Ways That Will Make You Fall Asleep

Having a hard time sleeping? Try any of the activities from this list to enjoy a refreshing slumber.

Sleeping is too important to our health and sanity. Our much-needed rest nightly is our sanctuary from the hassle and bustle of the stressful world. How frustrating and depressing does it feel if we fail to sleep even for just one night?

But there are times you cannot drift into dreamland. No matter how you try, you just cannot stop the buzz in your mind. If you are suffering from sleepless nights, here is a list of hacks that you can use to put yourself to sleep. Pick the ones that will work for you.

• Dim the lights – Turn off the lights if possible. If not, buy a lamp has a function where you can adjust the brightness.
• Find a comfortable sleeping position – Find out whether you are a back, stomach, or side sleeper. Sleep in that position every time you go to bed.
• Stay away from your phone – Phones are irritating distractions that can disrupt your sleep. Place your phone away from your bed.
• Log out from social media – Social media distracts as well as keep your mind agitated at night. Avoid engaging in social media channels at least an hour before sleeping.
• Run or jog vigorously more than 3 hours before going to bed – Running is an excellent cardiovascular sport that makes your body active during the day. Because of fatigue, your body will require rest during nighttime.
• Do the 4-7-8 exercise – To do this breathing exercise, exhale completely through your mouth. Close your mouth and to a count of four, inhale quietly through your nose. Then for a count of seven, hold your breath and exhale through your mouth to a count of eight. Repeat the cycle for three times.
• Sleep at the same time every day – Our body follows a sleep-wake routine called circadian rhythm. Breaking the rhythm baby sleep in a different time can make it hard for you to fall asleep.
• Dip your face in cold water – This activity will help soothe down your body. Immersing your face in a basin of cold water kicks off a phenomenon called Mammalian Dive Reflex that causes your heart and blood pressure to drop.
• Consume food that makes you sleepy – Foods that contain tryptophan lead you to sleep. Some combination of carbohydrates and protein like peanut butter on toast and cheese and crackers are good sources of tryptophan.
• Stay away from caffeine – Caffeine is a powerful stimulant. It blocks hormones in the brain that drift us into sleep.
• Have sex – Lovemaking releases hormones for sleep better than pills. Some doctors even say this is the best treatment for insomnia.
• Have acupuncture or acupressure – Certain acupuncture points in our body triggers our body to sleep. Just make sure to visit a qualified acupuncturist to do this practice.
• Do some painting – Painting is a creative way to release stress. It is also excellent in relieving your feelings of anxiety and pent-up emotions.
• Counting in German or Chinese
• Watch soap operas – Some television series can put you to sleep. Choose slow-paced series that can bore you to sleep.
• Listen to the recording of a very boring person – Fast talkers are known to keep you excited and alert while slow talkers make you feel sleepy. So the next time you hear a slow-talking speaker, try to record his speech for sleep reasons.
• Do guided meditation – There are online videos that guide you in your soul (and sleep) searching. YouTube and other web streaming sites have some of them.
• Turn down the volume of your TV – If you have room companions, ask them to lower the volume of the TV, radio or any noisy appliances or devices.
• Read a boring book – Choose an author that writes in wordy sentences. They can hypnotize you to get drowsy.
• Wear silk clothing – Silk is comfortable to wear and cold to the skin. It is best worn during in summer.
• Have a huge discussion – Talking can relieve stress, which helps induce sleep.
• Do cross stitch
• Do crochet – Both crocheting and cross stitching are relaxing chores that can clear your mind of stress.
• Tidy household bills – Throwing away clutter and putting closure to unfinished tasks relieves pressure and stress.
• Learn Chinese, Polish, and German – These are among the most complicated – and boring – languages to learn.
• Memorize irregular verbs – Aside from brushing up your verb conjugations, learning these confusing verbs can also put you to sleep.
• Do grammatical exercises – Yet another tedious task. At least you’ll take your grammar to new heights.
