It won't be as unthinkable as it seems
It seems today that many people are finding themselves habitually engaging in behaviour which they aren't very happy about in the light of day. Many find themselves stuck doom-scrolling, video-game-playing, or YouTube binging late into the evening, to the detriment of their sleep schedule.
I am one of these people. I can't tell you how many times I've noticed the clock read 3am after a weeknight Factorio session, or watched about 17 more "one more" YouTube videos before bed. I've been doing this kind of thing for over a decade.
I've had many attempts trying out a new self-control hack to reclaim control of my life. I've tried browser extensions, self-pep-talks, pre-determined bedtimes, you name it. I've found moderate success with some of these, but none have lasted more than a week or two — at least, not by themselves.
The most success I've had was making the following commitment to myself1: I will not use any computer after dinner.
The reason this works is because it removes the opportunity for me to lose control. Rather than trying to exercise willpower to stop myself in the middle of something to go to bed at 10pm, I simply don't start the something in the first place.
Of course, "no computer after dinner" is not a one-size-fits-all solution, but it fit my life very well. All of the behaviour I found problematic was centred around my computer, so that was the natural thing to restrict. I wasn't worried about my computer use in mornings or during the day time, as that was naturally limited by the next thing in my schedule (whatever that was). It was only a problem when it was the last thing in my schedule. So by using the fixed-in-time event of dinner as a cutoff, I was able to dodge the problem altogether.
If you can entirely avoid the opportunity for the undesirable behaviour, then avoid it. This will be more effective in the long run than relying on willpower alone. Even if you're 99% sure2 you'll be able to resist today, after 100 days you'll have failed once. If you have zero opportunities to engage in the behaviour, you'll fail zero times.
The hardest thing about adopting this strategy was dealing with my internal justifications for "needing to do things in the evening". I felt that if I lost my evening computer time, I would have no time for my hobbies, no time to relax and unwind, and I would burn out immediately.
When I finally tried it, it was really hard to resist breaking my commitment. I felt such a strong urge to go browse YouTube, and I felt so bored without it. But after not that many days of boredom, I got used to the idea, and it was actually nice. I was catching up on sleep for the first while, but then I started to feel more energised in the evenings, and started reading for leisure again. I realised that I could still do my computer-centric hobbies, if I made the effort to wake up earlier in the morning. Overall, I felt more in control of my behaviour than I had in a long time.
I should mention: I'm currently writing this post in the evening, using my computer. When my second daughter was born, a lot of habits were thrown out for a while, and one of the things which returned was using my laptop on the couch in evenings. I have not stuck to this new system forever — although it has already been more long-lasting than many other things I've tried.
I'm currently going back and forth with myself, putting off returning to this commitment. I keep saying "I need something to entertain myself while rocking the baby to sleep." Or, "If I don't use my computer at night, I'll never get a chance to relax any more." But I should know that these are poor excuses, especially since I've already refuted them in the past!
So I'm thinking I need to let go of my evening browsing again. As much as it will be tricky at first, I know from experience that I can push through the initial discomfort, and come out as a more focused, better-rested person. It won't be as unthinkable as it seems.
If this is something you can identify with, send me an email and ask me how I'm going with this; or, share what part of life you're trying to reclaim.