What are the best ways you've found to make yourself fall asleep?
January 18, 2012 11:02 AM Subscribe
I am looking for useful tips or tricks to get myself to fall asleep. I figured going to the hive mind would be best for this.
So basically I have problems falling asleep. I'm interested in finding different techniques people use to fall asleep when they simply can't. The best two techniques that I've used, to give you guys an idea of what I'm looking for, are the following.
1. I play Mario World in my head. Or some other video game from childhood. For some reason this has a soporific effect on me.
2. I look straight ahead of me and then look slightly up. Then I close my eyes while keeping my focus on just above my line of sight. Not sure why this works but it almost always induces some sort of sleep. First read about in Dr. Amen's book "Change Your Brain, Change Your Life."
I"ve tried the relaxation response techniques advocted by Benson and others and, quite simply, they're usually lacking. They're wonderful ways to induce relaxation but sleep doesn't usually come from them.
Finally, I should mention that I've taken melatonin. It seems to be a common advice for people with sleep problems. It doesn't really do much for me. Of all the medications I've tried to fall asleep though is actually an OTC, diphendyhydramine (aka Benadryl). However, I'd prefer to seek out more natural methods.
Any advice, help, tips, techniques would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
So basically I have problems falling asleep. I'm interested in finding different techniques people use to fall asleep when they simply can't. The best two techniques that I've used, to give you guys an idea of what I'm looking for, are the following.
1. I play Mario World in my head. Or some other video game from childhood. For some reason this has a soporific effect on me.
2. I look straight ahead of me and then look slightly up. Then I close my eyes while keeping my focus on just above my line of sight. Not sure why this works but it almost always induces some sort of sleep. First read about in Dr. Amen's book "Change Your Brain, Change Your Life."
I"ve tried the relaxation response techniques advocted by Benson and others and, quite simply, they're usually lacking. They're wonderful ways to induce relaxation but sleep doesn't usually come from them.
Finally, I should mention that I've taken melatonin. It seems to be a common advice for people with sleep problems. It doesn't really do much for me. Of all the medications I've tried to fall asleep though is actually an OTC, diphendyhydramine (aka Benadryl). However, I'd prefer to seek out more natural methods.
Any advice, help, tips, techniques would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
Pretend you're asleep. Lie there, not moving, jaw agape, eyes closed, and imagine what it'd be like to dream. That's what I do.
posted by MrMoonPie at 11:07 AM on January 18, 2012 [3 favorites]
posted by MrMoonPie at 11:07 AM on January 18, 2012 [3 favorites]
Other medication/supplements first: melatonin always gets recommended, yeah, but several other people I've talked to have all found that it didn't really work for them. Valerian worked a lot better for me. However -- it could be that melatonin is cumulative, like my doctor said valerian was (i.e., you can't only take it on the nights you need to get to sleep, you need to take it regularly for it to start working regularly). Magnesium also helped.
Other ideas that all helped me:
* reduce the amount of light in your room as much as possible. I figured out after a couple of sleepless nights, and after getting heavier and heavier blinds, that the LED display on my alarm clock was actually bright enough to keep me awake. Turned my clock around and it worked great.
* Stop any web surfing at least a half hour before going to bed. It's more of an "active brain" thing than just TV is, I find.
* super-mellow music that you know chills you out can also help.
* If you are lying in bed awake for more than a half hour, get up and out of the bed and do something until you feel sleepy again. This subtly trains your brain that "oh, okay, the bed is for SLEEPING in."
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 11:08 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
Other ideas that all helped me:
* reduce the amount of light in your room as much as possible. I figured out after a couple of sleepless nights, and after getting heavier and heavier blinds, that the LED display on my alarm clock was actually bright enough to keep me awake. Turned my clock around and it worked great.
* Stop any web surfing at least a half hour before going to bed. It's more of an "active brain" thing than just TV is, I find.
* super-mellow music that you know chills you out can also help.
* If you are lying in bed awake for more than a half hour, get up and out of the bed and do something until you feel sleepy again. This subtly trains your brain that "oh, okay, the bed is for SLEEPING in."
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 11:08 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
I have a few stock stories that I tell myself in my head. They usually don't diverge much from the usual plot. I guess this is probably similar to your Mario World thing- you're basically playing a movie in your head. You're distracting yourself from trying to come up with novel thoughts by occupying your brain with the same old story. Plus I'd guess that, after a while, your brain comes to realize that this story=sleep. (None of my stories have gotten endings yet, I always fall asleep before that point!)
posted by showbiz_liz at 11:08 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by showbiz_liz at 11:08 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
Don't lie awake in bed for longer than 30 minutes. If you're still awake after 30 minutes, get up and do something boring. No TV, no video games. No bright lights. Play solitaire (with real cards) under a dim light. Organize your sock drawer. Still like that. Nothing stimulating. Do this for a while then go back to bed.
