 Number one, if you're trying to fall asleep as fast as possible, what you do not want to do is start counting or counting sheep or visualizing something like that because what that's going to do is it's going to keep you focused on something and all of the time that you're focused on something you're engaging with your mind and your thoughts and so that's just going to keep you awake for longer. So I know this is a common technique that people say, oh you should just count sheep and count from one to a thousand you know and that will help you fall asleep. The truth is it doesn't really work that well and when it does work it's kind of an accident and it's sort of a result of the things I'm going to explain later in this video. Number two, the second thing you don't want to do if you're trying to fall asleep quickly, you don't want to think too much and I know this is much easier said than done because you're the whole time you're going to be thinking about stuff and that's very hard to stop doing. It's very hard to stop thinking about something in the same way that if I tell you right now do not think about a purple elephant, of course the first thing you're going to think about is the purple elephant because your brain works like that. You know if you try and tell it to not do something it will usually do that thing. If you try and not think about scary things at night or if you try and not to think you will end up thinking even more. So it's kind of annoying really but there's a few ways you can there's a few ways you can stop your brain doing that. Meditation during the day really does help and that will help you to more easily turn off your brain, shut your brain off at night and whenever you want to really because your brain should be like a tool that you decide to use. It shouldn't be on all the time. You shouldn't be constantly thinking and having these thoughts and conversations in your head all the time because you just get overwhelmed and then you'll be watching videos like this because you can't sleep. Number three, don't just lay there. If you really really can't sleep and you're just laying there you're trying to stop thinking you're trying to relax and nothing is happening for like half an hour or more you need to actually get up out of bed because the more time the more you lay there the more frustrated you're going to be and the more annoyed you're going to be that you're not sleeping already and it's just going to be like a vicious circle until eventually it gets to 4 a.m and you're just thinking why am I not asleep yet? You start checking the time you wonder why you're not sleeping. If you're really not sleeping within half an hour or so get up out of bed start reading. Don't look at any screens because that's going to make you produce you know less melatonin and you're going to be staying awake for longer. Don't look at screens but just get up out of bed and start doing something like reading. You can meditate at this time just sit there in silence and just have be with your thoughts but as long as you're standing or sitting up. And number four, don't look at your phone and every time you look at your phone what happens is two things right? Number one you check the time and you see the time you see like it's 2 a.m and you wonder why the hell am I not asleep yet? This is annoying you get frustrated which makes your blood pressure go up your heart rate goes up you and it becomes even harder to fall asleep because you're annoyed at yourself that you haven't fallen asleep. So that's number one and then number two is it also makes it harder to fall asleep because the blue light in the phone screen enters your retinas and stops your body producing melatonin and you actually start producing serotonin which you should only really be producing when you're waking up. So the sun the sun is meant to make your body produce serotonin so that you feel awake and alert. If you look at your phone screen you're basically charging up your body with that blue light and telling your body that it's time to wake up. You're going to feel even less tired when you look at your phone screen for those two reasons. And then number five don't get annoyed about the fact that you've not fallen asleep yet. The more annoyed you get with yourself and with the situation the harder it will be to fall asleep it is what it is. Just treat it as though it doesn't matter whether you fall asleep or not. Just try and not care. And I know this is hard easier said than done especially if you have to wake up early or you have something to do tomorrow or if you need your sleep for whatever reason but the more you stress if you stress about it and if you get annoyed with yourself that you're not falling asleep you will make yourself fall asleep even slower. So it's kind of you're kind of shooting yourself in the foot by doing that. Pretend even if you have to pretend okay. Just imagine that you don't care about whether you fall asleep or not and you'll fall asleep faster.