📖 Why is having an evening routine good for my dopamine?

Evenings are your shutdown sequence. Get them right, and sleep repairs your dopamine system. Get them wrong, and tomorrow starts broken.

1. Why They Matter

• Deep sleep restores dopamine receptor sensitivity.
• Blue light + stimulation delay and fragment deep sleep.
• Evening routines create a cue for shutdown: brain learns these actions = sleep mode.

2. How to Create a Routine That Works

• Set a curfew: 1-hour before bed = no phone.
• Pick calming anchors: reading, journaling, stretching, music, tea.
• Same order every night. Routine is about consistency, not complexity.

3. How to Maintain & Build

• Start with 2 anchors. Add more only when it feels easy.
• Protect it: No routine survives if your phone is in your hand.
• Evolve with your needs: Swap activities if they don’t help. Keep the structure, change the parts.