What finally worked for me was accepting the fact that if I went to bed at ten I wasn't going to fall asleep until midnight. So why waste two hours? Now I just go to bed at midnight and I'm asleep in a matter of minutes. Lying awake in bed is not productive. Don't waste your time doing it.
posted by bondcliff at 11:10 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
What finally worked for me was accepting the fact that if I went to bed at ten I wasn't going to fall asleep until midnight. So why waste two hours? Now I just go to bed at midnight and I'm asleep in a matter of minutes. Lying awake in bed is not productive. Don't waste your time doing it.
posted by bondcliff at 11:10 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
I listen to podcasts, and that usually puts me right out. I try to choose one that is just going to be people talking, and not one that I really care if I miss.
My usual go-to is Harry Shearer's Le Show. He's got a pretty soothing voice, and I find that having someone talking quiets the self-talk that would normally keep me awake.
posted by chazlarson at 11:13 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
My usual go-to is Harry Shearer's Le Show. He's got a pretty soothing voice, and I find that having someone talking quiets the self-talk that would normally keep me awake.
posted by chazlarson at 11:13 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
I have two standard techniques.
1) Breathe slowly and count my breaths. If I lose track or my mind wanders, start over at 1. This can be surprisingly mentally tiring.
2) I try to imagine myself as my dog (who has very little brain, and spends a lot of her time sleeping). That is often pretty good for convincing myself that it actually is possible to turn my Brain Activity Knob down.
posted by dfan at 11:16 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
1) Breathe slowly and count my breaths. If I lose track or my mind wanders, start over at 1. This can be surprisingly mentally tiring.
2) I try to imagine myself as my dog (who has very little brain, and spends a lot of her time sleeping). That is often pretty good for convincing myself that it actually is possible to turn my Brain Activity Knob down.
posted by dfan at 11:16 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
From a user who would prefer to remain anonymous:
Have you tried masturbating to completion?posted by jessamyn at 11:17 AM on January 18, 2012 [5 favorites]
The pzizz app is some of the best money I've ever spent. Link goes to the "Sleep" version, which gently guides you to sleep, then shuts off. They also make an "Energizer" version, which guides you into a daytime nap (of whatever length you specify), then gradually wakes you up. Both are wonderful.
posted by jbickers at 11:19 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by jbickers at 11:19 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
Yeah, audiobooks do it for me. Usually non-fiction. I love putting on a Stephen Hawking book, or Bill Bryson's A History of Nearly Everything in audiobook format.
I like to believe that it's teaching me while I sleep, some form of auditory osmosis, but I'll be honest - I still don't understand what Dr. Hawking is talking about most of the time.
posted by smitt at 11:20 AM on January 18, 2012
I like to believe that it's teaching me while I sleep, some form of auditory osmosis, but I'll be honest - I still don't understand what Dr. Hawking is talking about most of the time.
posted by smitt at 11:20 AM on January 18, 2012
I find the monotony of the android game beebled knocks me out.
As bondcliff says, get up after 30 minutes and do something to break the cycle, I sometimes go and read in the spare bed and fall asleep there. I also tend to struggle if too warm, so moving to a cooler room helps.
As Jessamyn's friend says, shooting your bolt can provide a form of natural relaxation.
posted by biffa at 11:22 AM on January 18, 2012
As bondcliff says, get up after 30 minutes and do something to break the cycle, I sometimes go and read in the spare bed and fall asleep there. I also tend to struggle if too warm, so moving to a cooler room helps.
As Jessamyn's friend says, shooting your bolt can provide a form of natural relaxation.
posted by biffa at 11:22 AM on January 18, 2012
Similar to the Mario Bros....I play a favorite movie in my head, from start to finish. If I lose the plot and dialog and my mind starts wandering, I have to start from the beginning. I find LoTR movies to be particularly good for this, but YMMV.
posted by digitalprimate at 11:22 AM on January 18, 2012
posted by digitalprimate at 11:22 AM on January 18, 2012
One more technique: imagining walking slowly around my neighborhood (or my childhood neighborhood, which may work even better).
posted by dfan at 11:24 AM on January 18, 2012
posted by dfan at 11:24 AM on January 18, 2012
Close your eyes and stare at the colours burned into your retinas. The colours eventually become shapes, and the shapes become dreams, at which point you are asleep.
posted by Sys Rq at 11:29 AM on January 18, 2012
posted by Sys Rq at 11:29 AM on January 18, 2012
Avoid caffeine in the afternoons. Also avoid alcohol in the evenings (drinking at dinner is okay, I think), which might help you drop off to sleep but compromises your sleep quality.
Intense cardio exercise is marvelously helpful as a sleep aid. If you've managed to get a really good workout that day, you'll pass out within minutes of hitting the sack.
Having a sleep routine also helps. Brush yer teeth, wash yer face, put on your pjs, tuck up in bed with a mug of sleepytime tea, a book and a cat. Just do the same thing every night around the same time and your body will learn to obey the sleep cues.
posted by duvatney at 11:31 AM on January 18, 2012
Intense cardio exercise is marvelously helpful as a sleep aid. If you've managed to get a really good workout that day, you'll pass out within minutes of hitting the sack.
Having a sleep routine also helps. Brush yer teeth, wash yer face, put on your pjs, tuck up in bed with a mug of sleepytime tea, a book and a cat. Just do the same thing every night around the same time and your body will learn to obey the sleep cues.
posted by duvatney at 11:31 AM on January 18, 2012
A hot bath about an hour before you want to be sleeping can help. Apparently the sharp drop in body temperature after the bath can make you sleepy.