• Play brain training games – This can also make your brain sharp.
• Complete a jigsaw puzzle – Good for your exercising your brain and for your bedtime too.
• Consider sewing – This keeps your fingers and brain engaged.
• Think of the beach – The more relaxing the scene, the better.
• Do Pilates
• Practice tai chi
• Do crunches – Workouts an hour before bedtime helps you to slumber.
• Read a book to the children – It will make her sleep, and you too.
• Order a wardrobe – For some, this is a boring job, thus a sleep aid.
• Write a report – Now this is a bore. But this may lead to sleep or, maybe, a promotion.
• Prepare a presentation – Rehearse it too in front of a mirror.
• Hear dwarfs (in your imagination) – Make them your imaginary sleep buddies too.
• Write poetry
• Iron your shirts – another boring stuff.
• Do your homework – This turns off the fun, hence, boring.
• Take a long walk – Strolling is a good way to bring your mind to dreamland, both awake and asleep.
• Listen to an audio Bible – While the Bible gives us peace of mind, it also puts us to bed.
• Watch an old film with bad images on TV
• Watch documentary films
• Make braids on your hair or dolls – This is like crocheting or cross stitching but done on hair.
• Make war models – But make sure you don’t go into war.
• Polish glasses – Boring…
• Think of very sad things
• Think of death – Ponder on the process of dying, but not to a point of committing suicide.
• Read Romeo and Juliet
• Read Shakespeare – Reading the romantic masterpiece from the master playwright can be a treat, but the Bard of Avon is hard to read. Many minds choose to shut down and sleep than continue.
• Pluck daisies – Playing with the flowers is a pretty good relaxing activity.
• Keep talking – and only stop after you get tired or if someone shuts you up. Conversing with others can be a way to release the chatter inside your mind.
• Go through multiplication tables – For many people, math is too annoying that reciting the multiplication table can put you to sleep.
• Write a comic strip – This keeps your imagination flying and relaxes your mind.
• Count squares in a squared notebook
• Get depressed – Not a wise choice, but it may work. Just don’t stay there for long.
• Brush a cat – cuddling them calms it and relaxes you too.
• Listen to dogs – plus, you might know dog speak
• Draw Mandalas – and go New Age
• Dance the night away – Aside from making you tired, it makes you relaxed afterward.
• Listen to Gregorian chant – There’s something in its tone that resembles a lullaby.
• Read the “Fifty Shades” trilogy – Naughty, huh! But this can release hormones for sleep.
• Get a massage bed or sofa – You’ll have a masseuse.
• Sleep on a memory foam mattress – gel memory foam mattress is the best when it comes to comfort.
• Make yourself a bed of money bills – For some, this may feel better than imagining sleeping on the clouds.
• Empty your mind – As in blank, zilch. This task could be a bit unsettling, but with practice, this could be a very rewarding experience.
• Pay your family member a dollar every time you have a thought – Money is a great motivator, use its power.
• Visualize white clouds through a field of wheat
• Visualize drops of water falling slowly on a leave
• Imagine the warm wind of the desert
• Count sheep, backward – Imagine a sheep documentary played in reverse.
• Reminisce the past – you may use souvenirs or mementos to make your experience more vivid
• Use a relaxing app on your smartphone – There are plenty of them. Just search on Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
• Do deep breathing – Just like 4-7-8 and 7-11 exercises, but casually done.
• Count to five each time you inhale or exhale
• Think positive – Imagine that you are sleeping, and you will likely go asleep.
• Imagine you are sleeping on the clouds – Feel the fluffiness and the cold fresh air above too.
• Take melatonin supplements – Melatonin is the hormone that controls the sleep cycle. Taking them in supplement form can help you drift into sleep
• Keep your pillow in check – Just choose what is comfy for you.
• Resolve conflicts to limit stress – Unsettled arguments causes nagging thoughts that disturb your peace of mind.
