How to Sleep Fast Naturally At Home: 20 Best Ways

D

Medically reviewed by

Dr. Vikas Kumar Sharma

General Health

10 min read

Synopsis

For some people, falling asleep is effortless. On the other hand, many others struggle to fall and stay asleep throughout the night. Here are some methods to know how to sleep fast.

Key Takeaways

  • The most prevalent sleep condition is insomnia, with up to 30% of individuals suffering short-term sleep problems
  • Natural methods like avoiding screen time before the night could be helpful
  • The best approach to guarantee that the body and mind receive the necessary rest is to fall asleep naturally

For optimum health, getting a good night's sleep is essential. Up to 30% of individuals report occasional sleeping problems, with insomnia being the most prevalent sleep ailment [1]. However, if you've been awake at night and trying to figure out how to sleep fast, it can be harming you more than you think.

In addition to being annoying, difficulty falling asleep can also make it tougher to fall asleep in the future and prolong your sleep latency due to anxiety. However, folks may learn how to sleep fast by employing a few easy, all-natural techniques and tactics.

How to Sleep Fast?

The Military Method

Muscle relaxation, deep breathing, and mental imagery are the main components of the military method. Here is the military technique of how to fall asleep quickly.
  • Get comfortable in bed
  • As you take slow, deep breaths, tense and then relax your muscles, starting with the ones in your face
  • Continue in this manner until you feel relaxed all the way down your body
  • Relax your mind. Then, visualise a quiet scene
  • If the previous methods are unsuccessful, repeat "don't think" to yourself for 10 seconds before attempting again

Don't give up if the military technique doesn't work for you immediately; it will improve with practice. This method could answer your question of how to get sleep fastover time.

Set a regular sleeping schedule

This could be your best way. For many people, going to bed at varying hours each night is a regular ritual. However, since they disrupt the body's circadian cycle, these irregular sleeping habits may make it difficult to fall asleep.

Changes in behaviour, the body, and the mind that occur on a 24-hour cycle are known as the circadian rhythm. The circadian rhythm's main job is to judge whether or not the body is prepared for sleep.

A biological clock that releases hormones to promote sleep or wakefulness significantly impacts this. The body clock can better predict when it is time to sleep when bedtime is the same each night.

How to Sleep Fast

Set up your room

Besides setting a proper routine, setting a proper room is also crucial if you wish to learn how to sleep fast. Your brain can recognise when it's time to relax by being in a dark, distraction-free, calm environment. According to recent studies, darkness increases the production of the hormone melatonin, which is crucial for sleep [2]. Be careful to close the draperies, put the phone away, and turn off any other artificial lighting sources.

Lower the temperature of the room

If your bedroom is excessively warm, it could be difficult for you to fall asleep. Before going to bed, it is a good idea to open your windows or turn on the air conditioner to help you know how to fall asleep fast. Another great technique to relax and get a better night's sleep is to take a shower before bed. This is greatly helpful if you are learning how to sleep fast.

Use a Glow Light to dim the lights

Light is a key indicator that lets your body realise what "mode" it should be in. For example, ambient yellow-toned light can assist in signalling your body that it's time to retire. On the other hand, strong lights are excellent for keeping you attentive. These are wonderful tips for anyone who wishes to learn how to sleep fast.

Utilising a fading light, such as a glowing light, might assist your body in progressively preparing for sleep. After supper, gradually turn off the lights until you are ready for bed in your dark, comfortable zone. This will give you the best effects.

Don't check the time

If you want to learn how to sleep fast,then the last thing you should be doing is checking the clock if you are having trouble falling asleep or, worse yet, if you wake up in the middle of the night and are unable to go back asleep. Stressing out over how late it is and how you can't sleep will simply make the problem worse. Simply close your eyes, deepen your breaths, and allow your mind to relax before going to bed.

Monitor your eating habits

The meal you consume just before bed may impact your sleep. For instance, studies suggest that eating meals heavy in carbohydrates may make it harder to get a good night's sleep [3].

Even if a high-carb diet can help you nod off more quickly, it won't result in deep sleep. Instead, fatty foods may encourage a longer, deeper sleep. So to give your body enough time to digest a high-carb dinner, you should eat it at least four hours before going to bed.

Do the 4-7-8 breathing technique

Dr. Andrew Weil created the ‘4-7-8’ method, a straightforward yet effective breathing technique that encourages serenity and relaxation. It may also aid in your relaxation before going to bed.

It incorporates a breathing rhythm that calms the nervous system and is based on breath control techniques discovered via yoga. Any time you experience tension or anxiety, you can practice this technique. This can be your excellent way to know how to sleep instantly.

Follow Steps To Sleep Fast

  • Start by placing the tongue's tip behind your upper front teeth
  • Make a whooshing sound as you totally exhale through your mouth
  • While mentally counting to four, close your mouth 
  • Take a deep breath through your nose
  • While holding your breath, mentally count to seven
  • With your mouth open, completely exhale with a whooshing sound while mentally counting to eight
  • Continue this cycle a minimum of three more times
You may unwind using this method, which will also aid in speeding your sleep cycle. Hence, this is another useful tip for anyone who wants to learn how to sleep fast.How to Sleep Fast steps

Tips To Help You Fall Asleep Faster

Yoga, mindfulness training, and meditation

Struggling with how to sleep fast,and nothing is working? People sometimes struggle to fall asleep when they are agitated.

Yoga, meditation, and mindfulness are tools to quiet the mind and unwind the body. They have all been demonstrated to enhance sleep, as well. For example, yoga teaches you to breathe properly and hold physical positions that will help your body relax.

