HOW TO SLEEP FAST ?

Treating the bedroom as a sanctuary

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   Keep your bedroom as a sanctuary. This means keeping it clean, free from junk and distractions and fresh. Change the sheets weekly, fluff up the pillows daily and try to get at least a little fresh air circulating through it each day. Having your room as a sleep-only area helps enormously. Yes, it is nice having a quiet den where you can do whatever, but having cool and distracting stuff around as you desperately try to catch some 'Z's is disruptive. 
   
   
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   Avoid keeping computers, phones, digital tablets or TVs in your bedroom. These electronic distractions make the bedroom seem like a place of entertainment rather than rest. This will perhaps distract you from focusing on sleep! Worse, they can beep at the most inopportune moments, rousing you from much-needed sleep. If you have just discovered an amazing app or a fantastic new show, it's very doubtful you'll want to put it down. Sometimes you're expecting an indefinite phone call from someone - most phones will have an adjustment that allows certain calls through. A trawl through the settings page will usually find this.
   • If you do want to use such items in the bedroom, place them back outside the bedroom door before sleep. Keep all chargers in a different part of the house to force you to go and plug them in elsewhere.
   • Be sure to stop using them at least an hour before sleep, as they induce arousal, not sleepiness.
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   Consider removing clocks from your bedroom. If you're a clock watcher who is made even more anxious by seeing the hours that you're not sleeping, or disturbed by the tick, tick, tick sound, remove the clock from your bedroom. This can reduce your anxiety considerably.

Reducing your activity prior to sleep time

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   Chill before bedtime. Avoid doing anything in the hour leading to sleep time that will keep you over-stimulated. It's not only exercise that can be a sleep thief. Forget watching TV, using a computer or gaming for at least an hour before going to bed. This kind of stimulation tells the brain to stay alert, just when it’s supposed to be winding down for the night.
   • Read rather than watch T.V. or play video games. Reading is a quiet, peaceful activity that leads nicely to a good sleep. It will slow your breathing, relax your muscles, and generally soothe you. And if all else fails, find a textbook to read and open to a particularly dry chapter. Productive and sleep-inducing.
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   Eat dinner early. This will prevent digestion from interfering with your need to sleep.
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   As said before, switch any workout routine to the morning. Evening workouts can keep you buzzing into the hours when you ought to be soundly asleep. If you don't have a workout routine, make one! It will make you healthier and help you sleep better at night. Trust me, your Tai Chi or Big-Burn can wait.
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   Sort out any problems or worries before going to bed instead of worrying about when in bed. Some ways to do this prior to bedtime include:
   • Write to-do lists for the next day.
   • Iron clothing or find work/educational items and pack the night before. Nothing says peace of mind like a packed back and a pre-picked outfit.
   • Write out anything that is bothering you in a journal or on a piece of paper, let those feelings out and then let go of them for the night. If you aren't the writing type, keep a bottle of bubble mix to hand. Before collapsing into bed, blow a bubble as you think of your worries. Then pop it. Repeat until you are at peace with what you will face tomorrow.
   • Write out your response to any anticipated confrontation on paper. Instead of lying in bed working through a million scenarios, knowing you've already come up with a list of comebacks can spare many hours of anxiety. Having a jibe at the ready will hit home to any party.
   • Make a progress note. If you feel doubtful of where you're going with your life, it can be hard to sleep. Did you really spend your entire Saturday afternoon watching soaps? Take an old jar, and every day, each achievement you make should go in. It can be fixing a faucet, building a house of cards, reading that up-hill classic novel you've wanted to finish since forever, or completing a 5,000 word assignment. Anything and everything goes in. At the end of the week, month, year, go through all of the notes, and you'd be amazed at what you've done.

Making use of relaxing activities

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   Try relaxation methods before bedtime. Activities like massages, gentle stretches, and mental projection can help to restore calm and induce a state of quietness and peace. Winding down is a key element of feeling sleepy.
   • Deep breathing is another method for inducing sleepiness and calm. Count to 3 between inhaling and exhaling - the stale air relaxes your diaphragm.
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   Take a warm shower. Sometimes a warm shower can relax your body and feel clean. Having warm, clean hands and feet are often an ideal way to ensure a good night's sleep, as the opposite tends to be a guarantee to staying awake!
   • Simply rinse off. There's no need to shampoo but if you prefer you can add a luxurious creme bath. Though make sure that you don't take too long or your skin will get wrinkly.
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   Drink a relaxing beverage. A warm glass of milk or chamomile tea will put you in the right mood to rest. Having a glass of water at your nightstand during the night works well if you wake up in the middle of the night.
   • A handful of nuts, a banana, or a glass of milk can help by introducing some tryptophan to your body, an amino acid that acts like a natural sedative.

