If you lead a hectic or stressful life, falling asleep can be rough. Your brain is running a mile a minute and you can't seem to slow it down. It seems you could lay there for hours and ruminate about the day's events. Eventually, you look over at the alarm clock that reads 2:36AM and you stress even more because there's only 4 more hours to try and get at least some sleep. Sounds familiar, right?
It doesn't have to be this way. You can put off all of the day's ills and relax yourself into a peaceful night's sleep without using over-the-counter sleep aids or supplements. Here are five tricks that have helped many folks fall asleep fast:
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- Make sure you're comfortable. Your mattress and pillow have a lot to do with comfort, but clothing (or lack thereof) can also contribute to the quickness in which you fall asleep. It shouldn't be too restrictive - it's wise to keep your blood circulating. Conversely, your clothing shouldn't be too loose. When you're searching for position loose clothing can get twisted around you and cause discomfort.
- Relax. A good trick to get you into a relaxed state? Stop thinking about trying to fall asleep. Instead, think about trying to stay awake. This reverse psychology does wonders to put you in the right frame of mind for sleep. Also, try other relaxation techniques such as slow muscle stretches or massage. After all, that's what spouses are for!
- Doing mental exercises is a great way to ensure you'll be asleep quickly. There are lots of things you can do, too. Try writing an outline for a book in your head. Or count by threes to 999 (you probably won't get that far). You could put yourself into the storyline of your favorite book or TV show - follow the storyline as far as you can, scene by scene. These kinds of exercises put you into a different state of mind, helping you to reduce the stress from the day.
- Try some ambient noise. The sound of rain falling or that spacey music that they play during a massage really helps you to feel relaxed and sleepy.
It is possible to fall asleep fast. These tricks will help train your brain to settle into sleep. Practice these techniques and see how easy it is to relax and fall asleep naturally.
4 Easy Tricks to Fall Asleep Fast
Kate E Ryan is a writer, database administrator, and relentless researcher. She did most of the research for this article as a new mom breastfeeding the night away with a newborn daughter. Get more tips and insights on sleep at http://www.squidoo.com/sleeptight.