Nowadays, at any given moment, we might find ourselves living stressful lives in a frantic world, as sometimes, our jobs can be extra demanding, which apparently isn’t something that’s very nice for our bodies and minds, as stress can be something that’s quite hard to deal with. Stress can ultimately cause as well as aggravate sleeping problems or sleeping disorders, which sadly end up messing with our sleep patterns and sleeping routines. However, there’s a recently released clever device out there that used the science of light combined with science-based guided breathing techniques to help users fall asleep in a faster and more relaxed manner. Meet the Dodow, a light-based sleep aid device that has already helped tons of American citizens to recover from temporary sleeping problems.
Basically, the Dodow works as a LED light metronome device that can ultimately help those with insomnia or any other sleep problems or disorders to have an easier time falling asleep.
In case you’re wondering, metronomes are devices mainly used by musicians and serve to mark time at a selected rate by giving a regular tick. That’s exactly how the Dodow works. It marks the time while also guiding its users to follow science-based guided breathing techniques in order to relax at nighttime so that they consequently have an easier time falling asleep.
According to recent data collected by the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention), a third of adults in the US revealed that they get less than the recommended amount of sleep, and that’s something that’s most likely related to the time we spend connected, looking at our PC’s, laptop’s and Smartphone’s screens.
As such, one thing is certain. It’s safe to say that this hyperconnected activity obviously has an impact on our ability to fall asleep at night.
Furthermore, it’s also worth to mention that according to the company’s collected data, the Dodow has already helped over 500,000 users to have an easier time falling asleep faster than before using the device.
One of the latest surveys conducted by the company, which accounted with over 300 users, suggested that the Dodow helped its users fall asleep around 2.5 times faster than normal.
As such, by using the Dodow as a sleep aid device, someone who’d normally take 60 minutes to fall asleep will take no more than 20~25 minutes to achieve a relaxed state of mind and quickly fall asleep. Consequently, this could obviously help users gain hundreds of additional hours of sleep during each and every year.
This sleep aid device was designed by a team of insomniacs (the Dodow team), which was led by Alex (in the middle of the picture embedded below), a chronic insomniac who was originally looking for other ways to fall asleep. The Dodow’s design was inspired by behavioral cognitive therapy, yoga and meditation, which are all known to restore your ability to naturally fall asleep. After a couple months of hard work together with his business partners Pierre and Gui, the team finally came up with the Dodow.
Now, let’s take a more detailed look at the Dodow, and check exactly how its built and how it works.
DESIGN & SPECS
As menionted before, the Dodow is a basically a light-based device that’s combined combined with a metronome system, and with it, users can learn how to fall asleep in a more natural manner, all without ever requiring you to take any medicine.
The device basically consists of a durable circular plastic body that integrates a built-in LED blue-light system, a small external touchpad (used to swap between its two working modes – discussed at the end) and a sturdy battery lid.
The Dodow is powered by a total of 3 AAA batteries (already included in the box).
It’s simple and compact design also makes the device perfect to have sitting at your nightstand. Furthermore, the device’s small size and light weight also make it ultra-portable, which means that you can even take it with you while you’re on-the-go.
This basically means that no matter where your next crashing spot will be, you can bring your favorite sleep aid device with you (of course, the Dodow) so that you can have an easier time falling asleep. No matter where your journeys take you next (a friend’s place, hotel room, etc.) the Dodow can go with you anywhere and everywhere.
The Dodow’s built-in LED light system works as as an adjustable calming and soft blue light (with a brightness level < 1 lux) that ultimately allows your body to relax, all without inhibiting melatonin production.
Using Blue Light to relax at night when research shows that blue light disrupts sleep
Now, this is something that should also be addressed. While specific colors of light are known to affect our Circadian Rhythms (discussed ahead) and disrupt or mess with our sleep patterns/cycles, the Dodow’s light intensity is too dim to do that.
Blue light is scientifically proven to have the strongest impact of all light colors, and exposure to blue light (as well as white light, which partially contains blue light) during sensitive periods of time (i.e. when we are tired at night) can make it difficult for you to fall asleep and stay asleep.
