In this YouTube conversation recorded on August 4, 2020, Dr. Priti Nanda Sibal joins hosts (Speaker A and Speaker B, also referred to as Sneha) to discuss how the COVID‑19 lockdown disrupted sleep patterns and physical activity. Speaker A describes a loss of routine, erratic wake‑up and bedtime, and reduced bodily need for sleep due to inactivity. Speaker B notes an unexpected improvement in his sleep schedule—going to bed at 11 p.m. and waking at 6 a.m.—despite taking fewer than 200 steps a day. Dr. Sibal shares her own experience of late‑night sleeping, daytime naps, and the subsequent realization that these habits broke her circadian rhythm. She outlines concrete steps to restore healthy sleep: avoid daytime naps, stop using electronic devices at least one hour before bedtime, replace screen time with reading (e.g., favorite books), and maintain a consistent sleep‑wake schedule. The discussion emphasizes that small, actionable changes can anchor the day and improve mental health during lockdown.
Chapters
Sleep is an important factor. I think that needs to be covered. And yes, it is one factor which even I can say that initially when lockdown started, it went haywire. Like, there was no schedule, there was no time to wake up, no time to fall asleep. And I, I think because of the lack of physical activity initially, uh, uh, there, like, my body was not even requiring that amount of sleep. So suddenly I, I could not make sense of my schedule. Uh, any, uh, what did, what did you do? Like, you know, uh, you, you, do you have access to gym, uh, currently? Like, no. So how are you taking care of the physical activity part and the sleep part?
Like, so physical activity is, uh, it's completely absent from life. Like, my daily steps are under 200 steps a day. Um, But I think you absolutely nailed it on the head. I think what's— now that I reflect upon clearly, I haven't been doing a good job at reflecting myself— is I have had a better sleep cycle during COVID than I had before COVID And I think it's probably the only thing that's anchoring my day now is I'm in bed by 11 and I'm up by 6. And this is creating a sort of—
Wow, wow, wow.
Sorry, go ahead, Dr. Preeti.
I was saying, but Sneha, I went through the same cycle what you were mentioning. I started sleeping at 2 at night because my kids, sons, were home, and you know, uh, the night looked like day. And then I used to get up late, or maybe I used to take a 10-minute nap during the day, and again at night, then I used to be awake. And one fine day I thought, what am I doing? Right, and especially I think the age group we are in, we know we don't have that much of liberty also. And I got back in cycle, but what I did to get back in cycle is one, people don't even realize they are taking naps during the day. And even if you take a 10-minute nap, your cycle, sleep cycle gets disturbed. That's one. Second, I started I really stopped viewing my tech things 1 hour before my sleep time, and I started reading something. And this is a great time to read again all the books which you have loved. For example, you know, Win Friends, right? Or whatever is your taste to read. It's a great time before sleeping. If you start reading, you will be able to address this issue very well.
Thank you, ma'am. I think that a lot of— that, that's quite a practical thing which a lot of viewers can actually do. The one thing is that avoid naps. I think the take-home message is that avoid sleeping during the day. Try to stick as much to the routine as you can, and also try to not have any stimulating activity right before your sleep hours. Don't expose yourself to screens 1 or 2 hours before you're sleeping. And extending that, if I may add, don't have caffeinated drinks. Don't exercise rigorously right before you sleep. So evening exercises could be something like a walk rather than indulging in something which is very exhausting and activating at the same time.
