Do you find yourself lying awake at night, counting imaginary sheep that seem to have abandoned you? The inability to fall asleep quickly can be maddening, especially when you keep glancing at the clock. For many people, it takes hours to finally nod off—and that means losing precious hours of deep, restorative rest. With 35% of American adults getting fewer than seven hours of sleep each night, wasting time on tossing and turning is simply not acceptable. To maximize your sleep, you need to train yourself to fall asleep faster. You might be skeptical, thinking, “If I could fall asleep quickly, I already would!” But hear me out. It is absolutely possible to speed up the process—just ask the U.S. military. “The U.S. Navy Pre-Flight School developed a scientific method to fall asleep day or night, in any conditions, in under two minutes,” writes Sharon Ackman on Medium. “After six weeks of practice, 96 percent of pilots could fall asleep in two minutes or less. Even after drinking coffee, with machine gunfire being played in the background.”
A 96% success rate is hard to ignore, so naturally you’ll want to try this technique yourself. The method focuses on three core principles that help you fall asleep quickly, no matter your surroundings. Let’s explore each one in detail. (For a deeper dive, check out Sharon Ackman’s original article on Medium.)
1. Let Your Limbs Sink Deeply
Picture your body as a hollow shell, slowly being filled with heavy sand. The weight of the sand pulls your joints downward into the earth, while you release every bit of muscle tension that holds them up. Allow your shoulders and hips to become loose and heavy. Let your spine settle into the ground.
This technique is essentially progressive muscle relaxation. If you’re new to it, the video below can guide you through the process. Initially, it may take longer than two minutes, but with practice, it will become as effortless as imagining a gentle ocean wave washing away all your stress.
2. Unwind Your Facial Muscles
This step is crucial. Our faces harbor immense tension without us even realizing it. To fall asleep quickly, you must let that tension go. The face contains 43 distinct muscles—and they all deserve a break now and then.
Imagine the muscles in your face melting like pools of warm butter. Start at your forehead, and let the imaginary butter spread and pool across your face bit by bit, dissolving your tension. You might notice some muscles twitching or jumping as they rediscover relaxation. That’s perfectly normal. Once your face is completely relaxed, the rest should follow easily.
3. Clear Your Mind for Just 10 Seconds
Okay, it’s genuinely hard to think about nothing, especially if you’re not a seasoned meditator. But as Kimmy Schmidt wisely said, “A person can stand just about anything for 10 seconds.”
When you’re in bed, it’s tempting to replay the day’s events, worry about tomorrow, or ponder your place in the universe. Be gentle with yourself: let stray thoughts come and go, and aim for 10 uninterrupted seconds of mental stillness where no thoughts exist. (If clearing your mind proves difficult, repeating a mantra can help.)
Since your body is already relaxed, that’s all you need. With some practice, you’ll soon be sound asleep.
This is just a quick overview, but the technique closely resembles yoga nidra—the deeply restorative yoga known for improving sleep. So whether you prefer to trust ancient yogic wisdom or the military’s scientifically backed approach, you’re in for a treat. It may take a week or two (or six) for your body to adapt, but stick with it. The payoff in better sleep will be well worth the effort.
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