From doing mental exercises to wearing socks to bed, there are several ways to try to fall asleep faster. This one might be the most pleasant: Picture a relaxing scene, like being on the beach or your last getaway.
Researchers at the University of Oxford tested 41 volunteers who had insomnia, asking them to count sheep, visualise soothing images, or do nothing. They found that on the nights when the insomniacs pictured relaxing scenes, they fell asleep an average of 20 minutes sooner than on the other nights.
So forget about counting sheep and call up some pleasant images instead.
The management of unwanted pre-sleep thoughts in insomnia: distraction with imagery versus general distraction [ScienceDirect via The New York Times and The Huffington Post]
Photo by micbube.
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