Holiday stress: The mental tricks that can help you fall asleep tonight.
The holiday season is upon us, but for many, it's a time of anxiety and stress. Longer days, family gatherings, and financial worries are just a few things to keep people up at night. While reaching for sleep aids like melatonin or Benadryl may seem like an easy fix, experts recommend trying more unconventional techniques first.
One such technique is called cognitive shuffling, developed by Dr. Luc Beaudoin over 40 years ago as a way to overcome his own insomnia struggles. The idea is to shift your mind from "insomnolent thoughts" – worries and anxieties that keep you awake – to more neutral, dreamlike ones. You do this by thinking of a word and then taking each letter of the word and coming up with other words that start with that letter. For example, if you choose the word "cat," you might think of words like "cap," "cup," or "climb." When you tire of one letter, you move on to the next.
This mental game can help calm your mind and prepare your brain for sleep. Dr. Beaudoin's own research found that cognitive shuffling was as effective as writing down your worries before bed – although participants preferred this technique. He has even developed an app to help people with cognitive shuffling.
Another popular hack on social media involves rolling your eyes in a slow, circular motion to mimic natural eye movements during REM sleep. While there's limited research on this specific technique, some experts believe it may just distract the mind from worries and promote relaxation.
Wearing socks at night is also a surprisingly effective way to prepare your body for sleep. By warming up your feet, you can lower your core temperature and signal your brain that it's time to "get ready for sleep." This technique has been endorsed by Dr. Indira Gurubhagavatula, who says that the blood vessels in your feet dilate when they warm up, leading to a drop in body heat and eventually promoting relaxation.
While these mental tricks may not be a magic cure-all for insomnia, they can certainly help some people fall asleep tonight. Before reaching for sleep aids or relying on other treatments, it's worth trying cognitive shuffling, the "eye roll," or even just wearing socks at night to give your body a gentle nudge towards restful sleep.
The holiday season is upon us, but for many, it's a time of anxiety and stress. Longer days, family gatherings, and financial worries are just a few things to keep people up at night. While reaching for sleep aids like melatonin or Benadryl may seem like an easy fix, experts recommend trying more unconventional techniques first.
One such technique is called cognitive shuffling, developed by Dr. Luc Beaudoin over 40 years ago as a way to overcome his own insomnia struggles. The idea is to shift your mind from "insomnolent thoughts" – worries and anxieties that keep you awake – to more neutral, dreamlike ones. You do this by thinking of a word and then taking each letter of the word and coming up with other words that start with that letter. For example, if you choose the word "cat," you might think of words like "cap," "cup," or "climb." When you tire of one letter, you move on to the next.
This mental game can help calm your mind and prepare your brain for sleep. Dr. Beaudoin's own research found that cognitive shuffling was as effective as writing down your worries before bed – although participants preferred this technique. He has even developed an app to help people with cognitive shuffling.
Another popular hack on social media involves rolling your eyes in a slow, circular motion to mimic natural eye movements during REM sleep. While there's limited research on this specific technique, some experts believe it may just distract the mind from worries and promote relaxation.
Wearing socks at night is also a surprisingly effective way to prepare your body for sleep. By warming up your feet, you can lower your core temperature and signal your brain that it's time to "get ready for sleep." This technique has been endorsed by Dr. Indira Gurubhagavatula, who says that the blood vessels in your feet dilate when they warm up, leading to a drop in body heat and eventually promoting relaxation.
While these mental tricks may not be a magic cure-all for insomnia, they can certainly help some people fall asleep tonight. Before reaching for sleep aids or relying on other treatments, it's worth trying cognitive shuffling, the "eye roll," or even just wearing socks at night to give your body a gentle nudge towards restful sleep.
I think these mental tricks are actually super genius 
! Cognitive shuffling is like, this amazing way to rewire your brain into thinking of happy memories and whatnot instead of stressing about stuff that's keeping you up at night 
. It's like a mini-vacation for your mind, where you get to explore different words and ideas and just chill out 
.
! I mean, who hasn't had an anxious thought creep into their brain before bed and just freaked out? Rolling your eyes (not literally, obvs!) is like a digital detox for your brain. It's like hitting the "reset" button on all those worries and stressors.
I mean, when you think about it, our bodies are designed to regulate temperature, right? So by warming up your feet (and therefore your whole body), you're basically telling your brain that it's time to wind down. Plus, who doesn't love a good foot massage 
?
! Like, who needs melatonin when you can just play word games with yourself? 
– I mean, why not give it a try if it's a thing that's supposedly relaxing? Plus, warming up those feet sounds like a genius way to signal to your brain that it's time to wind down 
️. Maybe we can even create our own Thread about sleep hacks and see how many people share their own fave techniques 
. I've been using this whole "cognitive shuffling" thing and it's literally changed my life! 
. And yeah, wearing socks at night is super underrated – it's like your brain gets the hint and just relaxes 
It's all about finding what works for you, right?
ugh, my mind is always racing during holidays thinking bout gifts and family gatherings and work stuff... i tried that cognitive shuffling thingy the other day & it kinda worked? it's weird how our brains can get stuck on one thought for so long tho! 
ugh, my feet are freezing as i type this btw, wish me luck sleeping tonight 
. I mean, cognitive shuffling sounds like some fancy word game, but what if it's just a placebo effect? Like, does it really work or are we just tricking ourselves into sleep? And that eye roll hack? It sounds kinda silly... rolling our eyes to relax 
I need some serious help falling asleep tonight! 
So, I saw this article about these weird mental tricks that can actually help you wind down. Like, cognitive shuffling is a thing where you think of a word and then make up words with each letter? It sounds like a total brain-twister, but apparently it's supposed to calm your mind down. And rolling your eyes in a circle to mimic REM sleep sounds kinda silly, but I'm willing to try anything at this point! 
The idea of cognitive shuffling is pretty cool, and I love that there's an app for it now. But honestly, even just trying some simple relaxation techniques like deep breathing or progressive muscle relaxation can work wonders. And hey, if all else fails, wearing socks to bed isn't the worst thing in the world, right? 
and rolling your eyes in a slow circular motion is literally the cutest thing ever 
️. I've been using it and it's like my brain just zones out after a few rolls 
I'm def giving this cognitive shuffling technique a shot too, might as well try anything to get some rest during the holiday chaos 
But seriously, these mental tricks are kinda genius! Like, who knew rolling their eyes could be so soothing 
. I've tried the cognitive shuffling thing before and it's actually really calming... you gotta keep moving your brain to sleep or something 
. But have you guys heard about cognitive shuffling? It's like, this super cool technique where you try to think of words that start with the same letter as the original word... like if I chose "pizza" I'd think of "pepperoni" or "parmesan"... it sounds silly but trust me it kinda works 
. And rolling your eyes in a slow circle, that's just straight outta my favorite anime 
.
The rise of social media has been linked to increased feelings of loneliness and anxiety, with some experts saying it's having a major impact on mental health 
It seems like no matter what you try, stress is always lurking around the corner 
Those holiday parties can be tough, especially when you're already feeling anxious about work or finances