If you’re someone who struggles to fall asleep because your mind can’t stop racing, there’s a simple sleep technique that can help you nod off in five minutes or less
You could get a better night’s sleep with this game-changing hack.
We’ve all been there – settling into bed after a long day, only to find our brains working overtime, refusing to let us drift off. Whether it’s replaying something from earlier in the day, stressing about tomorrow’s to-do list, or dredging up a conversation from years ago, our brains seem to delight in keeping us awake with incessant thoughts.
However, according to one doctor, there’s a sleep technique that can put a stop to these unwanted thoughts, help you feel less stressed at bedtime, and guarantee you fall asleep in five minutes or less.
It’s called cognitive shuffling, and it was shared on TikTok by Joel Chesters, who learned it from his professor at Oxford University. Doctor Karan Rajan then responded to Joel’s video, explaining the technique in more detail.
Dr Rajan said: “If you’re struggling to fall asleep, this is the biological version of holding down the power button. When you’re in bed, it’s easy to get repetitive, disruptive thought patterns. This can trigger a stress response, which keeps you awake. The more you’re awake, the more unwanted thought patterns you get, meaning less sleep.
“Cognitive shuffling can break this cycle of overthinking by taking away your active cognitive effort. It’s the human brain version of picking shuffle on your mind playlist versus having to manually change a song every time. Less stress.”
To kick off the exercise, you simply select a random word – “bedtime” is Dr Raj’s example, but any word will do. Then, for each letter of the chosen word, you think of as many words as possible that start with that letter before moving on to the next.
Demonstrating with the letter B, Dr Raj continued: “It’s important you visualise these words because it’s like you’re simulating micro-dreams. Those are the fleeting images that are going to occur as you transition to sleep. Once you’re bored of one letter, move on to the next. This trick helps to calm racing thoughts, so if your sleep software is malfunctioning, it’s worth giving it a go.”
The technique has been met with praise from commenters, with some suggesting variations such as choosing a category and naming items for each letter of the alphabet.
One person shared their success with the method: “I saw someone recommend going through a topic and naming something for each letter of the alphabet, i.e. an animal or movie. It’s been an amazing help and works most nights for me.”
Another responded with shock, saying: “OH MY GOD. I didn’t know this was a thing. This is how I’ve naturally learned to fall asleep. I literally just braindump and think about the most random disconnected things, and I’m out like a light.”
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