Fall Asleep Faster Tonight! Easy Expert-Approved Ways to Doze Off Without Meds
Discover the bedtime snack that helps you fall asleep up to 43% quicker
Few things are quite as frustrating as being unable to fall asleep at night. You spend the whole day exhausted and looking forward to bedtime, only to find you can’t find a comfortable position and you wind up tossing and turning for hours. While sleeplessness is fairly common, that doesn’t mean you have to spend hours counting sheep. Here’s how to go to sleep fast, according to the experts.
What causes sleeplessness?
Many factors can make it difficult to fall asleep, including everyday stress, anxiety and even menopause. All of these elements can throw off your body’s circadian rhythm (your natural internal clock), says Shelby Harris, licensed clinical psychologist and Director of Sleep Health at Sleepopolis.
“When I work with people who have trouble falling asleep even when they’re exhausted, I often hear about racing thoughts or anxiety,” explains Harris. “One thing I stress is the importance of your body’s internal clock, or circadian rhythm. If that’s out of sync, whether it’s due to stress, an irregular sleep schedule or using screens right before bed, it can make it harder to fall asleep.”
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How to go to sleep fast
If you have trouble nodding off at night, these tips can help reset your circadian rhythm and allow you to go to sleep fast—no prescription sleep aids needed.
Set a sleep schedule
Going to bed at the same time and waking up at roughly the same time every day (yes, even on the weekends!) is one of the best things you can do to fall asleep fast each night. That’s because sticking to a consistent sleep schedule allows your brain to get better at predicting when it’s time to wind down and release sleep-inducing melatonin.
“Choose a sleep and wake time that will help you achieve seven to eight hours of sleep per night,” recommends Fariha Abbasi-Feinberg, MD, spokesperson for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Despite what many may think, going to bed and waking up early isn’t necessarily better than being a night owl. What really matters is that you get enough sleep and that your sleep schedule is consistent night to night.
Scale back on screen time
It’s tempting to unwind before bed by watching a show or scrolling through social media, especially if you get bored waiting to fall asleep. But using electronic devices too close to your usual bedtime will only prolong your sleeplessness, says Dr. Abbasi-Feinberg.
“The blue light emitted from electronics suppresses melatonin production, making it harder to fall asleep,” explains Dr. Abbasi-Feinberg. “Try to avoid screen time at least 30 minutes to an hour before bed.”
What about donning blue light-blocking glasses at night? Unfortunately, Harris says they likely won’t do much to prevent sleeplessness. “There’s not much data behind blue light blocking glasses being helpful,” Harris says. “The bigger issue is that what you’re watching on the screen can be too engaging and keep your brain awake, so try to be mindful of that. Instead of relying on blue-light blocking glasses or apps, focus on creating a calming bedtime routine without screens.”
Some studies have shown that even just having multiple devices next to your bed while you sleep (such as a phone, Kindle or iPad) can delay how long it takes you to fall asleep by up to an hour. Practice good sleep hygiene by leaving your devices in another room altogether at night if you want to fall asleep fast.
Turn the thermostat down
One of the easiest ways to fall asleep fast is by creating the ideal sleeping environment in your bedroom.
“Because your body’s temperature plays a role in regulating your circadian rhythm, keeping your room cool promotes this process and can help you fall asleep faster,” says Dr. Abbasi-Feinberg. “While there’s no one-size-fits-all temperature your room should be at, anything between 65-70°F will help support optimal sleep, and even decreasing your set bedroom temperature by a few degrees can be helpful.”
The 4-7-8 breathing method
Stress and anxiety from the day can make it hard to relax enough to fall asleep, even if you’re exhausted, says Harris. But that doesn’t mean you have to be trapped in an anxiety loop all night. “If your mind’s racing, try mindfulness or deep breathing exercises to relax,” recommends Harris.
One breathing technique, known as the 4-7-8 method, has been clinically shown to reduce anxiety, which is a leading cause of sleeplessness at night. To practice the 4-7-8 method to help you fall asleep fast, follow these steps:
- Exhale through your mouth, making a whooshing sound as you do so.
- Close your mouth and silently breathe in through your nose while counting to four.
- Hold your breath while counting to seven.
- Open your mouth and exhale while counting to eight, making a whooshing sound once again.
Check out the video below for a visual how-to:
Relax in a warm bath
Soaking in a bath with a “just right” temperature between 104-109°F before bed is one of the best ways to fall asleep fast, suggests a University of Texas study. Researchers found that when people took a 10-minute bath that was warm but not overly hot up to 2 hours before bed, they fell asleep faster and slept significantly better.
The heat from the bath raises your core temperature, which then triggers a cooling effect on your skin afterward. This lowers your internal temp to a level similar to that experienced during deep sleep, making it easier to fall asleep faster and snooze more soundly.
Do some gentle stretches
It’s no secret that regular exercise is one of the best ways to improve your sleep quality. But a growing body of research also supports light to moderate stretching before bed to help you fall asleep fast. “When it comes to stretching, I’m a big fan,” says Harris. “Gentle stretches before bed can help relax your muscles and signal to your body that it’s time to wind down.”
Stretching out your neck, shoulders and back can relieve tension that builds up throughout the day, decreasing the time it takes for your body to relax and drift off to sleep. Not sure where to get started? Consider progressive muscle relaxation (PMR), a relaxation technique in which you tense, then relax, one muscle group at a time for total-body relief.
Follow along with the PMR video for sleep below:
Savor a bedtime snack
By age 50, our body’s ability to produce the sleepiness hormone melatonin on its own drops 60 percent, making it tougher to fall asleep at bedtime. Instead of sleeping pills, which can trigger next-day grogginess, nibble 15 pistachios an hour before bed. Not only are the nuts packed with high levels of melatonin, they also contain vitamin B6, a nutrient that maximizes your body’s ability to produce its own melatonin by helping it convert tryptophan to melatonin.
The payoff: Yale research suggests boosting melatonin can help you fall asleep faster than if you’d taken Ambien. And this potent bedtime snack kicks in quickly. In fact, the high levels of fiber in pistachios help you nod off up to 43 percent faster the very first night, suggests a Columbia University study.
To boost the benefits even more, pair your snack with a calming cup of chamomile tea. Research in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies suggests that its relaxation-promoting effects can help you doze off up to 16 minutes faster. One to try: The Spice and Tea Exchange Calming Nights Chamomile Tea Blend.
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