As someone who has always had issues sleeping I hope I can be of some help.
I take 6mg of melatonin. Every night. I have found it allows me to fall asleep within a half hour instead of it taking two hours.
Maintaining good sleep hygiene is often very helpful. Avoid blue light before going to bed. Physical activity and exercise are important. Try not to eat right before going to bed.
When I am really stressed out and just can't sleep, I lie in bed and daydream, (often it's some type of fantasy where I get to live in the future where mankind is living throughout the solar system, I digress). I find doing this calms me down, making it easier to fall asleep.
I don't have trouble sleeping, but when you refer to daydreaming, this is exactly what I do. I play out stories in my mind where I'm in a fictional fantasy (not related to my life in anyway).
Another thing I experienced was when I cut out sugar and caffeine, I'd be able to fall asleep in almost any place. Again, that may only be my experiences.
I just have to be careful about taking it too late, if I really need to be up the next morning. I find that when I take melatonin, I really need my full 8 hours (or more) of sleep, or I feel pretty groggy for quite a while after waking up.
Not really what OP asked, but I think it's far more important to try and fix the cause of why you can't go to sleep, instead of working on the symptoms.
1. Try to go to bed at the same time every day (and sleep the same amount of time). I'm a night owl and can easily move my day on, but moving it back is very difficult.
2. Sleeping ritual. Mine is pretty simple, I turn the lights off, climb in bed and lie on my right hand side. After a bit (1-10 minutes) I will turn over and then I'm pretty much immediately asleep. If you repeat something it will become ingrained (and will work most of the time).
3. Fix all sources of disturbances. Partner, pets, light, noise etc.
4. Learning to switch your brain off. Try not to watch/read something that's too emotionally charged before bed.
5. After that everything else that has already been mentioned, eating too close to going to bed, having drunk something so you need to get up to pee etc.
For most people sleep shouldn't be a problem, they just have terrible habits and/or environment.
I find that I need a cutoff point where I'm not allowed to do any more work. Otherwise I'll be thinking about work and productivity up until the point where I literally become unconscious (fall asleep).
Sometimes I read/listen to educational stuff. I try to keep it on the lighter side. Sometimes I listen/watch comedy. Right now I've been watching Seinfeld before bed. Before that was Khan Academy history.
I remember hearing advice from some credible source (that I can't remember) that it's not good to keep trying to fall asleep when you are struggling. I think 20 minutes was the point where it was recommended to get out of bed and do something else for a bit. Anecdotally, it works reasonably well for me.
When I can't sleep, I do something which I call the '1 2 3 4 5'-exercise.
While still in bed, lay on your back and think of something you can 'see' (imagine it), anything as long as it's something that physically exists. For example: your car, a guitar, a chair. Imagine it and try to describe it to yourself in the best possible detail. 'My guitar is surf green, it's a Fender Carbonita, it has 22 frets, it has a maple neck, ...' Do this for five things.
Then move on to "things you can feel". Physically feel. For example, describe how your couch feels, how your blanket feels. Again, every little detail. Five times.
Then think of five things you can hear: not at that exact moment in your bed, but things you might have heard throughout the day. Something I think of often is the sound of a train arriving or leaving. Again, try to describe it to yourself in the best possible detail. Do this, again, five times.
Then start over at describing something you can 'see'. Do it four times, move on to feeling, 4 times, move on to hearing, 4 times. Then all over again, except this time 3 times. Then 2, then 1.
I have never made it past the first 5 descriptions of 'see'. I usually fall asleep after describing two objects to myself.
It might help you fall asleep.. Might not. Worth a try, perhaps?
As a kid I had a hard time getting to sleep (small home, could hear everything). I eventually learned to block everything out and sleep using the following routine:
1. Start breathing as slow as possible.
2. Count breathes, starting at 100 and working back.
That usually did the trick.
As i understand, when you can't sleep your mind is active and / or is receptive. Mostly its receptive to new ideas, and hence reading aids in thinking and churning ideas.
