Guaranteed to get you to sleep apparently
1. Relax your entire face, including all the muscles and your tongue, from your jaw to inside your mouth. It can be easier to tense them all up first and then let go.
2. Drop your shoulders to release any tension and allow your hands to drop to the side of your body.
3. Exhale, relaxing your chest and focusing on the breath. Also allow your legs, thighs and calves to relax in the process, letting gravity pull them down naturally.
4. Clear your mind for ten seconds, imagining a relaxing scene. If this doesn’t work, try saying the words “don’t think” over and over for 10 seconds.
5. Within ten seconds, you should fall asleep, but it may take up to two minutes when you first start practicing.
The technique, which was designed to help soldiers fall asleep quickly in any situation to help minimise the risk of mistakes made on the job, puts the emphasis on helping to alleviate muscle tension and unwind the body which in turn helps activate the parasympathetic nervous system, that is responsible for our rest and recover mode.