Credits: Social Media
Cognitive shuffling trick can help you ‘fall asleep in 5 minutes’, doctor says
If you struggle to sleep at night, it could be because your mind is too active, in which case you need to slow it down.
A doctor has shared a quick trick that will calm your thoughts instantly when your mind is working overtime in bed, because inconsistent sleep can hugely affect your health.
Trick to help you fall asleep
Speaking on TikTok, Dr. Karan Rajan explained that cognitive shuffling is a tried and tested way to help you sleep. It involves thinking of random things to scramble up your thoughts and distract your mind from whatever is stopping you from sleeping.
“If you’re struggling to fall asleep, this is the biological version of holding down the power button,” he said.
When you’re in bed, it’s easy to get into disrupting thought patterns which triggers a stress response that keeps you awake. The more awake you get, the more unwanted thought patterns you get and it’s like a never-ending cycle.
Cognitive shuffling can “break this cycle of overthinking” by taking away your active cognitive effort, interrupting your normal brain processes like memory, planning, and problem-solving so that you can no longer make sense of things.
Luc P. Beaudoin, a professor at Simon Fraser University, developed the trick, which quickly moves you from a high level of alertness towards drifting off to sleep.
How to do cognitive shuffling
- Start by picking a random word. For example, let’s go with ‘bedtime’.
- For each letter, think of lots more words starting with that letter. E.g. ‘b’ could be ‘baby’, ‘butter’, ‘banana’ and ‘beer’.
- When you think about each word, you also need to visualize it. So, picture a newborn baby and a yellow banana in your head.
- Once you’re bored of one letter, move onto the next one. In this example, it would be ‘e’ so think of words like ‘elephant’.
- Keep going through the word visualizing things that correspond to each letter until you feel sleepy and drift off to sleep.
More helpful sleep tips
Cognitive shuffling might not work for everyone, but there are more things you can do to help you get a better night’s kip. ‘Restricting’ your sleep is another commonly used method to cure insomnia.
MedlinePlus recommends going to bed and waking up at the same time every day to get your body into a regular sleep pattern. You should also avoid caffeine a good amount of time before sleeping and don’t take a nap after 3pm.
Relaxing before bed, for example by taking a bath, reading or listening to peaceful music and having your bedroom the right temperature can both aid sleep. It’s a good idea to get rid of distractions too, such as noises, bright lights, and a TV in the bedroom.
Exercising regularly, getting enough sunlight exposure during the day and avoiding large meals before bed will all support a good sleep routine too.
If you have continued trouble sleeping, you should always see a doctor, who will be able to provide further support.
Dr. Karan Rajan (MBBS) is a surgeon working for the NHS who has been in practice for a decade. He is also a Clinical Lecturer at Imperial College London and the University of Sunderland.
