By Roy, founder Last updated 14 October 2026
In the last hour before bed, stop anything that keeps your head switched on, turn the lights down, and do one or two calm things in the same order most nights. That means work, email, hard conversations and interactive screens off. Then write tomorrow's list if it is on your mind, have a warm shower or read something quiet, and get into bed when you feel sleepy.
Healthdirect and the Sleep Health Foundation both describe this stretch as a buffer zone, a block of time when you are not solving problems or planning the next day. Most of what decides the night (the last coffee, the last drink, dinner) happens before the hour starts, so the table below counts back from bedtime. For the full routine, see our wind-down guide.
What should I stop doing in the last hour before bed?
Stop the things that raise your alertness. The Sleep Health Foundation lists moderate exercise, computer games, television, movies, important discussions, social media and replying to emails and texts as stimulating activities to avoid in the hour before bed (Sleep Health Foundation). It also says a brightly lit room, or the blue light of a computer, can reduce the evening rise in melatonin, the hormone that signals night.
Its separate fact sheet on technology draws a useful line. Interactive use (games, browsing, messaging, posting) is more alerting than passive use such as music, an e-book or a film, and it suggests swapping interactive devices for passive ones in the evening (Sleep Health Foundation). We go through which screen habits cost the most in screens before bed.
Two smaller ones. Don't doze on the couch, because the foundation says it lowers your sleep pressure and makes it harder to fall asleep in bed. And leave work tools and laptops out of the bedroom, as Healthdirect advises.
When should I do what? A countdown from bedtime
| Before bed | Do this | What the sources say |
|---|---|---|
| 3 to 7 hours | Finish your last tea, coffee or caffeinated soft drink | Healthdirect: avoid caffeine for at least 3 to 7 hours before bed |
| 4 hours | Finish your last alcoholic drink | Healthdirect: at least 4 hours. The Sleep Health Foundation says alcohol may help you get to sleep but makes it harder to stay asleep |
| 2 hours | Finish dinner | Sleep Health Foundation: evening meal at least 2 hours before bed, and don't go to bed hungry |
| 1 to 2 hours | Warm shower or bath. Put screens away | A meta-analysis found 40 to 42.5 degrees Celsius, 1 to 2 hours before bed, shortened the time to fall asleep. The Sleep Health Foundation recommends screens off 1 to 2 hours before bed |
| 1 hour | Start the buffer zone: lights down, work closed, no hard conversations. Write tomorrow's list | Healthdirect and the Sleep Health Foundation |
| Last 30 minutes | Something calm and repeatable: reading, quiet music, relaxation, a drink. Toilet, then bed when you feel sleepy | Sleep Health Foundation |
The foundation's own screen advice varies a little between fact sheets, from within one hour of bed to 1 to 2 hours. Pick the gap you can keep. Its technology page found that bright screen light did not change the evening melatonin rise after 1 hour but did after 1.5 hours, so the longer gap is the safer bet.
What are the best things to do in the last hour?
Write tomorrow's list. In a sleep-lab study, 57 healthy young adults wrote for 5 minutes before bed. Those who wrote a to-do list fell asleep significantly faster than those who wrote about what they had already done, and the more specific the list, the faster they fell asleep (Scullin et al, 2018). It was a small study of 18 to 30 year olds, so treat it as a cheap thing to try. The Sleep Health Foundation suggests a similar idea, setting aside a worry time earlier in the evening to make plans, then leaving them until tomorrow.
Have a warm shower or bath. A 2019 review of 17 studies found that a warm shower or bath at 40 to 42.5 degrees Celsius was linked with better self-rated sleep quality, and that 10 minutes taken 1 to 2 hours before bed shortened the time to fall asleep (Haghayegh et al, 2019). The proposed reason is that warm water brings blood to your hands and feet, so you lose body heat faster afterwards. The authors say more research is needed, especially on the best timing. Pair it with a cool bedroom: see what temperature should your bedroom be.
Read something quiet or put on something calm. The Sleep Health Foundation lists a warm bath, reading quietly and a warm milk drink as examples of relaxing things to do, and says what works varies from person to person. Quiet music is on its list too.
