I’m looking for sleeping tricks and thought some other people here might have similar issues or good tricks. Can be anything from getting the motivation to go to sleep to actually tricks to falling asleep.
My current trickbook is basically this:
Podcasts, but it has to be in some goldilocks zone of interesting to enough to keep attention but not too good so it gets exciting.
I’ve also done meditation in bed when falling asleep that tends to work.
Consistent routine is good. Shower, brush teeth, lights off, episode, sleep.
I’m curious to see what other autistic people are working with here.
Two words: Skillet Nap
I basically cannot sleep most of the time without music playing. The key is that it needs to be familiar, and just barely audible. It gives my mind something to focus on aside from racing thoughts/anxiety/etc.
For a podcast consistently in that Goldilocks zone, I recommend Sleep with Me
I’ve been listening at bedtime for over a year and it’s one of the only thing that consistently helps me sleep. It’s not for everyone, but if it works for you it’s amazing.
Care to elaborate a bit? I’m unable to look into it this second. What exactly is the podcast, and what is it about aside from sleep?
Sure, essentially they are bedtime stories, crafted specifically to be interesting enough to distract you from intrusive thoughts that prevent you from falling asleep, but boring enough that it doesn’t stop you from falling asleep. It starts out with an intro that explains what the podcast is, and is different for each episode. Usually it is used to wind down for bed before the actual story starts. The point isn’t to put you to sleep, but to keep you company while you fall asleep, and at least for me his voice is the perfect monotone to put me right to bed.
It’s hard to fully describe the podcast, I would recommend trying it once, and seeing if it vibes with you. Sometimes I’ll skip the intro segment and jump straight into the story, and there is a plethora of different series and stuff to choose from, some are episode recaps of Star Trek episodes, to his own written stories like the multiplex, you’d have to look through the catalog.
every single possible source of blue light is covered. sleep meds, cannabis, Futurama audio.
This has been working for me, so here it is:
-
When you’re ready to fall asleep, pick a five to seven letter word (it can be longer if you can keep track of the letters). (e.g. - “Candle”)
-
For each letter, pick an animal. (e.g. - “C is for Cat”)
-
To the best of your ability, try and picture that animal in as much detail as you think is appropriate. (e.g. - “It’s seated but not laying down. It has cinnamon-colored fur, short. Its nose is pink, etc.”
-
Move on to the next letter and do steps 2 & 3 for each letter.
-
If you finish a word, pick another word, and repeat the same process.
Apparently this mimics the random-ish thought pattern that precedes sleep, and supposedly signals to your brain that the environment is safe enough to sleep.
I forget where I picked this up. This was just one of those things where you go, “Oh - that sounds interesting. I’ll guess I’ll give it a shot if I happen to remember it when I’m trying to fall asleep.” It wasn’t something that I ever really expected to work for me.
