How to fall asleep quickly: practical advice for those who are tired of counting sheep

Sleep is one of the most mysterious phenomena about which we still know very little. How does the body recover during sleep? Why does sleep disruption cause serious mental and physiological problems? Where do dreams come from and what do they mean? Scientists, of course, managed to obtain some answers, but most of the questions still remain unanswered.

What is important for us is that sleep is a universal means of recovery, which allows us to remain alert, healthy and, as a result, more productive compared to those who, for one reason or another, do not regularly get enough sleep. Below we will talk about the causes of insomnia, its consequences and how to deal with it at home.

Causes of insomnia

Before reading tips on how to quickly fall asleep at night for a teenager or an adult with insomnia, make sure that you have created the necessary conditions for comfortable sleep and got rid of all external interference.

Wrong light.

If you spend a lot of time in dim lighting during the day and sit with a smartphone or watch TV in the evening, your body may begin to confuse day and night. In this case, they talk about a violation of circadian rhythms - the internal biological clock. As a result of this failure, the production of melatonin, the sleep hormone, is disrupted. What should you do to fall asleep faster? Do not use a smartphone, TV or laptop later than an hour before bedtime, close the curtains tightly, and turn off the backlight on household appliances.

Bad microclimate.

Stuffiness, heat and dryness in the room have a bad effect on the quality of sleep. To fall asleep faster, you need to make the temperature comfortable (on average, from +18 ˚C to +20 ˚C), adjust the humidity level, and ensure a constant flow of fresh air, which will reduce the high concentration of carbon dioxide.

How quickly does a person fall asleep? According to research, on average in 7–20 minutes. If 30 minutes have passed and you still don’t want to sleep, eliminate external interference and try the techniques described in this article with which you can force yourself to fall asleep quickly, as if you had taken a sleeping pill.

Poor nutrition.

One of the reasons why we take a long time to fall asleep is the consumption of caffeine and alcohol before bed, which excite the nervous system, as well as heavy food, which forces our body to allocate more energy for its absorption. The more actively we force our body to work, the longer we cannot fall asleep.

Unsuitable place to sleep.

Our brain stops perceiving the bedroom as a place to sleep if we work in bed or eat while lying in bed. Incorrect bedding (too soft mattress, uncomfortable pillow, heavy blanket, etc.) can also interfere with comfortable sleep.

Emotional or physical stress.

Evening exercise, watching a scary movie, or discussing an important event with friends have a bad effect on the process of falling asleep.

In addition to improper conditions for falling asleep, doctors also name among the causes of poor sleep:

• stressful situations, such as job search, preparation for exams and others;
• hormonal changes associated with puberty, pregnancy, and medications;
• bad habits;
• thyroid disease, high blood pressure, depression, mental illness and other health problems.

If you often cannot sleep, the first thing you need to do is eliminate the causes of insomnia. If this doesn’t help, move on to proven tips that will help you both quickly want to sleep and fall asleep quickly even after coffee.

Sleep depends on air quality

The worse the air, the more difficult it is to sleep. Therefore, most of us try to ventilate the room before going to bed or even sleep with the windows open. Unfortunately, this is not always possible. In cities, the street is usually very noisy and if you open the windows, it will simply be impossible to sleep. In addition, for six months in our country in most regions there is a cold temperature and open windows can cause colds and constant discomfort.

“Fortunately, there is a way out here too. To sleep in silence, while keeping the air fresh, you need to install supply ventilation, which will continuously provide air flow from the street.”

Fresh air has a soporific effect, which has long been known in the medical community - in hospitals, oxygen is used to put patients to sleep. Therefore, the presence of fresh air ventilation guarantees that you will fall asleep quickly and have deep sleep.

How does the supply air purifier work:

• The purifier provides a continuous flow of air, which allows you to maintain high oxygen levels. If this does not happen, the brain experiences oxygen starvation, leading to poor sleep quality and headaches in the morning. In addition, high-quality ventilation allows you to get rid of such problems as long and painful falling asleep. The influx of fresh air allows you to fall asleep much faster, and the sleep itself ceases to be sensitive, becoming deeper.
• If you install a ventilator, you do not need to open the windows. This allows you to get rid of the so-called peak noise load, which is the main reason that the brain does not fall into deep sleep. That is, we can get used to uniform noise, but if the sound changes the volume level (for example, a car passes under the windows), we are constantly in a semi-drowsy state, unable to fully fall asleep. Supply ventilation allows you to solve this problem.

If the room you sleep in is well ventilated and you don't have to open the windows, your sleep will be deep and restful. A few hours will be enough for you to fully recover and feel fully rested. After several days of good sleep, your health will improve and your performance will increase significantly. That is why, with poor sleep and insomnia, it is important to take care of proper ventilation.

