Sleeping with the TV on
By OhSnapZ0rz
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
United States
June 22, 2011 12:19pm CST
I've been sleeping with the tv on since I was pretty young. Back then my mind would race at night. I would just keep thinking and thinking. Sometimes think about scary things that would keep me from sleeping. Then I found that sleeping with the tv helped quiet my mind while I slept. And I've been doing it ever since.
Do you sleep with the tv on? Why or why not?
Is it good for you? I heard it's bad for REM sleep.
4 people like this
24 responses
@Porkchopchop (324)
• Hong Kong
22 Jun 11
I sometimes sleep with the television on, but it simply because I fall asleep accidentally, not on purpose. Personally I find it insecure to sleep with the television on as I remember that some people were killed because their televisions were on fire while they were sleeping. It is so horrible to imagine. Yes, I do keep thinking and thinking other stuff when I am in bed and ready to sleep, but it is better than keep worrying whether the TV will be on fire or not in bed. I prefer listening to the ipod nano to sleeping with the TV on. But I do turn on the TV even I don't watch it when there is nobody home (and when I am awake)
1 person likes this
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@PointlessQuestions (15397)
• United States
22 Jun 11
I guess it could happen, but it has never happened in my life. My TV used to stay on 24/7 all the time. It's just in the last few months that I have been turning it off at night to sleep.
1 person likes this
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Understandable. Unfortunately my mind races becuase I have anxiety/panic disorder. So tv seems to be my only aid.
@PointlessQuestions (15397)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Sometimes I do sleep with the TV on, but I usually mute it. I like the light from the TV. Sometimes though I will let the volume be up just a little when I can't sleep. But when I am ready to sleep lately, I have been turning off the TV when I am ready to sleep.
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@PointlessQuestions (15397)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Yeah I can get up to 'go' and never really be awake.. I got right back into a deep sleep without even opening my eyes.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Yea sometimes I wake up in a daze and shut it off, usually without opening my eyes. Like when you have to go to the bathroom at night and you stumble in with your eyes closed and leave the lights off. At that point my mind isnt really working, so there's nothing to hush up hahah
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@bmorehouse1 (1028)
• United States
22 Jun 11
I do sleep with my tv on. I don't want to be tossing and turning trying to get to sleep so I have it on to get to sleep. They do say its bad for you, but if its the only way you can get to sleep, then why not? Usually in the middle of the night when I get up to go to the bathroom I will shut my tv off. By then I can usually go back to sleep pretty quickly.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Yea, i'd rather have bad sleep then no sleep at all you know?
@junrapmian (2169)
• Philippines
23 Jun 11
We don't have a TV inside the bedroom, we get to watch TV shows at the entertainment room and make sure that it is turned off after watching or else parents will get us some tongue-slashing. There are times that I fell sleep at the couch while watching movies but my siblings wake me up.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
23 Jun 11
That sounds like a really good idea. Growing up, my family had a tv in EVERY room. When I have kids I think we'll only have one, in the main room.
@13tyates (1606)
• United States
23 Jun 11
Sometimes I will also leave my TV on while I go to bed. I have always watched TV before going to bed while laying in bed. After that I will then usually turn the volume pretty low and then set the auto turn off time to 1 hour. This way I still have the light and a little noise which seems to soothe me. I go to bed a lot quicker this way and I always have. You're not alone!
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@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
23 Jun 11
Heh I realize now that I'm not. I'm glad I don't have to share a room this year. It was hard living in a dorm and not having this option.
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@fabsprecious (1565)
• United States
23 Jun 11
I used to do that when I was a child, it actually did help me sleep, especially at times when I went to sleep and I was scared of something, perhaps I might have had a bad dream, so what I would do is put on the TV and listen to the people talk and that would help me relax.
Now that I am a grown-up, I prefer to go to sleep without the TV, now a days the noise of the TV tends to aggrevate me. My husband on the other hand loves to listen to music, sometimes it's okay, but at times I find myself asking him to shut it down, because I can't seem to fall asleep with it. I guess it really all depends, in what type of mood I am in and/or how tired I am.
@bounce58 (17387)
• Canada
22 Jun 11
Not so sure about it being bad for REM sleep, but I have been sleeping with the TV on for the longest time now. I find that it helps me to get to sleep. I would put the TV on timer, and it would just turn off when I've already dozed off.
