It turns out they were right. The whole time. Assholes. I’ve been doing a pretty consistent midnight to 9-9:30 for a couple of months, no screens in my bedroom, just a nightly podcast. And I’m usually asleep inside half an hour. Sometimes well inside. I still sometimes wake up during the night but that’s mainly cos of painful crampy legs from working on my feet all day.
I regret to report that sleep hygiene is in fact a thing.
I listen to podcasts on my phone with one earplug in. Wired, not bluetooth so no batteries. The podcast shouldn't be anything actually interesting, just enough to keep the brain occupied. I like history, things I'm not really interested in like the Byzantine Empire, the Kingdom of Siam, or super ancient history like Gilgamesh or Ur. Tolkien lore is good, get a 90 minute livestream of Q&A and it keeps the brain busy until sleep arrives.
ive also tried listening to chapo before bed but matts screaming isnt helpful