In case your mind is active and has too much noise like worries / anxiety etc. i find it best to watch videos i saved for later on youtube or ted.
Most importantly I try to take my mind off thinking about the day/problems in general. If I'm a 'little awake' I make movies/stories in my head in as much detail as I can conjurer. Usually some adventure story I play out. Kinda amuses me until I drift off.
If I'm really awake and don't want to go back to work I put on a movie onto the TV I've already watched a few times, ideally something a bit boring. Usually that makes me drift off.
There's also the more personal option I'm surprised no-one has mentioned yet. That tends to help the boys sleep at least.
I can't sleep when my mind is racing with ideas or replaying the day.
First, I'll write down all my ideas, thoughts, etc. Even if just a few words, I think that action helps me brain turn off.
If I'm still awake, the big guns, I'll read a fiction book in another language. A few minutes of that and I'm exhausted. The kindle is great for that, because it's got an easy dictionary for looking up unknown words. Just make sure you're wearing orange tinted glasses or you're on a non-lit screen, otherwise the blue in the phone screen will wake you up further.
Get up, eat a small amount of cooked oatmeal or other complex carbohydrate cereals (the tryptophan link), go back to bed, read a novel and you'll likely drop off after a few dozen pages.
I think falling a sleep at will can be done by either getting too tired or too bored. I generally watch / read something really boring (e.g. I cannot stand biology related books or youtube video teaching biology. Sometimes I force my self to watch / read a boring books / videos and in 15min I start yawning and soon sleep.
Another thing I do is I climb stairs to my house (I stay on the 6th floor and have to climb more than 100 steps)
Assume that this is probably going to be a bad night, you will not sleep much and tomorrow you will be tired. First of all accept that, or you will feel even more anxious. The good part is that tomorrow night you will be tired, so it will be easier to fall sleep.
Then, try to do something to distract yourself. It is really boring to spend the night laying on the bed and feeling miserable because you cannot sleep. Grab a book or watch a film, at least you will do something profitable during the night. Finally, at some point, you will fall asleep. It will be probably too late, but at this point there's nothing you can do about that.
IMPORTANT: Wake up at your time. You will feel extremely tired, and it will be really hard to wake up; but if you sleep until late, you will be altering your internal clock and next day you won't be able to sleep early neither.
If you cannot sleep for several days in a row, probably you should see a doctor. He will be able to help you.
I read a book. I have trouble reading books lately because I keep falling asleep, but that makes them perfect cures for insomnia.
But more seriously, reading some fiction (not news!) is a great way to clear the mind and distract your thoughts from all the stuff that's keeping you awake.
At this point I no longer understand what "can't fall asleep" feels like. Especially after having a child my concern is how to stay awake rather than not fall asleep. Not that I regret it but it has taken a toll on my personal projects.
I mostly get restless when I'm excited about something (much like kids on Christmas Eve).
Its particularly bad tonight/this morning; I found Elixir a few days ago, and I keep thinking about doing things with it.
Often I'll try to go to bed, get in some weird thought-state, and "wake" back up with a fully planned project in my head I just absolutely have to get worked out.... or.... rather, usually, some really weird/dumb idea that I thought was great and probably shouldn't have wasted the night on.
If I have specific thoughts or concerns swirling around in my head, I find it is sometimes helpful to jump out of bed, find a pen and paper, and write them all down. Often this lets me get to sleep more easily afterwards, as I no longer have to worry about "remembering things for the morning".
Getting a period of decent exercise (walking, jogging, etc) between work-time and sleep-time also seemed to help break up the day for me, and ensure I am both somewhat physically tired as well as mentally tired.
Lie on your bed. Relax. Instead of trying to fall asleep (and thinking about it) think about making yourself as comfortable as possible. Turn this way, move your arm that way,... Once you've done it, the sleep usually follows. In short, think comfort not sleep.
P.S.
I've used to have troubles falling asleep, but that simple method helped me to solve the problem. I would give the credit to the original author, but I can't remember where I read it.
