How Do You Fall Asleep?

[Mr Light]

What's your nightly ritual for falling asleep?

I sleep with a small TV right next to my head with earplugs in. So I fall asleep with the TV on with the volume just low enough to comprehend. I also wear a sleep mask, mainly for the TV glare. I read my book on the commercials using the aforementioned TV glare.

I also have a white noise machine on high for several reasons. I can't stand the roar of silence but I also live in an apartment above a tanning salon that blares the same ten goddamn songs over and over starting at about 8/9 in the morning for the entire day and night and also the apartment against my wall is populated with a screaming running banging small child and a couple that fights and screams and slams doors every other day. Fun fun!

 

[archeryguy1701]

I generally watch TV for 10-15 minutes, then I spend a couple minutes lying on either side before finally falling asleep on my back. I can only sleep on my back, but unless I am completely racked out, I can't just lie down and pass out- I have to spend some time on both sides before settling in.

 

[John Picard]

Mass quantities of beer usually do the trick, although it's more accurate to call that "passing out cold".

 

[Mr. B]

I'm usually on my computer before bed. Unlike some here I fall asleep in darkness and complete silence.

 

[auntiehill]

In my bed, in the dark, with earplugs in because hubby snores.

I usually read the BBS or check email, or play some mindless game on the computer to wind down a bit before bed time.

 

[Mallory]

I'm usually on my computer before bed. Unlike some here I fall asleep in darkness and complete silence.

Same here. I just shut down the laptop, turn off the lights, climb into bed and that's it.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

I'm stil reminded of Douglas Adams's How, Why and Where principle:

How do we fall asleep?
Why do we fall asleep?
Where shall we crash for the night?




Me, I need my fifteen minutes or so of snuggling myself in bed with a good magazine before passing out into the darkness....

And then of course I start to think about actually falling asleep instead.

 

[Neutrino]

Well before I bought my memory foam pillow I hardly slept at all, now i'm out like a light.

 

[nevermore]

I turn out the light, get in bed and close my eyes.

 

[captcalhoun]

after cleaning my teeth and so on, i usually lie in bed reading until 22:45 or so, then put the light out, get comfy and then poof, i'm asleep.

 

[Warp Coil]

I lay in bed with the TV on. I can't sleep in complete silence because I start hearing all the creaks and noises in my place and start to panic that something's wrong (a couple of water leaks and a burst pipe will do that to you... at least, it will to me). Sometimes if conditions are just right, I will fall asleep quickly. But usually I'm laying in bed for a while before I actually fall asleep. Then I wake up at some random time in the middle of the night and turn the TV off (I don't set a timer... yeah I probably should).

 

[Sledder]

Sometimes I'll read but mostly I just turn off the lights and I'm sleeping inside of 5 minutes.

 

[Ethros]

Reminds me of a scene in the sitcom Bottom

Richie- Eddie, what do you do when you go to bed?
Eddie- Well I usually have a bit of kip
Richie- No I mean, what's your going-to-bed-routine?
Eddie- Oh, routine. Well, I usually get into bed... and then I have a bit of a kip


For me I just turn off the light and get into bed and close my eyes... then usually wait about 30-40 minutes as no matter how tired I am it always takes me a while to fall asleep.
It also has to be pitch black and complete silence, otherwise I have trouble. Therefore when I wake up in the early hours (which I always do) and it's slighltly light out and my dad gets up super early and starts banging about, I have to put in my ear plugs and wear a blindfold on to get back to sleep properly

 

[SiorX]

I read until I'm ready to pass out, then switch out the light.

The one great danger with this method is when one chooses too gripping a book. More than once I've kept reading right up until the point where my alarm goes off to wake me for work, which is an incredibly bad idea.

 

[iguana_tonante]

Turn off my computer and/or tv, put on my sleeping clothes (usually a white t-shirt and comfy shorts), go to the bathroom, go to bed, turn off my light and fall asleep in the dark and silence. Since it's usually around 2am and I'm dead tired, I don't find it difficult at all. Lucky me, I guess.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I have to have music playing. I use Liquid Mind for this purpose - it's slow and relaxing. I can't sleep if there's total silence - I get nervous.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I normally put some music on very quietly, just enough that I can hear it but quiet enough that I can't necessarily make it out.

I lay down and imagine myself slowly falling down a hole, with me looking up. The light at the opening gets farther and farther away. I'm normally asleep by the time it gets to be a pinpoint of light. I'm not sure why it works, I just tried it once and it works very well.

 

[An Officer]

I used to read until I felt sufficiently sleepy, then turn the lights out, turn on my best side, and away I went. Occasionally with the radio on low if I was having trouble falling asleep.

 

[exodus]

Clutching a shotgun & waiting for the man eating ducks to come for me.

 

[Mr Light]

I used to always count down from 10 over and over to relax my mind, but I don't do that anymore. I also usually have some kind of mental story playing in my mind.