• Write in your journal – Jotting down the events that unfolded on the day is a revealing and relaxing activity.
• Write a short story or novel – You might be the next J.K. Rowling in the making.
• Wiggle your toes – This is an excellent companion to mindfulness meditation.
• Stop drinking alcohol – Contrary to the popular belief, booze does not attract sandman. Instead, habitual drinking wrecks your circadian rhythm.
• Listen to white noise – If possible, download a white noise app or buy a white noise machine.
• Dab on lavender oil – Lavender oil is good for sleep.
• Breathe through your left nostril – Gently pressing your right nostril to let air pass through. This method is a generations-old Hindu pranayama practice.
• Eat pumpkin seeds – Pumpkin seeds has magnesium. This mineral plays an essential role in sleep.
• Limit power naps to 30 minutes during the day – Sleeping more than half an hour will disrupt your circadian rhythm.
• Don’t toss and turn – Moving in you bed will not make your sleep better. Getting out of the bed and doing relaxation activities are better sleep triggers.
• Keep pets out of bed – Pets are cuddly and fun to play with, but they may hamper your bedtime snooze.
• Get fresh air – Feeling stuck at sleeplessness, go outdoors. The air and wind from the outdoors can make you feel relaxed.
• Visualize a garden full of flowers – imagine flying butterflies too
• Rub your belly – This is a gratifying activity for sleep.
• Don’t be afraid of the dark – You might be scared of the dark, but sleep loves it.
• Munch cheddar cheese – Cheese has tryptophan, an amino acid that relieves stress and promotes sleep.
• Drink a glass of cherry juice – Tart cherry juice is one of the richest sources of melatonin.
• Eat lettuce – Lettuce contains lactucarium that is a natural opiate, a substance that helps calm a person. Eat lettuce as a light snack mixing it with your sandwich or salad.
• Consume walnuts – Walnuts contains tryptophan, an amino acid that has sleep enhancing properties. Tryptophan helps build serotonin and melatonin, body chemicals responsible for sleep-wake cycles.
• Remember your day chronologically – Think of the first thing you did today until before you lay on your bed. Remember even the smallest detail of your day until your mind gets tired and you’ll asleep.
• Keep kids away – The chances that you will be disturbed trying to sleep will be lessened when your kids or nephews are away. It is good that they have their own room so you can sleep peacefully.
• Get out of bed – Get up and take a short walk outside or just release the pressure that you must fall asleep. It will calm your mind.
• Get your feet out the covers – Cooler temperature according to scientists, make you fall asleep. Getting your feet out of the cover can cool down your body.
• Rub your soles and foot – Rubbing your soles and foot may help you calm your nerves and make you feel more relaxed, just like when you are having a massage.
• Rub your ears gently – Is you don’t feel like rubbing your feet, you can instead apply pressure on your ears. A soft massage on the ear relaxes you.
• Do progressive muscle relaxation – YouTube has tons of videos to do this. Progressive muscle relaxation is usually done to relieve stress and anxiety.
• Don’t go to sleep hungry – Being hungry will not make you lie down in bed to sleep, your stomach will make you get up and hit the kitchen and dig for food.
• Look at a blue, yellow, green, silver or orange wall – The psychology of colors tells that these colors have a soothing and relaxing effect on the body. Paint your wall in accordance to which can give you the soundest sleep.
• Clean your room – A dirty room is not only an eyesore, but it will also make you uncomfortable sleeping. Begin with cleaning up your bed of clutter.
• Eat kiwi fruit – Take in kiwi fruit an hour before sleep. Kiwis are known to improve the quality of sleep minus the side effects brought by sleeping pills.
• Wear comfortable pajamas – Choose 100% breathable cotton. Do not wear tight clothes while sleeping that will make you uncomfortable.
• Take cereals – Cereal and milk are a good combination to help you sleep. Protein and carbohydrates present in them will make you sleep faster because of tryptophan.
