You may notice:
• Trouble falling asleep
• Waking up frequently at night
• Light, unrefreshing sleep
• Feeling exhausted despite enough hours in bed
• Your mind becoming most active at bedtime
Many people say:
“My body is tired, but my brain won’t switch off.”
Here’s something important to understand:
Sleep problems are not a lack of discipline.
They’re a sign that your brain hasn’t felt safe enough to power down.
Let’s help it do that.
The Brain Wind-Down (Cognitive Shuffle)
What this helps with
• Difficulty falling asleep
• Bedtime overthinking
• Racing thoughts at night
Why this works
Your brain stays awake when it senses threat or unfinished business.
Random, neutral thinking confuses the threat system and allows sleep to arrive.
This is not distraction.
It’s deactivation.
How to do it
While lying in bed:
1. Pick a random, neutral category (objects, fruits, animals)
2. Slowly imagine unrelated items:
• Apple
• Chair
• Blue balloon
• Shoe
• Window
3. No story. No logic. Just images.
If your mind wanders, gently return to another random item.
Sleep often arrives quietly, without warning.
Fixed Wake-Up Anchor
What this helps with
• Irregular sleep
• Broken sleep cycles
• Feeling jet-lagged without travel
Why this works
Sleep works on rhythm, not force.
A fixed wake-up time rebuilds your body’s natural sleep pressure.
Going to bed early doesn’t fix sleep.
Waking up consistently does.
How to do it
1. Choose one fixed wake-up time
2. Wake up at that time every day (even after a bad night)
3. Avoid daytime naps longer than 20 minutes
Within days, your body starts asking for sleep naturally.
A Reassuring Thought
Sleep is not something you do.
It’s something that happens when the conditions are right.
Your job isn’t to force sleep.
It’s to remove the obstacles.
Progress Looks Like
• Falling asleep slightly faster
• Fewer awakenings
• Feeling a bit more rested
Even small improvements matter.