore they steal away from their sleep time for a leisurely activity," says Aesha M. Jobanputra, MD, a sleep medicine specialist and assistant professor of medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
There hasn’t been a ton of research on this phenomenon in particular, but sleep deprivation and how crappy it can be for your health and mental well-being (more on that in a sec) is well studied, making this a habit you really don’t want to get into.
What impact does revenge bedtime procrastination have on your health?
Regularly pushing your bedtime off “may cause worsening of mood disorders and daytime alertness and performance,” Dr. Gill says. Plus, it can just make you feel crummy during the day.
If you're routinely binging "Real Housewives" late into the night and waking up exhausted the next day, it may actually be a sign that you need to take some time to reflect. Revenge bedtime procrastination indicates that a person's life and time priorities are severely out of balance, Dr. Winter says, noting that there is “absolutely no end to the health consequences.”
Lack of sleep has been shown to mess with your heart health, mental health, metabolism, and more, among other issues. “This kind of deprivation can, in the short term, exacerbate anxiety, concentration problems, and depression, and, in the long term, increase the risk of dementia and cognitive decline,” Dr. Winter notes.
Basically, you really want to do your best to get the recommended seven-plus hours of sleep a night that your body needs. And you simply need to find and prioritize your relaxation time, so that it does not come out of your sleeping time, Dr. Winter says.
How do you know if you are doing revenge bedtime procrastination?
There’s no official test for this, but one of the few studies done on sleep procrastination in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that people who do this show the following signs:
You go to sleep later for no specific reason, like having to cram for a work deadline or being sick.
You’re totally aware that you’re pushing off your bedtime for me time (and that you may feel like crap in the a.m.) but do it anyway.
Your only downtime is right before bed.
If you can relate to these statements, chances are you need to rethink your schedule and work in some me-time.
What can you do to stop revenge bedtime procrastination?
The reality is this is on you. You’re putting yourself through revenge bedtime procrastination (and the consequences of it), and you need to stop. Experts recommend doing the following to set yourself straight:
Aim to get at least seven hours of sleep a night.
Figure out your priorities and focus on them.
Take a good, hard look at your schedule and figure out what you can cut back on to free up more downtime for yourself.
Actually carve out me time in your schedule that’s not when you’re supposed to be sleeping.
Start your bedtime routine earlier to ensure you’ll get to sleep when you need to.
“It really boils down to allowing the frivolous time you spend to rise to the level of necessity instead of being made to feel like that is a selfish act,” Dr. Winter says. “Planning and making 'Real Housewives' a priority is okay.”
Dr. Johnson agrees. Sleep is part of being able to function well, take care of our family well, and be healthy, and it's super important, she says.
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