• Quit smoking – Nicotine present on a cigarette is a stimulant that will increase your mind activity and heart rate making it hard for you to sleep.
• Say a prayer – Prayer calms your mind and will make your mind at peace so say your prayers before going to bed.
• Lay out your clothes – Doing this chore – like combing your hair or brushing your teeth – prepares you to sleep.
• Repeat a calming mantra – To repeat a calming mantra will help soothe the mind and take away negative thoughts.
• Do all unpleasant tasks early – Do not do anything strenuous work or activity that will keep your body and mind’s adrenaline on a high especially an hour before sleep. Do them earlier.
• Stay away from sweets at night – Sweets like chocolates or candies increase your mental alertness because of its glucose content.
• Eat small snacks – Overeating makes the body, especially your digestion, do extra work even in the wee hours making it harder to sleep.
• Wear orange sunglasses at night – Blue light affects the body’s production of melatonin. Wearing orange sunglasses blocks blue light from gadgets.
• Bake herb pies and eat them – Add chamomile, valerian, and passion flower on your pies. They will make you sleep better.
• Place seeds of Vaccaria in your ear – These ear seeds are used like on acupuncture to help anxiety and insomnia. They are traditionally practiced by the Chinese.
• Do 7-11 breathing – A breathing technique wherein you keep your exhales longer than your inhales.
• Sleep naked – Sleeping naked cools the body, which in turn induces sleep.
• Take sleeping pills – Choose natural ones to minimize side effects
• Sleep on the left side – Sleeping on the left side was believed to improve digestion as opposed to sleeping on your right.
• Be thankful – Being grateful removes anxiety.
• Sleep like the primates – Theory of Evolution aside, their sleeping positions can be done by humans for better sleep.
• Take a massage – Use lavender oils if possible while doing so.
• Sleep in a military crawl position – This will lessen tossing and turning in bed. Lesser small movement results in faster sleep.
• Play the alphabet game – Pick a topic for the list that you will be creating (e.g.. cars, plants, animals, etc.). Starting with the letter A, think of an item that begins with that letter. Then, think of another for letter B and so on until you complete the alphabet. If you reach the letter Z, and you are still not asleep, repeat the process using another category.
• Imagine sinking mattress – Lie down on your bed and close your eyes. Zero in your attention to your feet. Flex your toes for 5 seconds then release the tension. Continue this process through the rest of your body parts and allow each of them to feel as if it is sinking. Once finished, you will feel so relaxed that will lead you to sleep.
• Rewind a movie in your mind – Begin by visualizing the ending scene of the film. “See” the actors act in the scene and listen to their dialogs. Try to imagine everything and remember all the details. Then, rewind the film mentally.
• Play word scrambling
• Sniff lavender aroma – Aromatherapy smells good for your health and sleep, especially with lavender.
• Distance-focusing – As you lie in bed in total darkness, begin to move your depth of focus farther away. Continue experiencing this and let your eyes see whatever images appear there. Eventually, this will put you into a state of sleep.
• Statue transformation – While lying down focus your attention on your feet. Feel the sensation and the blood running through them. Now, imagine them becoming stiff and solid as a stone. Feel your feet becoming heavier and heavier to a point that they weigh down the mattress. Continue to do the same with your legs, waist, torso, arms and other body parts up to the head. This process will lead you to a state of sleep.
• Author your personal story
• Imagine that your body is levitating – It is a mind-bending and relaxing experience.
• Take zinc supplements – Like melatonin, zinc helps you doze off.
• Light a scented candle – Just make sure it is far from flammable materials.
• Less sugar intake – When your blood sugar is too high, your kidneys will attempt to get flush it away by removing it from the body through urination. Frequent urination gives you insufficient sleep.
• Avoid spicy foods at night – Spicy foods before bedtime hurts your sleep. Eating them may give you indigestion.
• Take a spoonful of apple cider vinegar
• Get a new blanket – Replace your old blanket with another that makes you feel more comfortable to sleep.