Plus, I also use the TV as an alarm to help me wake up in the morning. There is something reassuring about hearing it just before sleeping, and just after waking up.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Supposedly, at least what I've read, is that the lights can be seen by the eye through the lid and keep the muscles active when they should be resting. But I'm no doctor hahah.
@kolsti87 (521)
• United States
22 Jun 11
I sleep with the tv on as well. It's mostly because without any noise or light I get really creeped out. Of course I use a sleep timer so it will turn off after about an hour (once I'm asleep) so I don't waste electricity. I know at 24 I'm a bit old for this but at night when the tv isn't on and I look into the darkness I see some creepy looking stuff. The tv brightens it up and distracts me from looking at it so that's a big part of why I do it.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Don't feel bad haha. I'm 22 and the same thing happens to me. I guess we just have overactive imaginations.
@alienakshay (103)
• India
23 Jun 11
no i do not sleep with the tv on because i do not watch much tv since my childhood i am not fond of watching tv so i never fell in such case ever.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
23 Jun 11
Good for you! I don't watch tv much myself. At least not as an active activity. I usually just have it on as background noise during the day so I don't get too lonely in my empty apartment. If I had people living with me I don't ever see me turning it on... except for falling asleep hahaha
@SIMPLYD (90722)
• Philippines
23 Jun 11
It was said that the television even when turned off, but still plugged , would still emit radiation. And we all know that tv radiation is bad so that's why we shouldn't be watching them too near.
However, since having the TV just turned on while sleeping helps you quiet your mind, then so be it. But perhaps you should have it far from your bed.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
23 Jun 11
Yea, my tv is actually on the otherside of my room. I wasn't aware of that copncern though. Thanks for the info!
@louievill (28851)
• Philippines
22 Jun 11
Yep I also fall asleep while watching T.V. and funny it would be like sort of a hypnotic slumber if you want to call it that way
, I usually watch CNN, BBC, discovery,history, CI and tru channels and I would wake up still retaining some of the things I'm watching or had watched and I would know if my wife turns it off, it's like a half awake state of consciousness.
, I would even switch channels when I wake up. I only turn it off when I decide that I want to go into full deep sleep mode already.
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@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Hahah I know what you mean. My older brother used to sleep in class all the time. One of his teachers even took joy in telling him "There's no way you're going to pass my class with the amount you sleep and don't pay attention". He aced the final! Apparently he retained a lot in his sleep :P
@jhaidro (877)
• Philippines
22 Jun 11
I also do this at times when I have a lot of things in my mind. The only problem I had with this habit is that I will be awakened because my mother would nag about the television on so what I do the next couple of days way to set the timer of the television to an hour to it will be a happy sleep for me.
@OhSnapZ0rz (53)
• United States
22 Jun 11
Ah right. I totally forgot about sleep timers. I should start using it again and cut down on wasted electricity. Thanks :D
@miadsoriano (884)
• Philippines
27 Jun 11
I don't. Because I won't be able to sleep if I did. I have to have complete silence and darkness when I go to bed. Good thing that my hubby and baby are the same. :D
@katkat7797 (49)
•
25 Jun 11
No i dont sleep with the TV on..because i want my room to be quite.I cant sleep if theres any noise. :)
@salonga (27775)
• Philippines
24 Jun 11
I do that when I want to take a break at noon time. It is really very effective. It might be quite a waste of electricity but I really don't mind because in exchange I get a good 30 to an hour sleep which is really energizing. At night I need not turn on the TV to put me to sleep because sleepy feeling comes naturally to me when darkness comes.![](/Content/images/emotes/happy.gif)
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@cerebellum (3863)
• United States
23 Jun 11
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@CTHanum (8234)
• Malaysia
23 Jun 11
Never. I don't know if sleeping with tv on is good or bad for our selves but for me I love sleep with no lights at all. The lights from the screen and the noise will distract my sleep hour. I can't sleep with lights on. Same goes to tv. If you live with other people and they are fine with plus you found it helped you then it is okay.
@RebelBandGeek12 (129)
• United States
23 Jun 11
I can't sleep with the TV on. When I was little, my parent's wouldn't let me have a TV in my bedroom because they didn't want me to stay up late watching it. Since I never got into the habbit of sleeping with it on, so I absolutely cannot tolerate it now.
@jonnieke (38)
• Kenya
23 Jun 11
sleeping with my TV on will only make my head ache. when am watching a certain movie then fall asleep , i would probably find myself struggling to sleep.my friend puts ob=n a very laud volume and still sleeps comfortably. we have been created differently.i would wish to sleep when my TV is on but i cant.
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