Do a short relaxation practice. The foundation says to find a relaxation technique that works for you and practise it regularly during your wind-down. Slow breathing or muscle relaxation both fit. If you want a guided option, we have a free ten-minute script and recordings in yoga nidra for sleep.
Keep the lights low. Lamps instead of overheads. It costs nothing, and the foundation's point about bright light and melatonin is the reason.
What if I only have 15 minutes?
Keep the three that do the most work. Phone on the charger, away from the bed. Two minutes with a notepad to get tomorrow out of your head. Then one calm, repeatable step, such as a warm shower or a few pages of a book, and straight to bed. The Sleep Health Foundation says it is not possible to do the same thing every day, but it should be most days. A short routine you actually do beats a long one you drop. More on building one that lasts in how to build a wind-down routine you'll keep.
What if I am still awake after all that?
Get up. The Sleep Health Foundation says that if you are not asleep within 20 to 30 minutes, go to another darkened room and sit quietly, with no screens, food, drink or chores, then return to bed when you feel sleepy again. It also says to take the clock out of the bedroom if you can, because clock-watching makes it worse.
If you drop off easily but wake in the small hours, that is a different problem with different fixes. See falling asleep vs staying asleep and why you keep waking up at 3am. If your head is racing the moment you lie down, tired but wired is the page for that.
Where does a nightly drink fit in the last hour?
As the last calm, repeatable step, if you like having one. Nothing in the sources says you need one. Settl is a nightly sleep drink for adults. One scoop in cold water, 30 to 60 minutes before bed, gives you 730mg of magnesium glycinate (146mg elemental), 3,000mg of glycine, 200mg of L-theanine, 50mg of chamomile extract and 900mg of myo-inositol. There is an electrolyte layer so eight hours without water does not wake you dried out and needing to get up, about 1,000mg of sodium a scoop, with potassium. There is no melatonin.
Two honest notes. The glycine and L-theanine amounts match the doses used in small trials, but no trial has tested Settl itself. And the drink belongs at the end of the routine above, not in place of it. If you have been told to watch your salt, or you take prescription medicine, talk to your GP or pharmacist before adding any supplement. More on the drink side in hydration and sleep.
Common questions
How long before bed should I stop looking at my phone? The Sleep Health Foundation recommends turning screens off 1 to 2 hours before bed, and ideally keeping them out of the bedroom. If you can't, switch to passive use such as music or an e-book, and keep email and social media out of the last hour.
Is it OK to have a shower before bed? Yes. A warm shower or bath 1 to 2 hours before bed was linked with falling asleep faster in a review of 17 studies. The review also says the best timing needs more research.
Should I eat in the last hour before bed? Try not to go to bed hungry or full. The Sleep Health Foundation says dinner should finish at least 2 hours before bed and that some people sleep better with a small snack at bedtime. More in does eating late affect how you sleep.
Can I exercise in the evening? Exercise helps sleep, but the Sleep Health Foundation says the best times are the morning and before the evening meal, and that moderate exercise in the last hour before bed is stimulating.
What is the best thing to do right before bed? Whatever calm thing you will repeat. The Sleep Health Foundation says it varies from person to person and gives a warm bath, quiet reading and a warm milk drink as examples. The repetition does as much work as the activity.
The short version, and where Settl sits
Stop what switches you on, turn the lights down, write the list, do one calm thing, and repeat it most nights.
Get to sleep faster. Wake less at 3am. Sleep deeper. Wake up refreshed. That is what Settl is built for: magnesium glycinate, glycine, L-theanine, chamomile extract and myo-inositol, with an electrolyte layer, as the last step of the routine. Every dose is printed on the ingredients page and on the tub. Packed in Sydney, in a TGA-licensed GMP facility.
One scoop, cold water, before bed.
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Cheers, Roy
Sources: Healthdirect, "Sleep"; Sleep Health Foundation, "Sleep Hygiene: Good Sleep Habits", "Ten Tips for a Good Night's Sleep" and "Technology and Sleep"; Scullin et al, Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 2018; Haghayegh et al, Sleep Medicine Reviews, 2019. This article explains the general research picture in plain English and isn't medical advice. Talk to your GP or pharmacist about what's right for you.