What's the secret to great sleep?

[yankii]

I've tried everything from no screens for 2 hours before bedtime to drinking milk before I go to bed and exercising so I'm tired [I think an hour of ARMS counts as exercise], but I still can't get great sleep. It's good, on occasion, but never great like when I was 5.

And I find it difficult to fall asleep on command, like, if I finish work an hour early, I can't go to bed an hour before my usual time.

Only thing I haven't tried is sleeping aids like melatonin because I've heard it can fuck your sleep rhythm up.

Any ideas?

 

[Axido]

I've tried everything from no screens for 2 hours before bedtime to drinking milk before I go to bed and exercising so I'm tired [I think an hour of ARMS counts as exercise], but I still can't get great sleep. It's good, on occasion, but never great like when I was 5.

And I find it difficult to fall asleep on command, like, if I finish work an hour early, I can't go to bed an hour before my usual time.

Only thing I haven't tried is sleeping aids like melatonin because I've heard it can fuck your sleep rhythm up.

Any ideas?

Of course the answer is "it depends". Some people can sleep like a baby within minutes of going to bed and then there are some lying awake for hours.

I know the struggle and the closest I got to a normal sleep rhythm is when I speedran losing weight a couple of weeks ago. I rode an exercise bike for one hour or more a day, ate my last large meal before 6 in the afternoon and prepared an ice pack to cool me down in bed. That's what worked for me, but there are so many factors going into this that I can only say you gotta try and see if that works for you.

Also, if it relaxes you, try wiggling your leg, even though it may seem counterintuitive to intentionally move parts of your body when laying in bed. If it doesn't work for you then congratulations, as you don't seem to have an innate compulsion to move.

 

[Blythe93]

Few things to consider:

• Consistent sleeping schedule e.g. from 11PM to 7AM, adjust if necessary.
• Avoid unsuccessful sleep attempts? Figure out how long does it take you to fall asleep usually. For me it's around 20 minutes. Whenever I take a nap I set the timer on my smart watch to 25 minutes and set it aside somewhat next to me (bedtime table or something like that. If I hear it and I'm awake, I just get up and do something else other than sleeping. Those unsuccessful sleep attempts just make the rest of my time worse.
• Guided meditation before sleep? Can help you wind down a bit. Headspace is pretty decent and I use it from time to time.
• Reading a book before sleep (physical or e-reader). I usually read a comic on my e-reader and it's one of those repetitive ones which makes it so easy to fall asleep to.
• Changing a room? I do this every now and then as I found out that I sometimes successfully fall asleep on a couch in my living room.
• Chamomile tea, valerian tea? I've only used chamomile tea so far and it... kinda works? Can't really tell.
• Melatonin and magnesium supplements? They are fine if used in moderation, but don't overdo it.
• Avoid caffeine few hours before sleep?

Other than that, maybe add a bit of walking or some light cardio exercise to tire yourself out. During summertime I usually fall asleep with the cooling fan turned on. I can feel a bit of breeze and I can hear it humming so that puts my mind at ease, I guess. You could try with some lofi or ambient music, whichever suits you best.

Good luck! It may take some time for your body to adjust and you start seeing results so don't loose hope, stay positive and you'll eventually fix your sleep.

 

[EpikJimmer]

It's true if you take sleeping aids it might just get worse.

I know it might be bad advice but I mostly go to sleep if I TRULY feel like sleeping. There were so many god damn times I was like "oh I need to sleep for 7-8 hours so I can wake up early... better sleep NOW!!!". That shit almost never works and i just end up awake at 4am and then out of tiredeness I just go to sleep either way.

Also it's better to just empty your thoughts, and maybe think about the feeling of being unconcsious. I know some people say "think happy things before sleep!!!1" like dude, that just keeps your mind awake.

BTW, there are multiple times where I take out my glasses, try to go to sleep, but SOME stupid motherfucking intrusive thought comes in. "What if I stop breathing?" "What about the [insert thing that happened that day]???? What will I do about it?" or just random bullshit like music that wont let me sleep. These used to be a problem, but I sorted it out, and I didn't even find a "special way!!!" to erase these thoughts.