Full disclosure: I don't sleep for shit and nothing--except, ironically, melatonin--helps.
posted by looli at 11:36 AM on January 18, 2012
Full disclosure: I don't sleep for shit and nothing--except, ironically, melatonin--helps.
posted by looli at 11:36 AM on January 18, 2012
Response by poster: I wish I could I say I drink caffeine but I don't. Even when I drink pop, it's always caffeine free. Intense exercise actually gets me more riled up.
The best suggestions so far (and boy am I grateful!) are the ones extolling mental tasks of some sort. This is the kind of stuff I"m looking for. Playing a movie in one's head. Watching the shapes on the retinas. This is all really interesting stuff.
Please keep the suggestions coming!
posted by lackadaisical at 11:37 AM on January 18, 2012
The best suggestions so far (and boy am I grateful!) are the ones extolling mental tasks of some sort. This is the kind of stuff I"m looking for. Playing a movie in one's head. Watching the shapes on the retinas. This is all really interesting stuff.
Please keep the suggestions coming!
posted by lackadaisical at 11:37 AM on January 18, 2012
I had a trick I learned while travelling. Sleeping in a different room every night, often a room full of strangers, often a scary bus, occasionally a car... I trained myself to fall asleep to the same album. I started it when I was in a stable room for a while. I'd do whatever it took to get to sleep (Valium, Valerian, Xanax, masturbation, a warm bath, chamomile tea... whatever it took) but ALWAYS the same album.
Eventually it got to the point that halfway through the second song on the album I was out like a light no matter what. I managed to sleep in some pretty out there situations doing this.
posted by piedmont at 11:38 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
Eventually it got to the point that halfway through the second song on the album I was out like a light no matter what. I managed to sleep in some pretty out there situations doing this.
posted by piedmont at 11:38 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
I visualize playing cards. Ace of spades, two of spades, three of spades, etc. Go through all the suits. And then once you're done, go through it again. The visualization is essential. I've never gone through a mental deck more than three times before zonking out.
posted by zoetrope at 11:41 AM on January 18, 2012
posted by zoetrope at 11:41 AM on January 18, 2012
I concentrate on thinking of nothing. Every time I catch myself thinking about something, however small, I stop myself, say the words 'think of nothing' in my mind, and fix my attention back on the darkness inside my eyelids, and the idea of nothing. It's a bit like constantly resetting a stopwatch over and over again.
Thinking about nothing is so utterly boring that I generally fall asleep within a minute to two.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 11:41 AM on January 18, 2012
Thinking about nothing is so utterly boring that I generally fall asleep within a minute to two.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 11:41 AM on January 18, 2012
Count backwards from 10 to 1. Repeat until asleep.
Count backwards from a higher number, like 300 or 600. I've rarely got to zero using this method. If my mind wanders during the count down, I just go back to 300 and start again.
On really bad nights, I get up and use the bathroom and come back to bed and lie the other way e.g. With my head where my feet were. Then I do the count down technique. This always works for me.
posted by MT at 11:45 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
Count backwards from a higher number, like 300 or 600. I've rarely got to zero using this method. If my mind wanders during the count down, I just go back to 300 and start again.
On really bad nights, I get up and use the bathroom and come back to bed and lie the other way e.g. With my head where my feet were. Then I do the count down technique. This always works for me.
posted by MT at 11:45 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
Someone once told me to try to focus on how the air feels on my nostrils when I breath in and out so that's what I try to do. They also said I should imagine my thoughts like they're a cloud and anytime anything becomes more clear in the cloud (like work stuff or that I have to buy cat food) I'm supposed imagine pushing it away from the cloud.
If I'm REALLY having a tough time getting to sleep, I switch my position so my head is at the foot of the bed and my feet are at the headboard. Not sure why that works, but I've been doing it since I was a little kid.
My husband uses Sleepytime Tea Extra (it has Valerian root) and he pretty much swears by it.
posted by smirkyfodder at 11:45 AM on January 18, 2012
If I'm REALLY having a tough time getting to sleep, I switch my position so my head is at the foot of the bed and my feet are at the headboard. Not sure why that works, but I've been doing it since I was a little kid.
My husband uses Sleepytime Tea Extra (it has Valerian root) and he pretty much swears by it.
posted by smirkyfodder at 11:45 AM on January 18, 2012
Take some boring memory and relive it in as much detail as you can. Well into college, I would visualize climbing the stairs in my high school commons and walking around the second level along the fence around the cutout to the first floor.
I generally fall asleep before I get halfway around, if I even make it up the stairs. Something about visualizing it in so much detail (spots on the linoleum, etc) with no words helps soothe me to sleep.
At the same time, you can train a "cue" posture into yourself. I only use mine these days when i have trouble sleeping; it's a somewhat-unusual position that I associated with SLEEP NAOW - I lay on my stomach and clench my left big toe with my right - but whatever you come up with that's comfortable.
posted by bookdragoness at 11:45 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
I generally fall asleep before I get halfway around, if I even make it up the stairs. Something about visualizing it in so much detail (spots on the linoleum, etc) with no words helps soothe me to sleep.