A small example of how fresh air makes sleep deep and quality. If you have ever lived outside the city in a wooden house, you know how well you sleep in it. The secret is in the fresh air that enters the house through the walls, because... wood can “breathe”. By installing a supply air purifier, you can create the same conditions as in your dacha, ensuring a restful and deep sleep, no matter where your home is located.

Correct breathing

This method is popular with everyone who wants to know how to quickly fall asleep in a minute. What can you do to fall asleep faster? Learn to breathe correctly with the “4-7-8” exercise, it helps you relax and calm down, relieves stress and excessive emotional tension.

• Inhale deeply through your nose, closing your lips (the inhalation should take 4 seconds).
• Hold your breath for 7 seconds.
• bad habits;
• Exhale slowly and noisily through your mouth (exhalation should take 8 seconds).

It is enough to repeat 3-4 cycles to quickly calm down and fall asleep instantly, like after a sleeping pill.

The fastest way to sleep

To quickly fall asleep in 10 seconds, you don’t need to learn magic spells, you just need to master one interesting technique that will take you to the sweet kingdom of dreams in a quick 10 seconds.

Note: This method of falling asleep takes about 120 seconds, but it is said that it is the last 10 seconds that you will feel yourself starting to fall asleep.

This aircraft, which has become very popular among people of different professions and ages, was developed for American pilots. Having undergone the necessary practice, they learned to control the time allotted for falling asleep. Falling asleep within minutes, even after energy drinks or target practice in the backyard, became a reality for them.

This technique works well, even for people who are forced to fall asleep in a sitting position.

Military technique

1. Try to relax all the muscles in your face, including your eyes and jaw, and breathe slowly and deeply.
2. If you are using your right hand, then move it to your right side, and do the same with the other half of your body.
3. Relax your chest muscles by taking a long, deep breath and exhaling.
4. Alternately relax your thigh muscles, calves, and feet.

It is important to relax all parts of your body, without exception, gradually switching your attention from one muscle to another.

The last step of this method is also important - you need to clear your brain for 10 seconds. To do this, throw away all thoughts related to the tasks that you planned for tomorrow and those that you did not have time to complete today. Don't think about going to the store or going out to get the mail. After all, these activities are associated with movement, which means that by focusing on them, you force the muscles of the body to be in active movement.

Focus on a statistical picture, such as imagining a room where you are with the lights off. This will help your brain relax faster and help you fall asleep.

If you don’t succeed right away, try mentally saying to yourself the phrase “don’t think, don’t think, don’t think about anything,” this should help.

If it doesn't work for you, then it means you need to work on the basics: breathing and muscle relaxation, which have scientific evidence that it works.

Continue reading to learn about the techniques behind this military method and how to use it effectively.

[Video] How to fall asleep in 2 minutes using the Navy method:

Provocation

This method involves the use of a provocative technique that forces the brain to do the opposite. It is used if you have already tried all the ways to fall asleep faster, and still can’t sleep at night. Just tell yourself that you can’t sleep now, you need to stay awake. Due to this installation, the existing psychological stress from not being able to fall asleep is naturally relieved, the brain calms down and the long-awaited sleep comes.

Almost all of the described ways to fall asleep faster at home require practice. Having mastered useful REM sleep techniques and gradually learned to get rid of unnecessary thoughts, you will be able to fall asleep at the time you need, and in the morning you will feel cheerful and energized.

Supply ventilation device

Supply ventilation is a regular pipe through which street air is supplied to the room. To ensure the most stable and uniform flow, a fan is installed in the system. Moreover, most systems can change the air supply speed, which allows you to create a comfortable microclimate in the room.

The air conditioner does not solve the problem of fresh air and oxygen, since it cools the air that is already in the room, so it is useless for deep sleep and falling asleep quickly.

How to avoid insomnia

Insomnia is more than just difficulty falling asleep. This is a condition in which you are unable to fall asleep at night even if you are drowsy or are bothered by frequent awakenings at night, which makes sleep shallow and prevents you from getting enough sleep. There are many reasons for this condition: from poor lifestyle to serious diseases of the central nervous system. Depending on the severity of symptoms, doctors may prescribe mild sedatives or more severe medications. In any case, you cannot decide on your own what to take to fall asleep quickly; a treatment regimen must be developed by a specialist.

What should you do if you have insomnia to fall asleep faster if you can’t sleep at all at night and don’t want to take medications? Try to adjust your lifestyle first.

Avoid coffee and energy drinks after 4 p.m.

Instead, drink water, herbal infusions or natural juices, unless there are individual contraindications.

Reduce your alcohol intake.

Some people believe that alcohol will help you fall asleep quickly, as it will relieve stress and calm you down. In fact, during alcohol intoxication, the heartbeat quickens, the work of various systems and organs is stimulated and, in general, the structure of sleep is disrupted, which is why in the morning one feels very tired, weak and irritable.

