People Who Need The TV On To Fall Asleep As They Get Older Usually Have These 11 Reasons

As people get older, falling asleep can become more and more difficult. With age comes more reasons for them to feel stressed, lonely, or need to escape the vicious cycle of thoughts that makes it hard for them to fall asleep. To help distract themselves, the TV seems like the perfect escape.

While it may seem like a great way to overcome these things, sleeping with the TV on for any reason is actually not helping a person fall asleep. TV produces lights and sounds that are not conducive to quality sleep, and usually make the body and mind more restless than they already are. As people age, it is crucial to find healthier ways to help themselves fall asleep.

People who need the TV on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these 11 reasons

1. Physical comfort

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons physical comfort Impact Photography / Shutterstock

As people get older, they often will want to fall asleep with the TV on. This could be an attempt to feel more physically comforted and find a sense of familiarity in their environment.

This need for physical comfort usually stems from a desire for a familiar distraction that helps them block out unfamiliar jarring noises, which would likely disrupt their sleep. Considering a decline in hearing usually occurs with age, this sensitivity makes it hard for them not to pick up on unpredictable sounds, even during sleep. The TV helps them feel more physically comfortable, allowing them to sleep despite their changes in hearing.

2. Decreased melatonin production

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons decreased melatonin production Ground Picture / Shutterstock

Sleeping with the TV on can become a common habit for many older people due to their decreased melatonin production. When this decrease causes someone to wake up throughout the night constantly, they could resort to turning on the TV instead of trying to fall asleep in silence.

“As you age your body produces lower levels of growth hormone, so you’ll likely experience a decrease in slow wave or deep sleep (an especially refreshing part of the sleep cycle). When this happens you produce less melatonin, meaning you’ll often experience more fragmented sleep and wake up more often during the night,” explained Melinda Smith, M.A., and Lawrence Robinson.

3. Social connection

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Sometimes, as people get older, they find that in order to feel less lonely and create some sort of social connection, they need to sleep with the TV on. People who are older may live alone or not be able to leave the house as often as they once could, so their need for social interaction and connection begins to increase with age.

“As individuals age, they may face physical limitations or health conditions restricting their ability to engage in various activities. TV shows and characters can become familiar friends, providing companionship, especially for individuals who live alone or have limited social interactions. The sense of connection can alleviate loneliness and promote emotional well-being,” according to Open Arms Home Care, a licensed and expert home care company in Philadelphia that specializes in live-in and live-out assistance for seniors, post-surgical adults, and people with disabilities.

4. Restlessness

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons restlessness SB Arts Media / Shutterstock

Aging can come with a new amount of restlessness. Older people may try to find ways to calm their minds and overcome restlessness when falling asleep, often by trying to sleep with the TV on.

TV provides a sort of white noise effect that can be calming for individuals who struggle with falling asleep. However, unlike white noise, the sound from the television, along with the blue light it produces, can actually further disrupt sleep because it causes the brain to be stimulated, which keeps it active. So sleeping with the TV on may be further contributing to the restlessness a person is feeling.

5. Anxiety

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons anxiety Lordn / Shutterstock

As people get older, they may need the TV on to fall asleep because they struggle with more anxiety and stress. Life gets busier and more complicated as a person gets older, so it makes perfect sense that these newfound stressors make it harder to sleep.

Anxiety in the midst of silence never allows a person’s mind to truly shut off, which makes it very difficult to actually relax. When people are anxious and have racing thoughts, they may need the sound of the TV as they fall asleep because it helps them avoid having to look inward and process what their mind is telling them, according to Dr. Neal Harish Patel, a family medicine physician.

6. Cognitive decline

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons cognitive decline fizkes / Shutterstock

In an attempt to cope with an issue causing cognitive decline, an older person may choose to fall asleep with the TV on. It acts as a distraction from what is really going on within their mind.

People who are experiencing cognitive decline usually have increased amounts of confusion and anxiety, which usually occur due to sundowning. Mayo Clinic refers to sundowning as “a state of confusion that happens in the late afternoon and lasts into the night.” Having to deal with this can make it even harder to fall asleep, so the sound and light the television produces will act as a distraction from their mind racing and from them having to feel the effects of the decline as prominently throughout the night.

7. Lack of exposure to natural light

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons lack of exposure to natural light nimito / Shutterstock

Older people tend to sleep with the TV on because they do not get enough natural light throughout the day. If they are not as busy as they once were, they may be spending an excessive amount of time indoors, and this can negatively impact their quality of sleep.

Not getting enough exposure to natural light can disrupt their circadian rhythm. In an attempt to compensate for the effects that natural light would have on them and their sleep, older people will try to use the artificial light produced by televisions. However, this is not a sufficient method because blue lights produced from screens just further suppress melatonin production, further contributing to their difficulty in falling asleep.

8. Need for distraction

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons need for distraction Lysenko Andrii / Shutterstock

In an attempt to distract themselves from their racing thoughts and overload of stress, older people will occasionally choose to fall asleep with the television on. The soothing effect that background noise and this distraction have on the mind will make it seem like it is actually quite conducive to getting better, quality sleep.

However, despite its ability to make a person feel more relaxed, having the TV on influences the brain to believe that it needs to stay active and awake. The blue light that is produced sends cues to your body that it is time to be awake rather than time to fall asleep. So, while a person may no longer struggle to fall asleep due to stress and anxiety, using TV as a distraction can actually make it difficult to fall asleep, too.

9. Difficulty with silence

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons difficulty with silence Stokkete / Shutterstock

Sometimes older people will choose to sleep with the TV on because they experience difficulty with silence. The silence will prompt the brain to think that it is the perfect time to unpack every little unresolved matter from the day, which makes it impossible for most people to relax.

To break the silence, the television seems like the perfect form of background noise, allowing a person to truly relax and fall asleep without experiencing a mental spiral. If they need some kind of noise to block out the silence, instead of choosing something that is not conducive to their sleep, trying white noise that will actually help the brain wind down would be more effective.

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10. Psychological comfort

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons psychological comfort Stokkete / Shutterstock

As people get older, their need for psychological comfort can increase. To achieve this comfort while sleeping, many people opt to turn on the TV as they try to fall asleep.

A sense of comfort and security can come from playing old and familiar television shows or movies, and this comfort and security can help a person relax at the end of a stressful day. While the familiar memories may help calm stress, the sound and light are not actually helping the individual relax because the mind will consider the exposure to light and sound as a reason to be active and awake.

11. Habit

people who need the tv on to fall asleep as they get older usually have these reasons habit TheVisualsYouNeed / Shutterstock

An older person may continue to fall asleep with the TV on, simply out of habit. Once a person has made something like this a habit, it is common for it to become something that they begin feeling psychologically dependent on. When it becomes a habit, it starts to seem impossible for them to get any kind of sleep without the distraction from the television. In order to overcome this unhealthy habit, a person should consider using white noise or instrumental, soft music to aid in their ability to sleep.

While it may seem hard to really shut down and wind down when it is time to fall asleep, it is important to remember that using the TV to resolve this issue is not a sufficient or healthy solution. If someone finds that with age they are having more difficulty falling asleep, they should consider alternative methods that are still conducive to their quality of sleep.

Kamryn Idol is a writer with a bachelor's degree in media and journalism who covers lifestyle, relationship, family, and wellness topics.