I actually came to the point where I'm really, REALLY sick of thinking all this bullshit so I'm like "shut the fuck up" and go to sleep. I know it's not that easy for everyone but that's how it went for me.


Edit: damn all 3 of us saw this simutaneously

 

[Blythe93]

Also, if it relaxes you, try wiggling your leg, even though it may seem counterintuitive to intentionally move parts of your body when laying in bed. If it doesn't work for you then congratulations, as you don't seem to have an innate compulsion to move.

That's what I do as well from time to time. It just feels natural to me. Hehehe

 

[yankii]

Of course the answer is "it depends". Some people can sleep like a baby within minutes of going to bed and then there are some lying awake for hours.

I know the struggle and the closest I got to a normal sleep rhythm is when I speedran losing weight a couple of weeks ago. I rode an exercise bike for one hour or more a day, ate my last large meal before 6 in the afternoon and prepared an ice pack to cool me down in bed. That's what worked for me, but there are so many factors going into this that I can only say you gotta try and see if that works for you.

Also, if it relaxes you, try wiggling your leg, even though it may seem counterintuitive to intentionally move parts of your body when laying in bed. If it doesn't work for you then congratulations, as you don't seem to have an innate compulsion to move.

I do have a set sleep schedule [10-6], though it doesn't seem to do much. I don't want to lose weight though as I'd probably die, lol. Never wanted to wiggle either - night time for me has to be totally motionless and calm.

Consistent sleeping schedule e.g. from 11PM to 7AM, adjust if necessary.

I did try 9 to 5 and 11 to 7 but they didn't really do much.

Avoid unsuccessful sleep attempts? Figure out how long does it take you to fall asleep usually. For me it's around 20 minutes. Whenever I take a nap I set the timer on my smart watch to 25 minutes and set it aside somewhat next to me (bedtime table or something like that. If I hear it and I'm awake, I just get up and do something else other than sleeping. Those unsuccessful sleep attempts just make the rest of my time worse.

I'd say it takes me more than an hour. If I try to do anything, I might get to engrossed in it and forget sleep altogether.

Guided meditation before sleep? Can help you wind down a bit. Headspace is pretty decent and I use it from time to time.

Tried meditation a few times; can't say it worked.

Melatonin and magnesium supplements? They are fine if used in moderation, but don't overdo it.

Yeah, this is probably the route I'll go with, though I'm not sure what a "healthy" dose is...

Avoid caffeine few hours before sleep?

I don't drink coffee except in the morning, so not an issue.

It's true if you take sleeping aids it might just get worse.

I know it might be bad advice but I mostly go to sleep if I TRULY feel like sleeping. There were so many god damn times I was like "oh I need to sleep for 7-8 hours so I can wake up early... better sleep NOW!!!". That shit almost never works and i just end up awake at 4am and then out of tiredeness I just go to sleep either way.

Also it's better to just empty your thoughts, and maybe think about the feeling of being unconcsious. I know some people say "think happy things before sleep!!!1" like dude, that just keeps your mind awake.

BTW, there are multiple times where I take out my glasses, try to go to sleep, but SOME stupid motherfucking intrusive thought comes in. "What if I stop breathing?" "What about the [insert thing that happened that day]???? What will I do about it?" or just random bullshit like music that wont let me sleep. These used to be a problem, but I sorted it out, and I didn't even find a "special way!!!" to erase these thoughts.

I actually came to the point where I'm really, REALLY sick of thinking all this bullshit so I'm like "shut the fuck up" and go to sleep. I know it's not that easy for everyone but that's how it went for me.


Edit: damn all 3 of us saw this simutaneously

I won't say random intrusive thoughts have never jolted me awake but it's not really a frequent issue. The idea of sleeping when I feel like it does have some merit, though I'm unsure as to whether 4 hours of really good sleep can beat 8 hours of decent sleep.

 

[Jayro]

Have intercourse before sleep. Knocks you right out...

 

[VinsCool]

Close your eyes and do nothing.

It is proven that even if you aren't actually sleeping doing that, you still do get some rest, so that is still better than not trying to sleep at all.

 

[emigre]

Have intercourse before sleep. Knocks you right out...

Bro, this is GBAtemp. I'm not going to say anything but there's going to be a lot of sticky waifu body pillows.

