Getting a good night’s sleep can make a huge difference in your day, leaving you feeling refreshed and ready to take on anything.

You can feel incredibly stressed and frustrated when you can’t fall asleep, knowing that it will impact your mood and performance the next day.

What is insomnia?

Sleep disorders such as insomnia can cause you to have difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too soon and being unable to fall back asleep [1]. It is possible that you will still feel tired when you wake up. Besides affecting your energy level and mood, insomnia can also affect your health, quality of life and work performance.

Most adults need seven to eight hours of sleep every night, but the amount varies from person to person. It is not uncommon for adults to suffer from short-term (acute) insomnia for a few days or weeks at a time.

Usually, it’s caused by stress or trauma. However, some people suffer from long-term (chronic) insomnia that lasts for several months. 

The primary problem may be insomnia, or it may be linked to other medical conditions or medications. Sleepless nights don’t have to be a part of your life. Simple changes in your daily habits can help.

In a survey by Get Laid Beds, a fifth of people in the UK take on average two and three hours to fall asleep after getting into bed [2]. If you cannot fall asleep, try a few “unusual” tricks from an NHS doctor [3].

Strange but practical expert tips for falling asleep

There are three little-known tips Dr Daisy Mae has shared that she claims will have you drifting off in no time. Her first trick is to keep your eyes open, which may seem contradictory, but that’s the point.

According to the expert, forcing yourself to stay awake will trick your mind into doing the opposite. “Paradoxical intention” is a phrase used to describe this, where you challenge yourself to stay awake and it tricks you into falling asleep.

Try to keep your eyes open and repeat the phrase “don’t fall asleep” or “I won’t fall asleep.” Your eye muscles will tire quickly, and hopefully, you will be asleep in no time.

A breathing technique called the 4-7-8 method is suggested by the expert. For the whole exercise, “place your tongue just behind your teeth on the roof of your mouth,” she instructs.

Inhale for four seconds through your nose and then exhale through your mouth, it will probably make a strange noise. Hold your breath for seven seconds. After completing 4-7, we can move on to 8.

For eight seconds, exhale through your mouth, making another weird sound and repeat, until you fall asleep. In her final piece of advice, she suggests thinking back on the day’s events. Going through your day backwards can make a big difference when trying to fall asleep, she claims.

As you lay in bed, relive your entire day in reverse order, beginning with getting in bed in the evening to waking up in the morning. As a result, your mind will be free of worries, and it will be more challenging and mundane than running through your day in the right order.” she concludes.

[1] https://bit.ly/3ZTn5aS
[2] http://bit.ly/3J73aza
[3] https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/doctor-shares-unusual-open-eye-29004958