It’s lovely to have a good night’s sleep. Your mind and body feel so rested upon waking up. But if you have trouble falling asleep quickly, it can harm your body, mind, and spirit. So here are some tips on how to fall asleep quickly and easily.
Avoid Taking a Nap
Studies have shown that napping during the day may cause you to have more trouble sleeping at night. That’s because it disrupts your circadian rhythm of sleeping and awakening. So though it’s tempting to take a snooze, try to avoid it.
Reading
One good tip to getting to sleep is to read a book. Book reading helps remove those thoughts that may be interfering with your sleep pattern.
Counting Sheep
This may seem like a silly idea, but the concept of counting may induce boredom, which could help you sleep. And sheep are fairly plain animals that one can count without causing an emotional response.
Just Plain Counting
Counting backward from 100 to 1 or even forward from 1 to 4 over and over can induce boredom. It helps remove the issues of the day which may be occupying your mind.
Exercise During the Day
Even if you sleep like a top at night, it’s good to get exercise every day for at least a few minutes. There are several exercise regimens you can choose from, which are found online. Pick one that suits you best for your schedule, and try to stick to it.
Listen to Soothing Music
By soothing, I am referring to something like classical pieces of your choice. There are also musical choices online that you can download to your phone that are good for falling asleep. But try to avoid hard rock or anything like that, or music that is too familiar to you that will get you to start singing your humming.
Lower the Temperature in your Room
Sometimes it isn’t easy falling asleep quickly if you’re too warm. That could be because your room is too warm, or you are using an electric blanket. So it might help to lower your thermostat to a cooler temperature, below 70°F.
Remove the Noise
Sometimes this is tough to do, especially if you have noisy neighbors, a snoring sleep-mate, or a barking dog. However, there are earplugs one can buy at the drugstore, and they do work well. Get the kind that expands into your ear because they help drown out the noise.
Other Ideas
One can also take melatonin, which is a pill that can help you sleep. You can take this during the day as a supplement if you wish. But please be advised that melatonin sometimes causes nightmares.
There are other sleep aids one can take. But if you are on other prescription drugs, it is advisable to check with your doctor before trying any.
And finally, there is meditation. Similar to counting I mentioned earlier, you can try counting your breaths. But if you do this, it’s probably best to only count up to four and try to breathe deeply and evenly when you do so.