Get up, eat a small amount of cooked oatmeal or other complex carbohydrate cereal, return to bed and read a novel; after a few pages you'll likely drop off.
Take an antihistamine which makes me drowsy, and then I sleep. Sleepiness is often a function or two things:
(a) feeling comfortable
(b) not being too busy minded about things
In my case, sometimes I just don't feel comfortable enough. However, I think even a sugar pill would help some, because in some cases it's just a matter of deciding to stop thinking about things enough to settle down.
[+] [-] jeo1234|10 years ago|reply
I take 6mg of melatonin. Every night. I have found it allows me to fall asleep within a half hour instead of it taking two hours.
Maintaining good sleep hygiene is often very helpful. Avoid blue light before going to bed. Physical activity and exercise are important. Try not to eat right before going to bed.
When I am really stressed out and just can't sleep, I lie in bed and daydream, (often it's some type of fantasy where I get to live in the future where mankind is living throughout the solar system, I digress). I find doing this calms me down, making it easier to fall asleep.
[+] [-] martin-adams|10 years ago|reply
Another thing I experienced was when I cut out sugar and caffeine, I'd be able to fall asleep in almost any place. Again, that may only be my experiences.
[+] [-] mindcrime|10 years ago|reply
I just have to be careful about taking it too late, if I really need to be up the next morning. I find that when I take melatonin, I really need my full 8 hours (or more) of sleep, or I feel pretty groggy for quite a while after waking up.
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melatonin
[2]: http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/tc/melatonin-overview
[+] [-] ParanoidShroom|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] animal531|10 years ago|reply
1. Try to go to bed at the same time every day (and sleep the same amount of time). I'm a night owl and can easily move my day on, but moving it back is very difficult.
2. Sleeping ritual. Mine is pretty simple, I turn the lights off, climb in bed and lie on my right hand side. After a bit (1-10 minutes) I will turn over and then I'm pretty much immediately asleep. If you repeat something it will become ingrained (and will work most of the time).
3. Fix all sources of disturbances. Partner, pets, light, noise etc.
4. Learning to switch your brain off. Try not to watch/read something that's too emotionally charged before bed.
5. After that everything else that has already been mentioned, eating too close to going to bed, having drunk something so you need to get up to pee etc.
For most people sleep shouldn't be a problem, they just have terrible habits and/or environment.
[+] [-] adamzerner|10 years ago|reply
Sometimes I read/listen to educational stuff. I try to keep it on the lighter side. Sometimes I listen/watch comedy. Right now I've been watching Seinfeld before bed. Before that was Khan Academy history.
I remember hearing advice from some credible source (that I can't remember) that it's not good to keep trying to fall asleep when you are struggling. I think 20 minutes was the point where it was recommended to get out of bed and do something else for a bit. Anecdotally, it works reasonably well for me.
[+] [-] dinosaurs|10 years ago|reply
While still in bed, lay on your back and think of something you can 'see' (imagine it), anything as long as it's something that physically exists. For example: your car, a guitar, a chair. Imagine it and try to describe it to yourself in the best possible detail. 'My guitar is surf green, it's a Fender Carbonita, it has 22 frets, it has a maple neck, ...' Do this for five things.
Then move on to "things you can feel". Physically feel. For example, describe how your couch feels, how your blanket feels. Again, every little detail. Five times.
Then think of five things you can hear: not at that exact moment in your bed, but things you might have heard throughout the day. Something I think of often is the sound of a train arriving or leaving. Again, try to describe it to yourself in the best possible detail. Do this, again, five times.
Then start over at describing something you can 'see'. Do it four times, move on to feeling, 4 times, move on to hearing, 4 times. Then all over again, except this time 3 times. Then 2, then 1.
I have never made it past the first 5 descriptions of 'see'. I usually fall asleep after describing two objects to myself.
It might help you fall asleep.. Might not. Worth a try, perhaps?
