to think you don't text people when you'd expect them to be asleep?

[bibbitybobbityyhat]

I have terrible insomnia and have been awake since 3am . I was actually just drifting back to sleep at 5am when I received a text from a friend!! So that's me woken up for the day. I can't think why you would do that?

I have mine on Do Not Disturb between 11pm and 7am, if the same person calls twice within a couple of mins it overrides it so it's fine for emergencies and the alarm still works too.

To those, woken up by texts. If you don't want your phone on silent, turn off the notification facility for when texts come in. Make sure to turn vibrate off as well. That way if urgent calls come, you will still hear them. I have an iPhone so I can still use the alarm facility if phone is on silent.

I keep my phone on if dc away from home or out late - and mine is a very basic phone so can't do the selective 'do not disturb but allow certain numbers through'. So I say 'not fine' - because you can't assume everyone switches their phone off. For the same reason I never text late or very early - I use the same 'rules' as for phoning.

I find I can prevent myself from sending texts at unsociable hours but seems I'm the oddball!

No bibbity I'm the same! And you can always save a text to send later if you fancy doing some middle of the night drafting.

I put my phone on "Do Not Disturb" at night so that only my "favourite" contacts can call/text, in case of emergency.

So no, it doesn't bother me, because I don't hear anyone's messages. The only favourite contacts I have are my mother and DH.

And yes, your alarm will definitely still work if your phone is on silent.

I did that a few times before I had a smart phone (and almost all my friends had them) because my phone went off at night (and the alarm still went off!)

If I woke and couldn't get back to sleep I would read, and maybe remember that I needed to text someone, so I'd do it, expecting them to get it when thy turned the phone on in the morning.
I was quite embarrassed when someone eventually told me.

The DND function is great unless your parent is taken into hospital and they try and ring you from a witheld number . Yes I'm looking at you Mother! Now I keep my mobile on. I have a SN friend who texts me every bloody Sunday from 6am with a running commentary to tell me what they are doing and where they are going. I've changed their text notification to vibrate and so far, so good. I didn't know about the ring out feature. I'll look into that. Thanks.

"I use my phone as my alarm and I like to have it by my bed for security."

You have two options here:

1. Put your phone on silent. The alarm function will still work
2. Buy an alarm clock.

I know that option 2 is old fashioned, but I still use an alarm clock because I don't always have my phone in the bedroom. Also, anyone who might ring us during the night would use the landline anyway.

My phone automatically goes onto a priority only and those being phone calls only not texts/whatsapp.

So my phone only allows phone calls from those I have listed as priority to ring after 10pm. Everything else just waits until morning.

I set it to automatically go to silent at 10pm so I don't even have to remember to turn it onto silent. It is an android phone.

I think it's fine. Every night I set my alarm on the phone and set it to airplane mode.

People with older children who go out on the town often don't leave their phone on silent in case they get that 2am call for help.

I do unplug the landline at night because I get the occasional international nuisance call (international being relevant because subscribing to telephone preference doesn't prevent that). Anyone phoning in an emergency would use my mobile.

The 'ring twice' override also sounds good - but none of the tricks work as I only have a basic phone. So I suppose the answer is that it's fine to text in the middle of the night if you know the person has a smart phone, but not otherwise!

I know you have had lost of posts about how to use do not disturb etc which is really useful.
If you struggle with insomnia anyway though you might find it very helpful to invest in an ordinary alarm clock or clock radio and keep your phone well away from where you sleep - the temptation to check your phone or use the internet when you can't sleep can make insomnia even worse.

Of course YANBU.

Unless youbare a completely inconsiderate wanker you don't do things that are likely to make noise in your friend's house in the middle of the night just because it suits you to send texts at that time.

You might as well just ring them at 3am and leave a voice message if you are so certain their phone habits will mean their phone will be on silent.

Don't be a dick - send messages during the day.

if you take your phone to be for the alarm, you can switch it off and it will turn on when the alarm goes off and then switches off again
(i wasnt happy when i found this out at 6 on a sunday morning)

I don't keep my phone in my bedroom, who does that?

Most people, it would seem

YANBU. It's all very well saying put your phone on silent/do not disturb but it's bloody inconsiderate to send a text in the middle of the night knowing it may wake someone up. And there's a chance it will wake someone up.

If you're texting it's not that important or you'd be phoning, so wait till morning.

I always put my phone on silent but DH doesn't and when his mother texts at 5am I get the rage . She also used to like to phone at 8am on Sundays (before we had kids).

But there are plenty of other times when a person might not want their phone to sound -- if they're at work, in a meeting, at the theatre, on a hot date... You can't second guess when would be a good time for the phone to sound, with someone's mobile I think it's accepted that you just assume they are on top of the notifications. Calling a landline is a completely different matter.

Will do my best not to kill myself whilst driving today.

I assume OP didn't mean that literally.

Insomnia is horrible. That must have been really annoying.

I used to text at any time, used nighttime feeds to catch up with people as I assumed people had their phone on silent. Until I found out I was ruining everyone's sleep.

Have a or two

WhatsApp groups are online chats and will tend to keep their own hours.

Easy enough to mute without having to prevent yourself from hearing potentially important texts in the middle of the night.

Similarly, there will be people you know you can text very late (like me, as it happens) because they keep antisocial hours.

But just sending out a text in the middle of the night because it suits you, with no consideration of how it might dusturb other people is just being a twat.

You know why very few texts arrive between 10pm and 8am?

Because basic thoughtfulness is not beyond most humans.

Just the self-involved twats.

Perfectly ok to text any time

with someone's mobile I think it's accepted that you just assume they are on top of the notifications.

Not accepted by non-twats.

I would like the option of leaving my notifications to daytime settings and not having some clueless, antisocial wanker start 3am texting because nobody ever taught them there are other things in the world irher than them and their bullshit.