Still, you have nothing to worry about the Dodow’s blue light, as when compared to a screen with > 70 lux, the Dodow’s low light intensity (< 1 lux) is too dim to ever prevent or even have any possible impact on the secretion of melatonin (the sleep hormone).
As such, Dodow’s soft blue light will never make it difficult for users to fall asleep and stay asleep. On the contrary, it has been shown that exposure to weaker levels of blue light can actually have relaxing properties, and as such, it can ultimately help to reduce stress. This is the main reason why the Dodow Team chose a blue light over an orange one.
After all the testing was done, the Dodow Team reported that they’ve found that the blue shade of cyan (a very soft and weak blue light level) provided the best results in helping users falling asleep, which is exactly the opposite of the effects caused by having a stronger blue light level around you when you’re trying to fall asleep and stay asleep, which is known to affect our Circadian Rhythms.
BRIEF INTRO TO CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS – WHAT’S A CIRCADIAN RHYTHM?
Our bodies are biologically configured to work in a Circadian Rhythm, following a 24-hour internal clock that’s running in perfect tune with your brain, all while cycling between two main states at regular intervals, which are a Sleep State (usually when we feel tired at night) and an Alert State (more commonly after we wake up every morning).
These same Circadian Rhythms (“our internal clocks”) are linked to changing wavelengths of light throughout the day, but many different sleeping problems and/or sleeping disorders can end up messing them up.
Fortunately, our Circadian Rhythms can still be regulated to a certain extent with the help of Color Light Therapy, which is scientifically proven to simulate those same wavelengths of light.
As such, exposure to Color Light Therapy at the appropriate times (i.e. at the start of each sleeping cycle) can trigger subtle biological responses within our body, like increased melatonin production as well as a more relaxed heart rate at night, thus helping to improve a user’s sleep, energy, and even their mood during the day.
HOW DOES THE DODOW WORK?
Since the Dodow works as a LED light-based metronome device, this sleep aid device can ultimately help those with insomnia or any other sleep problems or disorders to have an easier time falling asleep.
This works by having the Dodow guiding its users through a meditation exercise that’s based on heart coherence.
First you activate/turn On your Dodow device and configure its adjustable blue-light level (3 levels of light intensity are available), as Dodow’s light intensity is fully adjustable to fit most rooms, as well as to make sure that your partner is never disturbed.
After tapping its touch pad once to pick the desired working mode (its two working modes – discussed right ahead), users simply try to synchronize their breathing pattern with the blue light projected onto the ceiling. You breathe in as it expands and then exhale when the Dodow’s blue light retracts.
It’s important to mention that while you may find that the expiration time is longer than normal for most people, that’s exactly how the device’s sleep therapy/aid method is intended to work, as that’s what helps to create the feeling of fatigue, which will then lead to having users falling asleep in faster times than normal when struggling with sleep problems or sleep disorders.
NOTABLE FEATURES
2 Different Modes – 8-Minute Mode and 20-Minute Mode
As mentioned before, the Dodow can be used in two different working modes, and all you have to do to swap between them is to tap its touch-sensitive surface.
Tapping once will have you selecting the 8-minute Mode, while tapping twice will select the 20-minute Mode. At the end of each exercise (8 or 20 minutes), the Dodow always switches itself off.
WHAT’S IN THE BOX?
Inside their package users will find: their Dodow sleep aid device, 3 included AAA batteries, and the User’s Manual.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Dodow is a LED light metronome device that can ultimately help those with insomnia or other sleep problems or disorders to have an easier time falling asleep.
It’s small, lightweight, portable, and reliable, and is proven to help people with sleeping issues to fall asleep within less than half an hour by guiding them through a meditation-based breathing exercise.
If you’re interested in buying this sleep aid device, each unit is currently going for $60 each. Getting bigger packages of either 2 or 3 units will get you some very cool discounts. You can order your pack of 1, 2, or 3-units online, directly from Dodow’s official shopping page, which you can access via this link.
