Sofa Sleepy, Bed Awake: Where Did Your Sleep Go?
Welcome back to Learn English with Podcasts! Sarah, be honest. Does this ever happen to you? You are dozing on the sofa. Someone wakes you and says, go to bed. You get into bed, and suddenly you are wide awake.欢迎回到 Learn English with Podcasts！Sarah，老实说，这事在你身上发生过吗？你在沙发上打瞌睡，有人把你叫醒说"去床上睡吧"。你躺到床上，突然就完全清醒了。
Oh, all the time! Just last night, I fell asleep watching TV, then lay in bed for an hour with my eyes open. Why does that happen?哦，经常啊！就昨晚，我看着电视睡着了，然后躺在床上睁着眼躺了一个小时。为什么会这样？
Good question. It is a real puzzle, and sleep scientists have several answers. The first one is called sleep pressure.好问题。这确实是个谜，睡眠科学家有好几个解释。第一个叫"睡眠压力"。
Sleep pressure? That sounds stressful. Is it a bad thing?睡眠压力？听起来很有压力。是坏事吗？
No, it is a good thing. It is the natural need for sleep that builds up all day. The longer you stay awake, the more pressure you feel. Picture a phone battery that fills up with sleepiness.不，是好事。它是白天一点点积累起来的自然睡眠需求。你醒得越久，这种压力越大。可以把它想象成一块装满睡意的手机电池。
Okay, so by night, my battery is almost full. Then I doze off on the sofa, and I use up some of that charge.好，那么到了晚上，我的电池几乎满格。然后我在沙发上睡着了，就用掉了一部分电量。
Exactly. And here is the problem. When you wake up and walk to bed, your battery is no longer full. You already spent your sleep on the sofa.完全正确。问题就在这里。当你醒来走到床边时，电池已经不满格了。你在沙发上已经花掉了自己的睡意。
Oh, that makes so much sense. It is like eating snacks before dinner. By dinner time, you are not hungry anymore.哦，这就太有道理了。就像饭前吃零食。到了晚饭时间，你就不饿了。
Good example. But that is only the first reason. The second one is even stranger, and it is about the bed itself.这个例子很好。但这只是第一个原因。第二个更奇怪，而且和床本身有关。
The bed? Wait, the bed should help me sleep, not keep me awake.床？等等，床应该帮我睡觉才对，不是让我清醒啊。
You would think so. Doctors call this conditioned arousal. If you often lie in bed awake, tossing and turning, and worrying about sleep, your brain learns something new.你本来会这么想。医生把这叫作"条件性觉醒"。如果你经常在床上醒着、翻来覆去、为睡不着发愁，你的大脑就会学到一件新事。
Learns what?学到什么？
It learns that the bed means being awake and upset. The bed turns into a signal to wake up, not to sleep. The sofa never hurt you, so it stays safe and calm.它学会"床 = 清醒和烦躁"。床变成了一个让你清醒的信号，而不是睡觉的信号。而沙发从没让你难受，所以它一直是安全、放松的。
That is a little sad. So the sofa wins because I am not trying to sleep there. There is no pressure at all.这有点伤感。所以沙发赢了，是因为在那里我根本没想睡。完全没有压力。
Right. On the sofa you are not trying. You are just resting, watching TV, half asleep. No goal, no stress. The bed is where you try, and trying too hard can keep you awake.对。在沙发上你没在努力。你只是休息、看电视、半睡半醒，没有目标，没有压力。床是你"努力"的地方，而太用力反而会让你清醒。
Those are two reasons. But wait, does walking to the bedroom make it worse too? Turning on the bathroom light, brushing my teeth?这是两个原因了。不过等等，走到卧室是不是也让情况更糟？开浴室的灯、刷牙？
Good point. Standing up, bright light and brushing your teeth all wake your body again. By the time you reach the bed, your body thinks it is time to be awake.说得好。站起来、明亮的灯光、刷牙，这些都会再次唤醒你的身体。等你走到床边时，身体以为又该清醒了。
That explains why I feel more awake after brushing my teeth than before. So is my friend doing it all wrong? She scrolls on her phone in bed for two hours, then wonders why she cannot sleep.这就解释了我为什么刷完牙反而更清醒。那我朋友是不是全做错了？她在床上刷两个小时手机，然后纳闷自己为什么睡不着。
That is a common mistake. Bright screens and stressful content both wake you up. And every night you lie awake in bed, you teach your brain the same bad lesson again.这是常见错误。明亮的屏幕和让人紧张的内容都会让你清醒。而且每一晚你在床上醒着，就会再教大脑一次同样的坏功课。
So what is the fix? Do I need a new pillow, or a bigger bed?那怎么解决？我需要新枕头，或者大一点的床吗？
No. Sleep doctors use two ideas. One is sleep hygiene: keep the room dark, quiet and cool, and wind down before bed. The other feels backwards, but it is my favorite.不用。睡眠医生用两个办法。一个是"睡眠卫生"：让房间保持黑暗、安静、凉爽，睡前放松下来。另一个感觉完全反着来，但我最喜欢。
Now I am curious. What is it?我好奇了。是什么？
If you cannot fall asleep in about 15 to 20 minutes, get out of bed. Go to another room, keep the lights dim, and do something calm. Only come back when you feel sleepy again.如果你大约15到20分钟还睡不着，就起床。去另一个房间，把灯光调暗，做点平静的事。等又有睡意了再回去。
Get out of bed? That sounds wrong at first. But I get it. You want to stop teaching your brain that bed means awake.起床？一开始听着不对。但我懂了。你想停止教大脑"床 = 清醒"这件事。
Exactly. And here is the part that surprised me most. What do you think is the best way to sleep well in bed?完全对。还有一点最让我意外。你猜，想在床上睡得好，最好的办法是什么？
Hmm, go to bed earlier? Buy a softer mattress?嗯，早点上床？买更软的床垫？
No. It is to not fall asleep on the sofa in the first place. Save all your sleepiness, and spend it on your bed.都不是。是一开始就别在沙发上睡着。把睡意全都留着，留到床上再用。
So the sofa is not better at making me sleep. It is just better at not caring if I sleep.所以沙发并不是更会让我入睡。它只是更"不在乎"我睡不睡。
That is it. We spend so much money on the bed. Soft pillows, special sheets. And the free sofa just keeps winning.就是这样。我们在床上花那么多钱，软枕头、特别的床单。结果免费沙发还是一直赢。
Because the sofa never asks us to sleep. It is the only place in the house with no homework.因为沙发从不要求我们睡觉。它是家里唯一一个"没有作业"的地方。
No homework. I am going to remember that tonight, on my own sofa.没有作业。今晚我要在自己家沙发上好好体会一下。
Mike, that is exactly how you got here! Friends, has this ever happened to you? Tell us your funniest sofa story, and see you next time!Mike，你这正是问题所在啊！朋友们，这事发生在你身上过吗？讲讲你最好笑的沙发故事，下期见！