At the same time, you can train a "cue" posture into yourself. I only use mine these days when i have trouble sleeping; it's a somewhat-unusual position that I associated with SLEEP NAOW - I lay on my stomach and clench my left big toe with my right - but whatever you come up with that's comfortable.
posted by bookdragoness at 11:45 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
Not what you're looking for necessarily, but are you going to bed at a consistent time?
I find that once I'm in the habit of going to bed at 10, tired or not, I eventually adjust to that schedule. Your lifestyle may get in the way of achieving this though if you work odd hours or whatever.
posted by sunshinesky at 11:46 AM on January 18, 2012
I find that once I'm in the habit of going to bed at 10, tired or not, I eventually adjust to that schedule. Your lifestyle may get in the way of achieving this though if you work odd hours or whatever.
posted by sunshinesky at 11:46 AM on January 18, 2012
This is silly, but helps me (and now helps my daughter): I think of what I would do for my family and myself if we won a large sum of money. What kind of car I would buy each family member, whether I would pay off our current house or look for a new one, etc. I almost always drift off to sleep with at least a semblance of pleasant thoughts in my head...
posted by kuanes at 11:46 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by kuanes at 11:46 AM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
Get in bed, close your eyes, try and make your brain stop them from moving. By the time I can get that mess sorted out, I am asleep.
posted by oceanjesse at 11:48 AM on January 18, 2012
posted by oceanjesse at 11:48 AM on January 18, 2012
I do a combination breathing/visualization exercise. Picture four dots that form the corners of a rectangle. Mentally draw a line from one dot to the next until you've completed the rectangle, and breathe in on a slow, regular count as you're doing it. One-two-three-four. Then erase the lines you've just drawn, going around the rectangle in the same direction, while breathing out. One-two-three-four. Repeat.
Usually this is enough to get me to block out other thoughts, but if my mind is really going off on tangents then I add a flourish to the line somehow, like looping it around each dot, or picturing the line as drawn by a fat-tipped marker. The trick seems to be finding something that's just interesting enough to keep me focused but boring enough that my brain can wind down. And for me, adding in the breathing definitely helps because it's sort of a forcible slowing of body activity.
I also sometimes listen to radio shows, but only things I've heard a million times before, so that I'm not actually listening to what's being said anymore. The noise gives my brain focus but it's familiar enough that I'm not perking up to listen.
posted by marginaliana at 11:51 AM on January 18, 2012
Usually this is enough to get me to block out other thoughts, but if my mind is really going off on tangents then I add a flourish to the line somehow, like looping it around each dot, or picturing the line as drawn by a fat-tipped marker. The trick seems to be finding something that's just interesting enough to keep me focused but boring enough that my brain can wind down. And for me, adding in the breathing definitely helps because it's sort of a forcible slowing of body activity.
I also sometimes listen to radio shows, but only things I've heard a million times before, so that I'm not actually listening to what's being said anymore. The noise gives my brain focus but it's familiar enough that I'm not perking up to listen.
posted by marginaliana at 11:51 AM on January 18, 2012
I refer back to this thread all the time when I can't switch off at night.
posted by ellieBOA at 11:55 AM on January 18, 2012
posted by ellieBOA at 11:55 AM on January 18, 2012
Lay flat on your back in a pitch black room when you feel tired and wake up at the same time every morning.
posted by michaelh at 11:56 AM on January 18, 2012
posted by michaelh at 11:56 AM on January 18, 2012
since i was a teenager and struggled with sleep i've done the counting back exercise some people talked about up thread.
start from 100, go backwards, slowly, each breath in or out is a new number, if your mind wanders at all, start over again. if you have to start over, slow your breathing even more. i've rarely made it lower than 80.
the slow breathing part of that exercise really works. in fact, if you have a baby you can't get to sleep, put them on your chest, match your breathing to theirs and then slow yours. they'll instinctively slow theirs as well and they'll fall asleep (and you probably will too).
posted by nadawi at 12:02 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
start from 100, go backwards, slowly, each breath in or out is a new number, if your mind wanders at all, start over again. if you have to start over, slow your breathing even more. i've rarely made it lower than 80.
the slow breathing part of that exercise really works. in fact, if you have a baby you can't get to sleep, put them on your chest, match your breathing to theirs and then slow yours. they'll instinctively slow theirs as well and they'll fall asleep (and you probably will too).
posted by nadawi at 12:02 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
also: just a hit or two of weed. just enough to take off the edge.
posted by nadawi at 12:02 PM on January 18, 2012
posted by nadawi at 12:02 PM on January 18, 2012
I use piedmont's technique, except while others tend to use soothing music, I use techno (Deadmau5's 4x4=12, if you're interested). I find it creates a nice throbbing bubble of sound and blocks out other ambient noises, since I find it difficult to fall asleep when I can only halfway hear a movie or conversation or someone else's music through a wall.
