How to fall asleep again when you wake up in the middle of the night
Do you often find yourself waking up in the middle of the night? If so, here are some ideas to help you fall back asleep again.
Waking up in the middle of the night and looking at the clock only to find out that it’s three in the morning is extremely frustrating. If you tend to experience this problem on a regular basis, take a look at a few useful things to do to help yourself fall asleep spontaneously again. Try some of the following tips next time when sudden insomnia prevents you from getting high-quality sleep.
Deep breathing technique
When you toss and turn in bed because you can’t sleep, your pulse increases and breath is shallow. Breathing exercises can slow down your heart rate, if you allow yourself to focus only on deep breathing. Instead of the usual chest breathing, try to breathe from the stomach.
In the beginning, it may feel a little odd because you activate muscles in the stomach, so it takes more exercise, but once you master it with the technique you will be able to use it later when you need to fall asleep. For starters, remember to breathe slowly and in a controlled manner – inhale slowly through the nose and count to five, exhale through your mouth while also counting to five.
Relaxation therapy
Gradually relax the muscles from head to toe. Use the same technique for all muscle groups, in this order: face, jaw and neck, shoulders, upper arms, hands, fingers, chest, abdomen, buttocks, thighs, calves and feet. Repeat the whole cycle a couple of times if necessary, until you feel completely relaxed.
If your child has problems sleeping make sure that his pillows and mattress are the right shape and size. Ecosa kid mattress is a great choice for the utmost relaxation of your child. Ecosa created Australia’s first adjustable mattress in a box, giving you the freedom to flip and switch the three interchangeable layers to find the firmness that suits your child. They have enough room to move and the materials are fully breathable and help regulate the child’s temperature, so you can rest easy knowing they’re safe.
Visual imagery
When you go to sleep, concentrate on a certain picture that makes you feel more relaxed. In your mind, imagine a soothing picture, to switch your attention from being unable to sleep. Some suitable motifs are natural landscapes such as sunset, meadow with stream, snow covered mountain or a realistic image of an orange and its texture. When you want to fall asleep, focus on colors, shapes and detailed imagery.
Meditation
This is probably the most famous relaxation technique which has been used for hundreds of years to relax both mind and body. If meditation is completely unknown to you, we suggest you meditate with assistance, because it will help you get peaceful sleep faster. Passive (usually sitting) position in which a person meditates calms the body and the running mind, but the main effect of meditation is control over thoughts and relief from worries and stress.
Get out of bed
If you fail to fall asleep after about 20 minutes to half an hour, get out of bed. Sit in a comfortable chair or armchair, read a book but without a bright light or calm yourself down by quietly listening to music or an audio book for a few minutes. Go back to bed when you feel drowsy.
Sleeping problems are a common problem both for kids and for adults. First make sure that the mattress is suitable, and then apply all these techniques. What is your favorite technique from the above mentioned ones? How do you cope with insomnia? Tell us about your experience in the comment section below!
