Revenge Bedtime Procrastination: A Loss of Control

Posted: March 9, 2026

Do you ever feel that you’re avoiding bed time to do other things? Maybe saying one more chapter? One more episode? Or maybe busy doing something saying “a few more minutes?”

Revenge Bedtime Procrastination is when an individual intentionally does not go to sleep to enjoy personal time even when knowing that delaying their sleep can affect them.

Procrastinating sleep not just equates to the quality of sleep but can also be linked to other health issues, not limited to, cardiovascular issues such as an increase in blood pressure but also cognitive issues such as brain fog and depressive symptoms. Common symptoms are fatigue and low energy which may not seem concerning in the beginning but when they build up after a few days it can cause the body and mind to disconnect. This disconnection can affect the ability to maintain healthy relationships, be alert at work or school, and weaken other aspects of an individual's life.

Why Does This Happen?

This happens when individuals feel a loss or lack of control over their lives. This could be due to a heavy work load, managing home care and work, or being a student and working.

Nighttime is when people are often alone, know that the work day and school day have ended, and that there are less responsibilities at night as everyone should be sleeping. However, because they have a sense of down time from the world, people try to make up for lost time throughout the day at night. Maybe you weren’t able to watch your favorite T.V show, or couldn’t scroll on your phone without having other responsibilities, now you can. And that’s why procrastination happens, because we want to make up for missed time during the day and be able to have a sense of control in the way our time passes.

Getting the Control Back

To work on creating healthier sleeping habits and toning down bedtime procrastination here are some ways to start:

Keeping a sleep log: By writing a quick note of when you are about to sleep and when you wake up can help you follow your sleeping patterns. You can ask yourself, the days where I slept less, what happened in those days? There could be a recurring pattern that increases your chance of procrastinating your bedtime
Be realistic: Don’t make rigid goals for yourself. If you are sleeping late, rather than making a goal to sleep hours earlier try small increments. For example, if you find yourself sleeping at 2 AM, don’t make the bedtime 10 PM. Most likely your brain will not be able to follow through. Try increments of 15 or 30 minutes. Know that by 1:30, you’ll turn off all screens and go to bed. You can continue that for a few days and then increase the increments slowly to help get your body and mind adjusted
Understand barriers: With the sleep log, it can be beneficial to use it to understand what could restrict you from sleeping on time. Was it because you had arguments with your partner? Did the work day exhaust you out? Maybe you just didn’t have time for yourself. By identifying the barriers, we can then work on breaking them down and finding solutions. This often connects with finding time within the day to give yourself time to do what you want. Such as setting a scheduled time for you to watch those episodes or scroll on your phone rather than doing it at night or before sleeping.

Remember

You are not alone in this! Bedtime procrastination is a common concern many people have for different reasons. Therapy can be a place of support in which you and your therapist discuss your sleeping concerns. Your therapist can be a support system in which you are able to confide what you did while procrastinating sleep and how your days went. They can help you find patterns, guide you through different methods, and be the extra support you need.

References:

Sleep Foundation - Revenge Bedtime Procrastination by Eric Suni and Alex Dimitriu, MD: https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-hygiene/revenge-bedtime-procrastination
Harvard Health Publishing - Don't want to go to bed? Dealing with bedtime procrastination by Eric Zhou, PhD: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/dont-want-to-go-to-bed-dealing-with-bedtime-procrastination-202212122865