How To Get Back to Sleep

If you sometimes wake up in the night and can't get back to sleep, you're in good company.  Approximate one-third of Americans wake in the night, and about half of those have trouble falling back asleep.  Sleep experts tell us it's normal to wake sometimes during sleep.  If you wake, roll over, and go back to sleep, you don't have a problem.  But if you are awake for 20 minutes (or longer), you  might need some help.*  What can you do when you want to go back to sleep?  Here's a couple ideas:

1.  Body Scan:  Starting at your toes, finger, or head, scan through your whole body, noticing each part and asking it it relax.  Here's a link to a body scan you can use:  http://www.mindfulmomentsinsc.com/files/Exercises/BodyScan.mp3
2. Noticing texture:  Put your hands on two different textures in your bed (e.g. sheet and blanket or skin and cloth).  Notice the difference between your two palms (rough, smooth, cool, warm, soft, hard...).  Then move your hands slightly and notice the difference.  Then be still again and notice the difference. Move one hand to another object with a different texture and notice the difference again.  This exercise helps pull you into the current moment helping you appreciate your bed and perhaps taking away your thoughts from worry or racing thoughts.
3.  Counting your breath:  Count your exhale length and inhale length. (Ideally the exhale should be as long as or longer than the inhale.)  Then add a number to each inhale and exhale making the breath longer and deeper.  Keep adding numbers until your breath is quite deep, perhaps reaching 10.  Don't go so deep that it hurts.  Then make the breath shorter again, going down in length from 10 to 9 to ... to 2 to 1.  Now breathe normally again, enjoying each inhale and exhale.  Or try this meditation:  http://www.mindfulmomentsinsc.com/files/Exercises/ObservingYourBreath.mp3
4. Neuromuscular Relaxation:  Tighten your fist and hold it tight for 10 seconds.  Notice how tight it gets and perhaps even notice how your arm and shoulder feels tense.  Now relax it and notice the difference.  Repeat twice.  Leave arm still as relaxed as you tighten your other fist.  Relax.  Repeat.  Now tighten your foot, or forehead, or upper arm.  Always holding contraction for 10 seconds, then releasing and noticing the difference.  When you move to a new area, keep the other parts of your body still.  Relax your whole body this way until you fall asleep.
5. Going to a relaxing place:  In your mind go to a place that is very relaxing for you (the beach, forest, a special bedroom, with a loved person...).  Describe to yourself all you see there.  Then describe the sounds, touch, taste and smell.  Really go there and relax.  Breath out tension and breathe in peace.
6.  If you've tried these and other ideas and still can't sleep after about 20 minutes get up and do something else.  It might even be good to have a sofa or comfy chair all set up (with an extra blanket and pillow?) before going to bed.  Go and do something relaxing in another room (ideas below).  And if you fall asleep there, allow that.  Or once you feel sleepy go back to your bed.

Staying in bed when you can't sleep and worrying about not being able to sleep is unlikely to lead to sleep (and gets into the habit of not sleeping when in bed).  So get out of bed to do something else to stop the worry and the tension associated with worry.

Ideas of what to do when you get out of bed in the night because you can't sleep:
1.  Drink chamomile tea which is soothing and can make you sleepy.  Avoid caffeinated teas.
2.  Have warm milk or hot chocolate.  Milk has tryptophan which can help you sleep.
3.  Read something boring (textbook?).  Exciting stories can have the opposite effect.
4.  Listen to quiet soothing music.
5.  Pet your dog or cat.
6.  Think about something you like to do that's relaxing.
7.  Watch someone else sleep.
8.  Develop a relaxing ritual to use before you want to sleep.

Everyone has some nights when it's hard to sleep or stay asleep.  If this is just occasional, there's no need to seek further medical assistance.  But if you regularly find you can't sleep more than 2 hours at a time, you probably should consult a sleep doctor to determine what you could do to get more sleep.



*As we grow older, waking in the night becomes more common for lots of reasons like needing to go the the bathroom, pain in joints, and seniors tend to sleep lighter than younger folks.  As long as you're getting enough sleep (7-8 hours in normal), it's ok if part of you sleep is during the day).