Research shows that yoga can improve several aspects of sleep, including sleep efficiency, length, and quality [4]. In addition, melatonin levels can rise due to meditation, which can help the brain enter a particular state that makes falling asleep easier.

Practising mindfulness helps you stay in the moment, worry less before going to sleep, and even perform better during the day.

By putting one or more of these strategies into practice, you'll learn how to sleep fastand awaken feeling rejuvenated.

Read a book

You shouldn't be shocked to find this as one of the tips on how to sleep fast.Reading may be a relaxing practice to undertake before going to bed. Bedtime reading appears to encourage longer sleep for children.

Understanding the variations between reading from an electronic book and a conventional paper book is essential. Due to the blue light that electronic books generate, melatonin production is decreased. Thus, you have difficulty falling asleep and wake up feeling exhausted when your melatonin levels are low. Therefore, if you wish to know how to sleep fastalways remember the best way to unwind and get a better night's sleep is to read a paper book.

Stay away from caffeine

If you are learning how to sleep fast, then you must know caffeine acts as a stimulant. It can disturb sleep patterns and promote wakefulness. Caffeine's effects last for roughly three to five hours. Therefore, it is preferable to abstain from coffee for at least four hours before bed.

Caffeine intake at any hour of the day may, in some people, may negatively affect sleep quality. Hence, these people should refrain from coffee entirely.Listening to music

Even though it might not be effective for everyone, some people find that listening to calming music before bed is beneficial. But how a person reacts to music will vary depending on their unique tastes. Music can occasionally be overstimulating and cause anxiety and insomnia.

Additional Read: Ayurveda and Insomnia

Stay away from loud areas

Noise can be upsetting and reduce the quality of sleep. In a 2016 study, it was shown that individuals slept substantially less in a hospital than they did at home [5]. According to the study's authors, the increased noise in the hospital was the main cause of this.

Develop your imagination

You may train your mind to relax before bed. Imagine a calm, joyful memory from your past and attempt to recreate it in your mind. Pay attention to even the tiniest aspects. For example, some scenes like these may come to mind:

  • Strolling along the shore
  • Sailing in the sea
  • Relaxing beside a bubbling brook
  • Sightseeing at dusk
Your brain will be engaged by this mental activity, which will direct your attention to the image of your choice and help you relax and feel peaceful. This exercise can be a great way to learn how to sleep fast.

Exercise Enough Throughout the Day

Consistently having trouble falling asleep at night may indicate that you need to exert more effort throughout the day. According to a preliminary study, light exercise can improve your ability to sleep at night [6].

You may improve your sleep by making little changes, like going for a brisk stroll in the morning. But exercising too soon before night might keep you awake. How to sleep fast? Make sure you exercise more than 90 minutes before bed.

Make use of a Heavy Blanket

Heavy blankets are thick and are used as a pressure treatment technique to reduce anxiety and encourage the brain's production of serotonin. The weight of the weighted blanket that works best for you is around 10% of your body weight because, with this level of pressure, you feel peaceful and at ease without feeling overly constrained.

Put on your socks

If you're having trouble falling asleep and don't know why you could be experiencing cold feet, then before going to bed, putting on a pair of socks will help warm your feet and stimulate the blood vessels in your feet to enlarge, telling your brain that it's time for some dreamy sleep..

Concentrate on staying awake

It's generally accepted that your odds of succeeding in falling asleep decrease significantly if you try to push yourself to do so before bed. Try contradictory intention as an alternative. This method entails striving to stay awake as opposed to making oneself go to sleep. It is predicated on the notion that attempting to fall asleep against your will can cause tension and worry, which might hinder you from unwinding and sleeping.

Change your sleeping posture

Your body posture at night might affect how well you sleep. There are three primary postures for sleeping:

  • Back
  • Stomach
  • Side

People who sleep on their backs are often thought to have greater sleep quality.

However, this may not be the optimal sleeping posture because it might cause snoring, obstructive sleep apnea, and clogged airways.

Although personal tastes are a consideration when choosing a sleeping position, the side position appears to be associated with better sleep.

Additional Read: Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Limit your alcohol intake

Large alcohol intake before bed might have a negative effect on sleep quality. It is a sedative that makes people drowsy but can also impair the quality of a person's sleep. Even a tiny amount of alcohol can exacerbate insomnia in people who already have it.

The greatest method to make sure the mind and body get the rest they require is to fall asleep naturally. The likelihood of falling asleep without the use of sleep aids can be increased by using the above strategies. If you're still having trouble sleeping, contact a specialist like those at Bajaj Finserv Heath to get your body examined. Then, via an online appointment, you can learn about the different sleep disorders and their causes and how to sleep fast.
Published on 12 Dec 2022Last updated on 13 Apr 2023
  1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5353813/
  2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4334454/
  3. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/nutrition#:~:text=It%20has%20been%20well%20established,deep%20sleep9%20you%20get.
  4. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/physical-activity/yoga-and-sleep#:~:text=Yoga%20and%20Insomnia&text=Studies%20have%20demonstrated%20that%20yoga%20can%20be%20beneficial%20in%20 managing,and%20women%20with%20breast%20cancer.
  5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6142965/
  6. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/exercising-for-better-sleep

Please note that this article is solely meant for informational purposes and Bajaj Finserv Health Limited (“BFHL”) does not shoulder any responsibility of the views/advice/information expressed/given by the writer/reviewer/originator. This article should not be considered as a substitute for any medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always consult with your trusted physician/qualified healthcare professional to evaluate your medical condition. The above article has been reviewed by a qualified doctor and BFHL is not responsible for any damages for any information or services provided by any third party.

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