[+] [-] th0waway|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rajeshmr|10 years ago|reply
As i understand, when you can't sleep your mind is active and / or is receptive. Mostly its receptive to new ideas, and hence reading aids in thinking and churning ideas.
In case your mind is active and has too much noise like worries / anxiety etc. i find it best to watch videos i saved for later on youtube or ted.
[+] [-] Gustomaximus|10 years ago|reply
If I'm really awake and don't want to go back to work I put on a movie onto the TV I've already watched a few times, ideally something a bit boring. Usually that makes me drift off.
There's also the more personal option I'm surprised no-one has mentioned yet. That tends to help the boys sleep at least.
[+] [-] JackMorgan|10 years ago|reply
First, I'll write down all my ideas, thoughts, etc. Even if just a few words, I think that action helps me brain turn off.
If I'm still awake, the big guns, I'll read a fiction book in another language. A few minutes of that and I'm exhausted. The kindle is great for that, because it's got an easy dictionary for looking up unknown words. Just make sure you're wearing orange tinted glasses or you're on a non-lit screen, otherwise the blue in the phone screen will wake you up further.
[+] [-] vixen99|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vayarajesh|10 years ago|reply
Another thing I do is I climb stairs to my house (I stay on the 6th floor and have to climb more than 100 steps)
[+] [-] 6t6t6|10 years ago|reply
Assume that this is probably going to be a bad night, you will not sleep much and tomorrow you will be tired. First of all accept that, or you will feel even more anxious. The good part is that tomorrow night you will be tired, so it will be easier to fall sleep.
Then, try to do something to distract yourself. It is really boring to spend the night laying on the bed and feeling miserable because you cannot sleep. Grab a book or watch a film, at least you will do something profitable during the night. Finally, at some point, you will fall asleep. It will be probably too late, but at this point there's nothing you can do about that.
IMPORTANT: Wake up at your time. You will feel extremely tired, and it will be really hard to wake up; but if you sleep until late, you will be altering your internal clock and next day you won't be able to sleep early neither.
If you cannot sleep for several days in a row, probably you should see a doctor. He will be able to help you.
[+] [-] mcv|10 years ago|reply
But more seriously, reading some fiction (not news!) is a great way to clear the mind and distract your thoughts from all the stuff that's keeping you awake.
[+] [-] kyriakos|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] d2xdy2|10 years ago|reply
Its particularly bad tonight/this morning; I found Elixir a few days ago, and I keep thinking about doing things with it.
Often I'll try to go to bed, get in some weird thought-state, and "wake" back up with a fully planned project in my head I just absolutely have to get worked out.... or.... rather, usually, some really weird/dumb idea that I thought was great and probably shouldn't have wasted the night on.
[+] [-] shoo|10 years ago|reply
Getting a period of decent exercise (walking, jogging, etc) between work-time and sleep-time also seemed to help break up the day for me, and ensure I am both somewhat physically tired as well as mentally tired.
[+] [-] vukmir|10 years ago|reply
Lie on your bed. Relax. Instead of trying to fall asleep (and thinking about it) think about making yourself as comfortable as possible. Turn this way, move your arm that way,... Once you've done it, the sleep usually follows. In short, think comfort not sleep.
P.S.
I've used to have troubles falling asleep, but that simple method helped me to solve the problem. I would give the credit to the original author, but I can't remember where I read it.
[+] [-] vixen99|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] hadeharian|10 years ago|reply
In my case, sometimes I just don't feel comfortable enough. However, I think even a sugar pill would help some, because in some cases it's just a matter of deciding to stop thinking about things enough to settle down.
[+] [-] sdnguyen90|10 years ago|reply
Sleeping with blinds open is pretty important for the next day. If you don't have any natural light then getting sunlight as early as possible helps.
If I do take melatonin, I don't take it past 1 AM... I feel like it messes up my circadian rhythm even worse if I do.
[+] [-] seekingcharlie|10 years ago|reply
Breathe deeply & concentrate on making your exhale longer than your inhale.