I also recommend that you turn the room temperature down just a bit. While I like being warm and cozy during sleep, being -too- warm makes it difficult to fall asleep in the first place.
posted by DisreputableDog at 12:03 PM on January 18, 2012
I also recommend that you turn the room temperature down just a bit. While I like being warm and cozy during sleep, being -too- warm makes it difficult to fall asleep in the first place.
posted by DisreputableDog at 12:03 PM on January 18, 2012
Start with your toes and clinch and hold each muscle group for five seconds and relax. Move up your legs and isolate each group this way until you're all the way to your face. It takes a little practice, but you'll get it. Usually I'm yawning when I get to my chest, and asleep before I have to do face scrunches.
posted by halfbuckaroo at 12:31 PM on January 18, 2012
posted by halfbuckaroo at 12:31 PM on January 18, 2012
I listen to audiobooks that I have heard already - if it's a new story, getting into the plot will keep me awake, but a familiar one keeps my attention enough that I don't fret about stuff and toss and turn, but bores me enough that I fall asleep. This technique has totally changed my life, I used to be the worst insomniac, lying in bed for hours trying to stop worrying and get some damn sleep. Now I just put on a good book and zzzzzz
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:31 PM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:31 PM on January 18, 2012 [2 favorites]
1) Try wearing earplugs, if they don't feel too uncomfortable. For me, blocking out all sounds but that of my own slow breathing is pretty peaceful.
2) Seconding soothing talk radio, like the Harry Shearer recommendation upthread. I listen to the BBC World Service that's broadcast on my local public radio station after 11PM, via an alarm clock with a timer function. Something about listening to world issues that don't hit so close to home, delivered in a soft British accent, puts me right out.
posted by not_on_display at 12:32 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
2) Seconding soothing talk radio, like the Harry Shearer recommendation upthread. I listen to the BBC World Service that's broadcast on my local public radio station after 11PM, via an alarm clock with a timer function. Something about listening to world issues that don't hit so close to home, delivered in a soft British accent, puts me right out.
posted by not_on_display at 12:32 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
I try to discover secrets about numbers. Like how multiples of 9 add up to 9. But I play around with 2-digit combinations, adding, subtracting, etc. in my head. I hate math, but something about distracting my brain this way keeps me engaged enough and yet utterly bored enough to fall asleep. There's a whole world of discovery about numbers, but I'm happily surprised to find that I'd rather be unconscious.
posted by iamkimiam at 12:35 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by iamkimiam at 12:35 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
On the mathy vein... When I cannot sleep, I count from zero to fifteen in binary, then back again, using a slow rhythmic chant.
zero zero zero zero.
zero zero zero one.
zero zero one zero.
zero zero one one.
....
one one one zero.
one one one one.
one one one zero.
one one zero one.
...
repeat ad lethargum.
posted by rouftop at 12:42 PM on January 18, 2012
zero zero zero zero.
zero zero zero one.
zero zero one zero.
zero zero one one.
....
one one one zero.
one one one one.
one one one zero.
one one zero one.
...
repeat ad lethargum.
posted by rouftop at 12:42 PM on January 18, 2012
1) I name an animal for every letter of the alphabet. or I get more specific: birds. reptiles. trees.
2) I pick a place from the past, like my junior high, my deceased grandparents' house, the homes of my elementary school best friends, etc., and walk through it, trying to recall as many tiny details as I can -- what's to the left, to the right, what's on that shelf, what's through that doorway.
posted by changeling at 12:47 PM on January 18, 2012
2) I pick a place from the past, like my junior high, my deceased grandparents' house, the homes of my elementary school best friends, etc., and walk through it, trying to recall as many tiny details as I can -- what's to the left, to the right, what's on that shelf, what's through that doorway.
posted by changeling at 12:47 PM on January 18, 2012
I do what kuanes suggested, mentally "hitting the lottery" and then spending it in meticulous detail.
I also, build my dream house (heh) from scratch, all the way down to which nails get used. Almost always passed out before I get done with one room.
posted by Grlnxtdr at 12:50 PM on January 18, 2012
I also, build my dream house (heh) from scratch, all the way down to which nails get used. Almost always passed out before I get done with one room.
posted by Grlnxtdr at 12:50 PM on January 18, 2012
Response by poster: This is great stuff. I especially liked the link to the ask metafilter thread about different things to do with your mind at night (thanks EllieBOA).
posted by lackadaisical at 12:51 PM on January 18, 2012
posted by lackadaisical at 12:51 PM on January 18, 2012
I feel your pain. I 've traveled the melatonin route with mixed results too. But when herbs fail me, what helps me a lot of times is what changeling suggested--listing things alphabetically.
If you know a foreign language, for example, you could pick a category of words, like nouns, verbs or adjectives, and then think of an alphabetical list of words from that language. I've been learning Japanese, so for example if I were thinking of adjectives, I would start with "A-anzenna (safe), then move on to "B-binbouna" (poor), etc. (This isn't a perfect example since Japanese and English don't share all of the same beginning sounds, but you get the point).
I've also used this trick with other categories, like the first names of singers and musicians.
posted by dean_deen at 12:51 PM on January 18, 2012
If you know a foreign language, for example, you could pick a category of words, like nouns, verbs or adjectives, and then think of an alphabetical list of words from that language. I've been learning Japanese, so for example if I were thinking of adjectives, I would start with "A-anzenna (safe), then move on to "B-binbouna" (poor), etc. (This isn't a perfect example since Japanese and English don't share all of the same beginning sounds, but you get the point).
