The mind possibilities of "after midnight"

Are you exploiting an optimal time for solving difficult problems?

Excerpt: Waking up in the middle of the night used to spike my anxiety. I’d panic about losing sleep, which would only lead to more lost sleep, and more panic, until I wore myself out or the sun came up.

But over time, I realized that those wakeups weren’t always bad. Some of my thoughts during those half-asleep moments turned out to be surprisingly useful. They helped me generate article ideas or navigate complex, ambiguous problems. Eventually, I saw that this altered state of wakefulness let me engage with life’s challenges in ways I couldn’t during the day.

It turns out that I wasn’t alone.

YOUR MIND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

In a well-known study from 2022 titled Mind after Midnight, a team led by scientists at the University of Arizona found that late-night thoughts tend to be negative, more ruminative, and more impulsive. They also found that being awake during the night increases risky behaviors and makes risky rewards seem more appealing.

The mentioned study