• Turn off the TV – Make your bedroom a place exclusive to sleep, sex and intimacy, not for entertainment.
• Take a short walk – This helps you clear your mind.
• Set your goals for tomorrow – This will make you more optimistic and relaxed.
• Read your history class textbook – This may drift your mind to dreamland.
• Do Yoga – Stretch your muscles for relaxation
• Do math exercises like Sudoku
• Don’t force yourself to sleep – Let it come to you by doing relaxing activities.
• Block out the blue and green light – They have the wavelength that hampers sleep.
• Avoid working an hour before bedtime – Clear up your mind before slumbering.
• Take in honey – Take 1-2 teaspoons of it before bed.
• Try to force yourself to stay awake – Your body will do the opposite.
• Wear sleep mask – It is useful for shutting the light during sleep.
• Lay down on a sleeping mat – An acupressure mat may help you fall asleep. Try it out.
• Sleep on rocking chair
• Try a hammock – The rocking and swinging motion remind you of your infant days when mom and dad soothe you to sleep. This action also works during your adult stage.
• Hum – Lay down with your eyes closed. Inhale deeply making a low-pitched humming sound the entire time then exhale. Repeat this for six rounds. By then, your body will be more relaxed.
• Hide your clock – This activity lessens your anxiety
• Write down your problems – and forget them. Deal with them after you wake up.
• Use blackout shades – Place them on your windows to prevent light from passing through
• Eat whole grains – Whole grains are rich in magnesium, a mineral that will help you snooze.
• Put on socks – the warmer your feet during bedtime, the better for sleep
• Use earplugs – Silence is a sleep buddy.
• Take a plain antihistamine – This can make you feel drowsy. Just do it with a doctor’s prescription.
• Hold the sleep after dinner – Siestas can upset your circadian rhythm.
• Take a warm bath – But do this 3 hours before bedtime.
• Teach yourself lucid dreaming – Search the Internet on how to do it.
• Listen to soft, dreamy music – It calms your mind and senses.
• Put a pillow under your hips – This relieves stress in your lower body.
• Turn off e-readers – and other screens as well. These devices produce blue light that prevents you from sleeping.
• Read at soft light – Your eyes gets irritated with bright light. Dim the lights during nighttime.
• Evaluate your room – Find out what hurts your sleep and act on it.
• Change your sheets – Replace it with a comfortable one.
• Stick to your sleep schedule – Sleep is a routine activity.
• Watch glow-in-the-dark stars – They give you relaxation.
• Use a heating pack if you feel cold – Maintain the 65 degree ideal sleep temperature.
• Try a body pillow for comfort
• Listen to audiobooks of childhood tales – Be like a child listening to bedtime tales.
• Sip herbal teas – Lavender, chamomile, and hibiscus teas are great choices
• Sketch or doodle – These relaxes your mind.
• Listen to a SleepWithMe podcast
• Set the air conditioning unit to 65 degrees – This is the ideal temperature for sleep
• Plan tomorrow’s outfit – This activity can bring closure that relieves anxiety.
• Get a cooling memory foam pillow – for better sleep comfort.
• Eat light dinner – Light dinner prevents indigestion.
• Hypnotize yourself to sleep – YouTube has many videos on self-hypnotism for sleep.
• Go to gym in the morning – Exerting effort during the day can lead to better sleep at night.
• Visualize yourself asleep – What your mind think of, your body may follow suit.
• Engage in self-dialog – Talk to yourself to sleep.
• Use quality bedding – Quality means comfort that leads to sounder sleep
• Change curtains – Choose the one that can block the light from the outside.
• Listen to a ticking clock – The soft ticking of a clock is a kind of white noise.
• Listen to sleep music or lullabies on YouTube or Spotify – and remember how your parents put you to sleep during childhood.
• Blow bubbles – Bubbles are somewhat hypnotic to look at and need a deep breath to blow. Both these actions are helpful for sleeping.

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