I've also used this trick with other categories, like the first names of singers and musicians.
posted by dean_deen at 12:51 PM on January 18, 2012
I name an animal for every letter of the alphabet. or I get more specific: birds. reptiles. trees.
Bingo. Mental tasks that are (1) boring enough that they won't keep my brain awake, but (2) occupying enough that my brain won't worry about the troubles of the day.
Mine, very similar to this, is the "A, my name is Alice, my husband's name is Andrew, we live in Alabama, and we sell Apples." And so on, though the alphabet. I have learned many things from this game, which I play very regularly and usually fall asleep by the middle of the alphabet. You'd be surprised how few objects (relatively speaking) you can sell that start with K, for instance, and that I don't know THAT many places that start with J.
I highly recommend it. I have varied it at times, but my brain tends to find that too interesting and I don't sleep.
posted by Linda_Holmes at 1:04 PM on January 18, 2012
Bingo. Mental tasks that are (1) boring enough that they won't keep my brain awake, but (2) occupying enough that my brain won't worry about the troubles of the day.
Mine, very similar to this, is the "A, my name is Alice, my husband's name is Andrew, we live in Alabama, and we sell Apples." And so on, though the alphabet. I have learned many things from this game, which I play very regularly and usually fall asleep by the middle of the alphabet. You'd be surprised how few objects (relatively speaking) you can sell that start with K, for instance, and that I don't know THAT many places that start with J.
I highly recommend it. I have varied it at times, but my brain tends to find that too interesting and I don't sleep.
posted by Linda_Holmes at 1:04 PM on January 18, 2012
To get them to to sleep, a mother I know tells her kids to
"Think of black."
posted by Rash at 1:16 PM on January 18, 2012
"Think of black."
posted by Rash at 1:16 PM on January 18, 2012
Socks on my feet, because cold toes make it harder to sleep.
Sudoku is just the right amount of mental effort but eventually scanning around looking where to fit in that 7.....zzzzz.
warm bath, by candlelight, to wind down.
posted by ambrosia at 1:26 PM on January 18, 2012
Sudoku is just the right amount of mental effort but eventually scanning around looking where to fit in that 7.....zzzzz.
warm bath, by candlelight, to wind down.
posted by ambrosia at 1:26 PM on January 18, 2012
When I'm having trouble sleeping, it's usually because I'm stressed out about something.
I go through this routine when I find my mind looping on whatever it is I'm stressing about.
1. Can I do anything about it right now?
If the answer is yes, I get up and do it. If it's no, then I say "Brain, you can't do anything about it now. Remind me about it tomorrow."
2. If my mind still won't shut up, I play really hard sudoku puzzles on paper.
The on paper bit is important. Screens keep me awake. Doing sufficiently difficult sudoku puzzles shut up my brain and after a while I realize I've been staring at the page without doing anything for a few minutes, so I turn off the light and I'm off to dreamland.
posted by burntflowers at 1:28 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
I go through this routine when I find my mind looping on whatever it is I'm stressing about.
1. Can I do anything about it right now?
If the answer is yes, I get up and do it. If it's no, then I say "Brain, you can't do anything about it now. Remind me about it tomorrow."
2. If my mind still won't shut up, I play really hard sudoku puzzles on paper.
The on paper bit is important. Screens keep me awake. Doing sufficiently difficult sudoku puzzles shut up my brain and after a while I realize I've been staring at the page without doing anything for a few minutes, so I turn off the light and I'm off to dreamland.
posted by burntflowers at 1:28 PM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
Another thing that helps if you speak a foreign language, count backwards from 100 or the highest number you know.
posted by ellieBOA at 1:48 PM on January 18, 2012
posted by ellieBOA at 1:48 PM on January 18, 2012
Melatonin works for me, but Valerian works for other people. Maybe it'll work for you?
Set aside 30-90 minutes of reading before bed. It's a great way to plow through books, and it's a good way to trick your body into slowing down.
Work out during the day.
posted by Sticherbeast at 2:40 PM on January 18, 2012
Set aside 30-90 minutes of reading before bed. It's a great way to plow through books, and it's a good way to trick your body into slowing down.
Work out during the day.
posted by Sticherbeast at 2:40 PM on January 18, 2012
I'm currently relying on some of these sleep videos on YouTube. I set my HDTV to a custom desaturated, dark setting, to reduce the sense of brightness, put it on a 90 minute sleep setting, and play a video that's an hour or more long. I'm usually asleep by then.
I've had several weeks of a sort of bronchitis this winter, so I've also been taking Nyquil-type formulations, but I'm trying to wean myself off them.
posted by dhartung at 2:47 PM on January 18, 2012
I've had several weeks of a sort of bronchitis this winter, so I've also been taking Nyquil-type formulations, but I'm trying to wean myself off them.
posted by dhartung at 2:47 PM on January 18, 2012
Being cold and then warming up makes me sleepy. A hot bath actually makes it harder for me to fall asleep, because I get into bed and feel overheated. It's always cold in my house in the winter, so when I hop into bed and get cozy under the covers, by the time I've warmed up, I'm out. So, counter-intuitively, maybe a cold shower would help, if you hop into bed right after?
posted by chowflap at 2:57 PM on January 18, 2012
posted by chowflap at 2:57 PM on January 18, 2012
I play the drowning game, which is a variation of halfbuckaroo's flexing/releasing muscle game.