Adjust your circadian rhythms.

You won't have to think about what to do if you have insomnia at night in order to fall asleep quickly if melatonin is produced in the right amount and at the right time. To do this, you should stop using gadgets about an hour before bedtime, and spend more time during the day in well-lit places.

You can find special dietary supplements with melatonin in pharmacies; we do not recommend using them without a doctor’s prescription, so as not to cause more serious sleep disorders.

Create a comfortable sound environment.

Some people quickly fall asleep as soon as they hear the sound of the sea surf or calm music for meditation, while others need complete silence for a good night's rest. In any case, you should exclude any loud sounds and listening to energetic music before bed.

Make sure you eat properly before going to bed.

To fall asleep faster at night and get a good night's sleep, you should avoid eating foods before bed such as chocolate, which activates the brain, flour products, which increase blood sugar, as well as legumes and other foods high in protein. How to sleep well? During the day, try to consume foods that stimulate melatonin synthesis, calm the nervous system and normalize stomach function. Foods and drinks that can help you fall asleep earlier include:

• fermented baked milk, kefir, warm milk;
• honey;
• apples, bananas, kiwi;
• tomatoes;
• rice, peas;
• salmon, turkey;
• cherry juice, etc.

Daily regime

It is recommended to go to bed at the same time.
This rule must be followed even if you have to wake up earlier than usual. The fact is that the body gets used to a certain circadian rhythm, so forcing yourself to go to bed earlier does not make sense - in most cases you will toss and turn in bed without sleep. Therefore, to get enough sleep, go to bed at your usual time. If insomnia does not go away, be sure to consult a specialist for further recommendations and selection of medications. Products for normalizing sleep can be purchased at Stolichki pharmacies.

Books

However, you can also read books about the science of sleep. It will be both useful and educational. Here's where to start:

• "The Science of Sleep. An excursion into the most mysterious sphere of human life" David Randall.
• “The brain is in a dream. What happens to the brain while we sleep" Andrea Rock.
• "The Magic of the Morning" by Hal Elrod.
• "No Sugar" by Jacob Teitelbaum and Krystle Fiedler.

We wish you good luck!

We also recommend reading:

• Storytelling
• Biological clock: fine tuning of the body
• Creating a Morning Ritual
• How to sleep and relax more
• Daily routine of geniuses
• How to learn to wake up early
• Why is time management so important?
• Biological clock: recommendations for setting
• Ways to get rid of morning stress
• Holistic time management
• How sleep affects productivity and what to do about it

Key words:1Healthy lifestyle

general information

It's no secret that healthy and sound sleep is the key to excellent health and good mood. However, not every person manages to get enough sleep. This is especially true for residents of modern megacities, where every second person faces such a problem as insomnia .
How to fall asleep quickly and what methods of falling asleep quickly exist? What to do if you can't sleep? Why does a person suffer from insomnia and how to overcome it? We will try to answer these and other important questions in this material.

Sleep medications

If you have followed various methods but have not figured out how to fall asleep quickly, it is recommended to use medications. However, this must be done carefully so as not to cause addiction. It is best to consult a doctor to select a drug.

What to drink to fall asleep quickly:

• Based on herbs - valerian, motherwort, mint, hops, chamomile.
• Tranquilizers: drugs that depress the nervous system. If your insomnia is caused by extreme stress, this may be the only solution.
• Sleeping pill: affects nerve receptors and stimulates the production of sleep hormones.
• Preparations containing the main sleep hormone: melatonin.
• Vitamins. Often, chronic insomnia develops due to a deficiency in the body of vitamins B and D, microelements - magnesium and calcium.

In our dreams we learn

• We have at least two stages of sleep: deep sleep and paradoxical sleep (REM sleep). This can be seen in the electroencephalogram.
• When we sleep, electrical activity sensors first detect the delta rhythm, which is characteristic of deep sleep. An hour later, features of the alpha rhythm characteristic of wakefulness appear. This lasts 15–20 minutes. This is that same paradoxical dream.
• During paradoxical sleep, the brain sorts out the information that has accumulated during the day. Therefore, solutions to complex problems often come in dreams. The brain selectively transfers impressions of the current day into long-term memory, from the hippocampus to the large cortex. It’s like RAM and a hard drive: we will remember something new in a day for a long time, but we will forget something forever.
• Memory rewriting depends on the emotional background. What evokes strong feelings in us is remembered longer. The more interesting the day was, the more intense the dreams.
• The brain readily accepts into the hippocampus what is repeated more than once or is emotionally reinforced by something. Or what they threw into it right before bed.
• Not everyone remembers dreams, but everyone has a phase of paradoxical sleep. If you wake up a person during a paradoxical sleep, he will say that he dreamed.