Guaranteed ways to quickly go to sleep?

I'm the opposite, a cold bed is comforting to me, even in the winter.

Our bedroom (and my home office) get down to about 54 degrees overnight. I'll leave the socks on!

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My grandparents lived on a farm in Southern Missouri. I remember the bed sheets were always cold, even during the Summer. They had no air conditioning. I think this is why I find cold beds comforting.

Also piggybacking on others...

First, I came to realize whatever is in Zzzquil does nothing for me, while NyQuil makes me drowsy (that's because it's the antihistamine in NyQuil that has the effect, while Zzzquil has no antihistamine). I also realize that regular use of NyQuil is not good for your insides.

Fantasizing stories - I've been doing this since I was a kid and now I have a huge cast of characters to try to keep track of in my head from a variety of genres. Putting my characters into different stories is pretty much a ritual before going to sleep. I guess it gives my mind an escape from the problems of reality and allows me to relax more deeply.

Reading is another ritual for me before going to sleep.

This one's a bit silly, but if I'm having trouble falling asleep I like to imagine all the times my alarm went off, when it was still dark, perhaps raining outside, and I had to get up for work, all the while wishing desperately to go back to sleep. Trying to recreate those thoughts and feelings often works when I realize I can go to sleep and don't have to get up.

Prayer and meditation work sometimes.

As the old song says, try counting blessings instead of sheep. Concentrating on gratitude is a great mind-calmer.

I don't want to tout drugs, but Ambien is the most effective chemical sleep aid I've found. Problem is it works too well. When I stop taking it, insomnia reoccurs. Plus you need a prescription. And I admit, the feeling before you fall asleep is quite euphoric.

Most effective (but requires discipline) is: get up early, work hard during the day, don't nap too much, get a lot of exercise and fresh air, do good deeds - all these will make you tired and able to relax easier upon bedtime.

It does help me, I'm sure, that I really don't nap. I don't like naps, and I really hate waking up from naps, so I avoid them. If I am flagging at my desk in mid-afternoon, I find something fun to do for a while till I'm more alert. But I won't nap.

I definitely agree on the gratitude/blessings thoughts. They always help me. I start the day this way too (along with devotional reading). I also like to fall asleep praying for friends and family individually. Or pray thanksgiving and gratitude to God.

As a teen and young adult I had a VERY tough time falling asleep. Like, HOURS when I was young. I have vivid memories of lying in my four-poster bed in our house in Easton, staring at the ceiling and not being able to sleep. The mind would NOT shut off. But it was the early 1970s and I was certainly not able to solve these issues at age 10+. Plus, I am a night owl and always have been, so having a forced bedtime way earlier than my mind and body wanted to be asleep was always going to be a losing proposition. I was definitely the type to count down the hours left till I had to get up and then would get increasingly upset over the minutes (and then hours) I was losing.

I wouldn't mind that in the summer, of course, but the bedsheets in the waterbed are nice and warm because of the heater under the mattress.

Watch a couple of Bob Ross videos. Those happy little trees knock me right out.

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Sex. Or, if you don't have a partner(s), self pleasure.

*somebody had to say it

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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra

Glad it wasn't me, though. Yoda doesn't want to spend his baseball camp money on therapy.

When I was in college, Bob Ross was on one of the UHF (or PBS?) channels. I'd come home from class, turn on Bob, and usually about half way through I'd be sleeping blissfully!

Have you tried watching a Zack Snyder movie?

I rarely use sleep aids but Unisom (Doxylamine) worked for me.

I put him on in the background when I'm working on model kits. But if I have him playing while I'm playing a game on my phone it zonks me right out.


Also, from MTV's better days:

I heard banging your head against a wall works wonders

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I get up at 4:20am
Get to work at 4:50am
It's now 8:51pm and I'm drinking an ice coffee lol

Stay awake all night. Then when morning comes you'll be dead tired and can go to sleep.

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I destroyed the dastardly dairy dame! I made mad milk maid mulch!

I hate insomnia. Oh yeah. Last year I had four cases of it, and each time it lasted three months.

Was my advice adviceful?

No.

Put a hit out on yourself. Then all of those hitmen and hitwomen will try to kill you. You'll get so tired staying alive, you'll have to rest and rejuvenate. Just be sure to hang a "DO NOT DISTURB" sign on your door. We can't have them killing you before you've had a good sleep.

How's that?