With more than 30 percent of U.S. adults getting less than seven hours of sleep on average, and just over 15 percent saying they struggle to get to sleep at night, falling asleep can feel like an impossible task. Add in cooler temperatures and increasingly shorter days and people are struggling to adjust their sleep routines.
While the traditional advice on counting sheep might not be enough to quiet a busy mind, there are several unusual techniques that claim to help people drift off more quickly, from tracing your fingers while breathing to deliberately trying to stay awake.
With this in mind, Alpine Hearing Protection, the experts in premium earplugs for sleeping and ear safety, has rounded up five of the more unusual sleep methods you may not have heard of, and investigated how they’re supposed to work.
The Military Method
The Military Method is a relaxation technique reportedly developed to help military pilots fall asleep quickly, even in uncomfortable or stressful surroundings. It involves systematically relaxing the face, shoulders, arms, and legs before clearing the mind by picturing a calming scene. If visualization doesn’t work, the technique suggests repeating “don’t think” to yourself for around 10 seconds to help quiet a busy mind.
“The benefit of this method is that it gives both your body and mind something specific to focus on,” says Harm de Groot, lead product marketer in sleep at Alpine Hearing Protection. “Gradually relaxing each part of your body can help shift your attention away from racing thoughts. However, don’t become too focused on the claim that it can make you fall asleep in two minutes. Putting pressure on yourself to achieve that can actually make relaxation harder.”
Finger Breathing
Finger breathing combines slow breathing with a simple physical focus. Trace up and down each finger with your other hand, breathing in as you move up and out as you move down. The combination of controlled breathing and the sensation of tracing your fingers can help bring your attention into the present moment and encourage relaxation.
“The repetitive movement gives your mind something simple to concentrate on, while the slow breathing is helping you wind down,” says de Groot.” This one is particularly useful and effective if you find yourself overthinking when you get into bed.”
The Cognitive Shuffle
The Cognitive Shuffle involves thinking of a random word, such as “lamp,” and then picturing unrelated objects beginning with each letter, such as lion, apple, mountain, and pencil. Rather than trying to completely empty your mind, this technique gives it a stream of random, harmless thoughts to follow. This can help interrupt repetitive thinking, particularly if your mind tends to jump from one worry to another at bedtime.
By shifting your attention between random words and images, the Cognitive Shuffle gives your brain something simple and unpredictable to focus on, helping to break the cycle of overthinking and making it easier to wind down for sleep.
The 4-7-8 Method
The 4-7-8 method involves breathing in for four seconds, holding for seven, and slowly breathing out for eight, the cycle can then be repeated several times. It is considered a natural tranquilizer for the nervous system.
Controlled breathing can encourage you to slow down and focus your attention on something other than the stresses that keep you awake. The exact timings are not a strict rule, if holding your breath for that long feels uncomfortable, a slower, more comfortable breathing pattern is more important.
Paradoxical Intention
This method takes the opposite approach to trying to fall asleep. Instead, you deliberately try to stay awake, removing the pressure that can come with trying to force yourself to sleep, it works by backfiring into drowsiness.
“Sometimes the harder we try to fall asleep, the more alert we become,” says de Groot. “By taking away that pressure can help break that cycle and allow sleep to happen more naturally. The aim isn’t to give yourself another task to complete before bed, but simply to stop worrying about whether you’re asleep yet.
Which method should you try?
According to de Groot, there isn’t one technique that will work for everyone, and trying too hard to fall asleep can sometimes have the opposite effect by making you more alert and focused on whether you’re actually drifting off.
The best approach is often to experiment with different ways of helping your body and mind wind down. Whether that means slowing your breathing, relaxing your muscles, occupying your mind with random images, or reducing distractions around you, the key is to find an approach that feels calming rather than stressful.
Your sleep environment is the most important factor to experiencing a good sleep, so by simply keeping your bedroom dark, cool, and quiet, you can help create the best conditions for sleep. If noise regularly disturbs you, earplugs can be a simple way of reducing unwanted sound.
Ultimately, these techniques should be viewed as tools to help you wind down, as opposed to guaranteed shortcuts to sleep. If you regularly struggle to sleep or your sleep problems are affecting your everyday life, it’s worth speaking to a healthcare professional rather than relying solely on sleep hacks.