Picture yourself standing on a calm beach, facing a calm lake or ocean. Clear, calm, temperate, tropical, not-scary water. Visualize walking in the water up to your toes. Feel the water as you flex and then relax your toes. Take a breath, and walk in up to your insteps. Flex and relax your arches, feeling the water on your feet. Take a breath. Walk in to your ankles. Repeat.
It sounds pretty morbid now that I've written it out, but I'm usually asleep by the time the water gets to my sternum so it's not really frightening. The key is to walk reaaaallly slowly into the 'water' and match your breathing to the flexing/relaxing.
posted by stellaluna at 4:06 PM on January 18, 2012
Picture yourself standing on a calm beach, facing a calm lake or ocean. Clear, calm, temperate, tropical, not-scary water. Visualize walking in the water up to your toes. Feel the water as you flex and then relax your toes. Take a breath, and walk in up to your insteps. Flex and relax your arches, feeling the water on your feet. Take a breath. Walk in to your ankles. Repeat.
It sounds pretty morbid now that I've written it out, but I'm usually asleep by the time the water gets to my sternum so it's not really frightening. The key is to walk reaaaallly slowly into the 'water' and match your breathing to the flexing/relaxing.
posted by stellaluna at 4:06 PM on January 18, 2012
Watching Minecraft Let's Play videos on Youtube and knitting. I like Coestar's videos - he's got a calm, clear voice and there's something very soothing about just watching/listening to someone build stuff.
The knitting makes my brain calm down - if you're counting stitches, you can't think about anything else.
posted by zennish at 4:55 PM on January 18, 2012
The knitting makes my brain calm down - if you're counting stitches, you can't think about anything else.
posted by zennish at 4:55 PM on January 18, 2012
Michael Krugman has a product, 'Sounder Sleep'. I'm not a client. A few years ago I stumbled across his website and read his free page. I still follow the advice on that page when I have trouble sleeping.
posted by BigSky at 6:59 PM on January 18, 2012
posted by BigSky at 6:59 PM on January 18, 2012
This guy seems to know a lot about sleep. He recommends exposure to bright sunlight first thing in the morning to help people fall asleep earlier at night. Hard to do this time of year, but maybe something worth trying if your sleep problems continue. There are a number of other basic suggestions there too, such as turning down the lights in the evening, setting a routine, etc. He doesn't seem to be a fan of melatonin.
This guy blogs about his self experiments with sleep, among other things. He found that standing throughout the day, or standing on one leg for short periods of time during the day both led to better sleep. It kind of sounds like quackery to me, but he claims other readers of his blog have had similar results.
posted by Teeth of the Hydra at 7:22 PM on January 18, 2012
This guy blogs about his self experiments with sleep, among other things. He found that standing throughout the day, or standing on one leg for short periods of time during the day both led to better sleep. It kind of sounds like quackery to me, but he claims other readers of his blog have had similar results.
posted by Teeth of the Hydra at 7:22 PM on January 18, 2012
Usually, if I am having trouble falling asleep, it is because I've got a lot of stuff on my mind or I didn't take the hour or so before bed time to unplug and wind down.
I steady my breathing by taking long, slow deep breaths, as if I am doing yoga. On the inhale, I picture all of the stuff I am thinking about being gathered up into a ball. I hold the breath for a bit, think about squeezing all the stuff into a tight ball. On the exhale, I visualize pushing it out of my head. This is also the way I deal with my day to day anxiety and lack of focus.
Alternatively, I masturbate. It takes a decent amount of focus to do so and even if I don't finish, I fall asleep. It's a win-win situation.
posted by godshomemovies at 7:58 PM on January 18, 2012
I steady my breathing by taking long, slow deep breaths, as if I am doing yoga. On the inhale, I picture all of the stuff I am thinking about being gathered up into a ball. I hold the breath for a bit, think about squeezing all the stuff into a tight ball. On the exhale, I visualize pushing it out of my head. This is also the way I deal with my day to day anxiety and lack of focus.
