Do you have difficulty falling asleep at night? Do you get up in the middle of the night and then can’t fall back asleep? Do you feel the pressure to produce at work and try to get some precious sleep so you have strength to do it? Here are some tips, both physical and psychological, that will help you to fall asleep quickly.
Physical Tips
Research shows that cool temperatures help with falling asleep. First, try cooling off your room. Open the window or turn on the air conditioner. If you get your room to 15-19 degrees Celsius, 59-66 degrees Fahrenheit, you will get to what researchers say is the ideal temperature that helps you fall asleep. Cold helps the body produce melatonin, which helps to bring on sleep. The right temperature, together with darkening the room, should work.
If cooling off the room does not help, try cooling yourself off. Wash your face with cold (even ice) water for half a minute. This helps calm pressures and also stimulates the “diving reflex,” which mammals and humans both have, which slows the heart rate and lowers blood pressure. Washing your face will help bring on drowsiness.
Psychological Tips
Quite often people cannot fall asleep due to the pressure to fall asleep. People are so under pressure to fall asleep and get as much sleep as they can that the pressure prevents them from falling asleep. So, the first thing to do is to hide your watch. Stop checking what time it is every few minutes to determine how many hours you have left to sleep, and just calm down.
Or try using reverse psychology. Instead of trying to go to sleep, or even relaxing and calming down, which doesn’t always work, try staying up! A study from the University of Glasgow, Scotland found a way to fall asleep quickly. Lie down and try to force your eyes to stay open until they start closing on their own. For some reason, trying to stay awake makes drowsiness come quickly and with it comes sweet, restful sleep. Try it!