This works for me. Half an hour before I go to bed, I have a glass of wine or a shot of whisky while browsing the web or watching youtube/netflix/etc. Boom, it's lights out as soon as my head hits the pillow. An added benefit is that 8 hours later, I have to pee so bad that it forces me to get out of bed. It's a sleeping aid and an alarm clock all in one.
Alcohol will delay and reduce slow wave sleep. Not an ideal solution.
How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
121–130 of 195 posts
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#122Earlier quoted context omitted.
Good luck with your CPAP. When I got mine it was like my brain firing on 8 cylinders instead of 3. Do beware that it can take a couple of weeks of use, during which your body and brain may be a little "bewildered" at getting all this oxygen during sleep! Oh and your insurance (if you live in a country that has it) may require specific amounts of usage in the first month. Be very aware of that, it's easy to be "non-co…
I'm on month 3 of CPAP use and I didn't get the "firing on 8 cylinders instead of 3" effect -- I can't say I've noticed any change (aside from "my spouse is willing to share a room with me" which isn't unsubstantial). How long did it take before this feeling kicked in?
The main things I notice now... I used to be able to sleep 12 hours a night easy and wake up tired, now I can hardly sleep more than 8 hours and function completely fine on 6 hours. I can drive for more than 2 hours without having to pull over and take a nap. I don’t feel like I’m about to doze off at work regularly. My productivity has overall increased, but it was a gradual change that I don’t notice unless I think back to my productivity in the past.
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#123I'll mention something related, just to see how widespread my experience is. Sometimes when I am just about to fall asleep, I suddenly become very aware of my receding consciousness. It's a strongly uncomfortable feeling accompanied by a rush of energy that wakes me up instantly. It feels almost like my body thinks it's about to die, so it does a desperate hail mary to stay alive, or something. Very unsettling. Does…
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#124I'm one of those that can fall asleep anytime, anywhere. The technique I use is to work on my "novel". I guess my mind knows I've been "working" on it for over twenty years, it's not important. At this point it's just a fantasy environment in my head I can drop into where the stresses of the real world don't exist.
I can do this too! I was born with a superpower, one that ensures I can fall asleep anywhere, anytime - untreated obstructive sleep apnea! With obstructive sleep apnea, you too can fall asleep in those stressful situations like driving, in the middle of a fire drill at your desk, and while attending an important work presentation! (On the serious, I have an appointment to get a CPAP tomorrow and in the meantime I sle…
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#125Any steady stream of thoughts can stop me from falling asleep, even for hours. I have noticed that long hours of programming or programming late in the day causes this state of constant hard thinking that keeps me awake. It can be really exhausting and even end in nightmares. I think that the article is right that you need to stop this cycle before falling asleep. Meditation practice helps to stop your thought cycle…
What works for me is to just put on a documentary and something about the monotone narration voice just shuts my brain down. I don't even pay attention to the words. I'm generally asleep within minutes. I assume audio books might have the same effect. I guess it might be related to my young childhood as I had parents who would almost always read to my brother and me at bedtime. So possibly there's a part of my brain…
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#126Earlier quoted context omitted.
For me, this exact state is also an ideal one to truly enjoy great music. The music can become surreal and surround me. I've never used drugs, but this is how I imagine hallucinogens to be...
This reminds me of an experience I had once. I was lying in bed, it was about mid-day, listening to music. Suddenly I started to feel pins and needles all over my body and then felt my body disintegrate, as if I was just a "blob" of energy or something hovering in the air. Lastly, I could clearly hear every single instrument and note in the song I was listening to without trying, as if the different layers of the mus…
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#127Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#128Any steady stream of thoughts can stop me from falling asleep, even for hours. I have noticed that long hours of programming or programming late in the day causes this state of constant hard thinking that keeps me awake. It can be really exhausting and even end in nightmares. I think that the article is right that you need to stop this cycle before falling asleep. Meditation practice helps to stop your thought cycle…
What works for me is to just put on a documentary and something about the monotone narration voice just shuts my brain down. I don't even pay attention to the words. I'm generally asleep within minutes. I assume audio books might have the same effect. I guess it might be related to my young childhood as I had parents who would almost always read to my brother and me at bedtime. So possibly there's a part of my brain…
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#129Close your mouth and inhale quietly through your nose to a mental count of four.
Hold your breath for a count of seven.
Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound to a count of eight.
http://www.medicaldaily.com/life-hack-sleep-4-7-8-breathing-...
For me, it does not work immediately, but it makes me fall asleep much faster. AFAIK this works by calming the sympathetic nervous system, just like meditation would. A downside I‘ve experienced is that sometimes I‘m very cold for a while after waking up.
Re: How to Fall Asleep in Two Minutes or Less
#130Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, HN is not devoid of shittiness.
Speculation: I suspect your initial comment drew downvotes because it's pretty insubstantial. Yeah, requests for notifications are a annoyance. Commenting on it isn't likely to promote any kind of worthwhile discussion, and whatever discussion it does engender is likely to be off-topic as well. While not always successful in practice, HN members do tend to value substantive, on-topic discussion. Your second likely dr…