Alternatively, I masturbate. It takes a decent amount of focus to do so and even if I don't finish, I fall asleep. It's a win-win situation.
posted by godshomemovies at 7:58 PM on January 18, 2012
I also play a word association game. It goes like this: It goes this way, This way to the great egress. Bald Eagle. Eagle Eyes. Eyes without a face. Face Dances. Dances with Wolves Minnesota Timberwolves Timberrrr! Timberlane Penny Lane Lane Bryant Bryant Gumbel zzzzz
posted by not_on_display at 10:06 PM on January 18, 2012
posted by not_on_display at 10:06 PM on January 18, 2012
re-playing the day in your head, in as much excruciating detail as possible, from the moment you wake up is a good one -- although if anything unusual happened to you that morning it can cause your mind to wander further.
something weird that really helps me get much sleepier and go from active to more inactive is to imagine myself being pulled backwards by centrifugal force. so, for example, imagining that i'm holding a rope attached to a pole and swinging around and around, or that i'm in a theme park ride of some sort (teacups?), or on one of those spinny things on playgrounds. for some reason it makes me feel much heavier, and the spinning in my head activates some sort of 'dizzy' neuron/chemical that seems to be tied to my 'sleepy' pathways.
posted by Muffpub at 10:12 AM on January 19, 2012
something weird that really helps me get much sleepier and go from active to more inactive is to imagine myself being pulled backwards by centrifugal force. so, for example, imagining that i'm holding a rope attached to a pole and swinging around and around, or that i'm in a theme park ride of some sort (teacups?), or on one of those spinny things on playgrounds. for some reason it makes me feel much heavier, and the spinning in my head activates some sort of 'dizzy' neuron/chemical that seems to be tied to my 'sleepy' pathways.
posted by Muffpub at 10:12 AM on January 19, 2012
I close my eyes and imagine the perfect shade of pigeon gray. It's a hard color to picture, so the more i try to fine-tune my image of that color, the less space there is in my head for other thoughts. It's also a calm, somewhat boring color, so it's more soothing than trying to think about a shade of orange or something like that.
On bad nights, I listen to my husband or my dog breathe (they both fall asleep fast) and try to match my breathing to theirs.
Someday I'll find a sweater that shade of gray.
posted by OrangeDisk at 10:16 AM on January 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
On bad nights, I listen to my husband or my dog breathe (they both fall asleep fast) and try to match my breathing to theirs.
Someday I'll find a sweater that shade of gray.
posted by OrangeDisk at 10:16 AM on January 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
Sometimes I put myself in a Time machine and go back to this house...or to the home I was raised in. I picture myself- at my current age - walking down the street or alley, and encountering my mom, or my grandma at a "young mother" age. I look around for my aunts and uncles and maybe even my mom or dad, when they were little kids. I try to inveigle an invitation to sit with her and hear about her daily life.. I look at the trees that were saplings, the homes that were new, and the streets that were quiet. You might think that this would keep me up for hours, but it's strangely soporific!
posted by Eddiego at 2:17 PM on January 19, 2012
posted by Eddiego at 2:17 PM on January 19, 2012
If there's an unbearable amount of noise in my head, to the extent that I can't focus on a single thought to drift off to sleep to, I count to ten, visualising the numbers. So, as I think the number 1, I visualise it too, so it's clear as day in my mind's eye. Thinking of the number, and then visualising it doesn't count, it has to be thought of and seen at the same time.
It sounds insanely easy, but sometimes my head is so noisy that it's a real struggle, and the effort quietens my brain and often sends me to sleep.
If I am finding it too easy, I ensure that I am visualising each number in the same font or style. If that's still too easy, I just keep going past ten.
Another technique that sometimes works for me is to just treat each thought that noisily pops up like a cloud and let it float away, trying very hard not to focus on any of them.
posted by chill at 4:38 AM on January 23, 2012
It sounds insanely easy, but sometimes my head is so noisy that it's a real struggle, and the effort quietens my brain and often sends me to sleep.
If I am finding it too easy, I ensure that I am visualising each number in the same font or style. If that's still too easy, I just keep going past ten.
Another technique that sometimes works for me is to just treat each thought that noisily pops up like a cloud and let it float away, trying very hard not to focus on any of them.
posted by chill at 4:38 AM on January 23, 2012
For years I was averaging about 4 hours sleep. It was a combination of having trouble falling asleep, disturbing dreams and nasal congestion.
I tried countless methods to remedy the situation (including many from above) and ultimately concluded that diet was the main culprit.
By cutting out gluten, lactose and refined carbs, I've been reliably falling asleep like a log, averaging 7-8 hours uninterrupted sleep (and I still drink up to 6 double espressos a day).
For anyone at a loss of what to do, I'd highly suggest assessing your own diet and going through a process of elimination.
posted by boogiefunk at 9:04 AM on January 23, 2012
I tried countless methods to remedy the situation (including many from above) and ultimately concluded that diet was the main culprit.
By cutting out gluten, lactose and refined carbs, I've been reliably falling asleep like a log, averaging 7-8 hours uninterrupted sleep (and I still drink up to 6 double espressos a day).
For anyone at a loss of what to do, I'd highly suggest assessing your own diet and going through a process of elimination.
posted by boogiefunk at 9:04 AM on January 23, 2012
i start listening to my own breath, with a little practice it helps very much..
posted by jeff7xs at 12:43 PM on January 23, 2012
posted by jeff7xs at 12:43 PM on January 23, 2012
This thread is closed to new comments.
Another thing I've heard of (that didn't work for me because I got distracted), is to close your eyes and in your head, in minute detail, describe your day from the moment you got up to the moment you went to sleep.
Another supplement you can try is vitamin D supplementation, or try using the blue lights that people use for light therapy in the morning to induce a more normal circadian rhythym.
posted by permiechickie at 11:06 AM on January 18, 2012 [1 favorite]