By Sampada Anuranjanee Khatiwada

Kathmandu, Apr. 28: Following the implementation of nationwide lockdown amid COVID-19 concerns, people have been facing various difficulties, including disturbance in sleeping habit, among others.
Reduced physical activities, lack of exposure to sunlight, consumption of negative news and information regarding COVID-19, turning bedroom into workplace, binge watching movies and series and the threat of virus infection itself have jeopradised everyone's sleeping habits, experts say.
"Lockdown has messed up with my routine, most importantly my sleep cycle. I should control myself more but instead I am finding I am eating more, sleeping randomly at odd hours and waking up at odd hour," said Nalini Khatri, 23, a student.
“I miss routine and normalcy back in my life,” she added.
Like Khatri, many people are seen complaining about how the lockdown has affected their sleep routine.
"As I have nothing to do during the daytime I sleep for 2-3 hours every day and later during the night I struggle to fall asleep," said Randhir Karki, 32, working at a local bank. "Although we have been helping the government to control the virus spread, the lockdown has affected our lives in so many ways.”
While irregular sleeping habits and routine have affected everyone's lives amid lockdown situation, the doctors have been significantly mentioning the need to maintain circadian rhythm to live a physically and psychologically sound life.
Circadian rhythm is a natural, internal process that regulates the sleep-wake cycle and repeats roughly every 24 hours.
Dr Rabindra Pandey, Public Health Specialist, said, "Eight hours of sleep, eight hours of work and eight hours of entertainment is crucial for human body to live a healthy life."
But the lockdown has challenged sleeping patterns of various people. People tend to sleep for hours during the daytime too. This leads to various health and psychosocial problems, said Dr. Pandey.
Irregular sleeping pattern is one of the major causes of diseases like obesity, diabetes, cardio-vascular diseases, kidney diseases, Alzheimer and so forth. Thus, one must sleep for at least eight hours in the night and for one hour at most during the day, he added.
Human brain has its own routine, or say, calendar of sleeping time. If this routine gets disturbed, one's sleeping pattern will be disturbed.
“When a person cannot have a sound sleep, it invites negativity in his life," added Dr Pandey. "Especially in the current situation of pandemic in which the people are feeling unsafe on health, economic, safety and so many other levels, irregular sleeping habit may lead to over thinking, thereby prompting anxiety and depression for long."
Dr Pandey said that it was important for one to maintain a healthy sleep pattern and healthy life especially during the COVID-19 scare. "Exercising regularly, eating healthy food by avoiding junks, meditation, yoga, reducing our screen-time, reading self-help books will help one stay engaged and healthy, which helps in maintaining a healthy sleep pattern."
Likewise, Dr Prakash Budhathoky, a psychiatrist, said that eight hours of sleep in a day was necessary to stay fresh and active for the remaining time.
"Also, maximum screen-time spent in using mobile and laptop makes one prone to psychological disorder," he added. "It is important to take a break in every 30 minutes of screen-time."
Highlighting that enough sleep was important in living a healthy, happy and contented life, Dr Budhathoky said that no one should compromise with their sleeping habits.
"Everyone should maintain a standard sleeping pattern and follow it every day, even during the lockdown," he said.