Dimming the lights

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   Turn down the lights before bedtime. Eliminating all light is the most important thing you can do to fall asleep and stay asleep. Light not only inhibits the production of sleep hormones but also stimulates the body to feel awake and alert. Switch to dimmer lights, turn down overhead lights or even make use of candles safely (stuck down, out of the way, sure to burn themselves out). Your body responds to the reduction of light by producing melatonin, which enhances sleep.[2]
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   Put on an eye mask. An eye mask can block out annoying light that enters through door and window cracks or light over which you have no control, such as in motel rooms or on road-facing bedrooms. Sometimes lavender eye "pillows" can be more relaxing.
   
   
   • For windows that let in too much light, blackout blinds or thick curtains can be purchased to stop the light from coming through at night. These are a sound investment if light has been keeping you awake at night. If escaping cracks put you off, tuck the overhanging fabric onto the windowsill.

Improving comfort

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   Make yourself comfortable. Avoid tight or uncomfortable clothes like socks and hair bands. And be sure to use the bathroom just before you go to bed; a constant need to pee will prevent you from going to sleep and thoughts of being too tired or cold to get up and go can simply cause you to stay awake even longer!
   
   
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   Adjust your sleeping surface. If your mattress is getting saggy or pokey, flip it over. If it’s too firm, cover it with a foam pad. If you get too hot at night, flip over the pillows. If you have scratchy or uncomfortable sheets or blankets, get new ones. Nothing is more important than getting some rest.
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   Turn on a white noise generator or a recording of sounds from nature. The constant, low-level sound drowns out other noises that may prevent you from falling asleep.
   • You could also listen to soft, relaxing music. There are specific pieces of music which are thought to aid sleep––do an online search for the many possible types to find one that suits your needs. Make sure the music you choose is relaxing and peaceful.

Adjusting your position

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   Get in the right sleeping position. Sleep on your side or on your back, using pillows to elevate your head. Sleeping on your stomach requires you to twist your neck sideways and/or upward, which puts strain on your neck and spine.
   
   
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   Adjust your pillow(s) so that your neck is in a straight line. If necessary, position a pillow between your knees to keep your hips in a neutral position. Some people use two pillows, one for their arm and one for their head elevation. Others tuck a selection of pillows around them. Whatever works for you is best.

Calming techniques once in bed

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   Use a relaxation technique to help quiet your mind and body. (Meditating, brushing your hair, reading, deep breaths, yoga, etc.)
   • Imagine that you're on a big, soft cloud. Feel the texture of the cloud, the weightlessness of your body and the effortlessness of your existence. You may start to get the feeling that you are slowly sinking into your mattress. Left yourself fall - imagine that at the bottom, you fall into a massive trampoline, which sends you soaring higher, right out into space. You suddening have a snug space suit on, and you make touchdown on the moon. Just think weightless.
   • Imagine a warm feeling that relaxes your muscles and joints, starting with your toes and working your way upward to your head. As you go, breathe slowly and deeply, and allow your muscles to relax.
     • Spend extra time on the muscles in your shoulders and face, as these can hold a surprising amount of tension. Once your entire body is relaxed, simply allow yourself to drift through the sky on the cloud and enjoy the scenery.
   • Imagine a number line. It goes on forever, but the numbers beyond 100 and negative 100 are blurry. But there are no negative numbers. Both sides of zero are positive. Start at 100, countdown to zero, and then count back up the other side to 100.
     • Do not try to get the picture perfect. Just acknowledging that the other numbers are blurry is enough. You do not have to visualize the perfect picture.
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   Think about any calm or serene place that makes you feel relaxed. You may think of a place in nature or think of a spiritual haven, like a church or a temple. Walk through it in your mind, examining the beauty and feeling the awe. Allow yourself to feel as if you're actually there and try to delve deeper into this dreamland. Put your favorite people and family members there. Hopefully it'll soon turn into a real dream for you.
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   Make up stories in your head. This will open up the creative side of the brain needed for sleep. You could also try telling stories to kids, such as younger siblings or your children, once they have laid down in bed for the night.
   • Make sure it is dark in the room, even if you are telling someone else the story.
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   Close your eyes, take a deep breath, think of some nice moments from your life, and wipe out your worries.

Dealing with Partner-Caused Problems

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   Quietly find another room to sleep in for the night.
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   Discuss the problem with your partner in the morning. Try to find a reasonable solution for both you and your partner.
   • If the problem is snoring, there are some medications to help with that.