 

[masagrator]

Close your eyes and do nothing.

It is proven that even if you aren't actually sleeping doing that, you still do get some rest, so that is still better than not trying to sleep at all.

It works as a short term replacement for nap. But not as proper sleep replacement.

Overall depends on where issue lays - if it's physiological or mental. I can't help with physiological as I never had an issue sleeping related to that, but mentally I had some period where I couldn't sleep and issue was that I was thinking too much about worthless stuff. I needed to limit amount of interactions in worthless struggles, stop taking personally stuff that doesn't matter in the long run, and limit interpersonal interactions with even slightly toxic people. No issues since then. But for extroverts that may sound like a nightmare.

 

[DaFixer]

I'm also want to know that, because I have also sleep problems. Almost every night, I go a sleep about 22:00/23:00 and till +/- 1:30 I wake up. Then I get lucky I can fall a sleep again. Mosly I thing about stuff. I want to sleep, but I can't.
Very annoying, my wife fall a sleep before she hit the pillow.

 

[Earthshine]

Smoke a bowl of a good sleep inducing indica strain about 15 minutes before you go to bed.

 

[Veho]

Do you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep?

 

[Hanafuda]

 

[Jayro]

Bro, this is GBAtemp. I'm not going to say anything but there's going to be a lot of sticky waifu body pillows.

Sorry, I just have a hard time staying asleep without my body physically exerted from working

 

[BeeGeesAnd2PacFan]

I read a book until I fall to sleep easily (op imo)

 

[tmnr1992]

Some things may work for some people but not for others, you'll need to try different things until something works.

What seems to mostly work for me is always going to bed at around the same time, also taking into consideration the amount of time that it takes to fall asleep. Since it usually takes an hour for me to fall asleep I'll usually go to bed an hour and a half earlier, that way I'll still be able to get at least 7 hours of sleep, even if it takes more than 2 hours to fall asleep.

I try to avoid Phone and TV screens at least one hour before going to bed, since it takes around one hour for the body to adjust to the lower light levels that trigger sleepiness.

Some people recommend getting out of bed if you haven't fallen asleep after a set amount of time, usually between 15 and 30 minutes. I tried this and it made things much worse, since I would constantly look at the clock and get more and more anxious after another 30 minutes had passed and I hadn't fallen asleep. What I do now is that I will get out of bed if I feel like I've been awake for too long, but without keeping track of the time, I'll stay up for a few minutes, try to calm myself and then go back to bed.

Meditating also seems to help a bit. When I'm trying to sleep I focus on my breathing, the sound of the fan if I have that on, or anything else, and whenever I have any random thought, I keep redirecting my attention to that one thing that I'm trying to focus on. This helps me both relax and reduce the amount of intrusive thoughts.

But the one thing that seems to help the most is taking a couple pills diphenhydramine 30 minutes before goin to bed. It's for allergies, but has the side effect of causing drowsiness.

 

[Lostbhoy]

Saving Private Ryan said it best

Medic Wade:
Actually, the trick to falling asleep is trying to stay awake.

Mellish:
How is that, Wade?

Medic Wade:
Well, when my mother was an intern, she used to work late through the night... sleep through the day. So the only time we'd ever get to talk about anything is when she'd get home. So what I... I used to do, I used to lie in my bed and try to stay awake as long as I could, but it never worked 'cause... 'cause the harder I'd try, the faster I'd fall asleep.

 

[Ricken]

I'll chip in about life-stress difficulties since those are all that mess with my sleep

When it feels like my mind is 'racing' I'm probably procrastinating some kind of comforting logic. I don't really notice it unless I have many days without slowing myself down properly. Then I wonder to myself why I may be stressed and my imagination takes me back to recent adversities in life. I'll think of how I wish to advance my pieces up life's chess board and sleep much better after that reflection.
or i'll smoke weed - that tends to be faster but hey options are lovely

 

[tmnr1992]

or i'll smoke weed - that tends to be faster but hey options are lovely

It's good for falling asleep, but the actual quality of sleep worsens, same applies to alcohol. But I guess it depends on your current situation, I would take 6 hours of mediocre sleep with the help of weed or alcohol over 3 solid hours of good sleep without them.