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快速入睡法 -- Jonny Thomson
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湯姆生博士在哲學系任教。他在《大想法》上這篇文章討論如何快速入睡。這個方法根據美軍對入睡方法的研究，有五個步驟。
湯姆生博士首先討論欠缺睡眠對人體健康及人們行為在各方面可能造成的負面影響。接著他指出戰場上士兵們睡眠的重要性。然後他介紹「美軍入睡法」的五個步驟：
1. 放鬆臉部肌肉；
2. 讓肩膀下垂；
3. 深呼吸；
4. 放鬆腿部肌肉；
5. 放空大腦；這一部分有兩個方法：
a. 想像一些安詳寧靜的畫面；
b. 重複：「別胡思亂想」大約20秒鐘。(此處因為中文字數較多，所以比原文所說時間增加了一倍。)
各位如果有「睡不著」的問題，不妨姑妄試試；但要持之以恆。
The 5-step “military method” for falling asleep in minutes
You'll be able to sleep through a war.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
* The military method is a sleep technique practiced by the U.S. Army to help soldiers sleep under any conditions, including gunfire.
* The method consists of five steps, focusing on progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing, and guided imagery to achieve a calm and peaceful state.
* Incorporating the military method into a nightly routine can improve sleep habits and overall well-being.
Jonny Thomson, 06/09/23
The Chinese authorities have a torture method known as “exhausting an eagle.” It refers to an ancient practice by which falconers would train their birds of prey by never letting them sleep. The idea was that if you keep a falcon awake long enough, you’ll break its will. Humans are no different.
To “exhaust an eagle” is when Chinese guards bang a gong next to your ear or shine two intensely bright lights at your face to make sure you don’t sleep. What the Chinese interrogation services know (as the CIA knows, too) is that a sleep-deprived man is a weak man. When you cannot rest, you’ll say and do whatever your captors want.
Sleep is vital to how we function. Poor sleep has been linked to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, and dementia. Sleep deprivation affects your mood, makes you less likely to remember things, and makes your immune system less capable of fighting infections. It also affects performance. You are far more accident-prone and have far poorer judgment when you’re sleepy. As the National Institutes for Health observes, “Sleep deficiency has also played a role in human mistakes linked to tragic accidents, such as nuclear reactor meltdowns, grounding of large ships, and plane crashes.”
For people in the military, getting good sleep can be a matter of life and death. This is why the U.S. Army practices the “military method” of sleep. Here, we look at what that means, and how we all can learn from it to get a better night’s rest.
The military method of sleep
When your sleeping quarters are located in the middle of loud, stressful, and dangerous conditions, you might find it hard to nod off. Given that “loud, stressful, and dangerous” is kind of the U.S. Army’s thing, they needed a method to help their soldiers sleep. This technique — the “military method” — was first recorded in the 1981 book Relax and Win: Championship Performance by Olympic coach Lloyd Bud Winter.
Winter spent the years after World War II talking to members of the U.S. Army Air Corps and he learned about a little-known technique they used to relax their pilots. It was said that pilots in the Pre-Flight School who used the military method were able to fall asleep within 10 minutes. Within only six weeks, 96% of pilots using the method were reportedly able to fall asleep within this timeframe — even with gunfire in the background.
The five steps
So, what is this magic technique? Below we lay out the military method’s steps to a good night’s sleep. It’s deliberately designed to be easy and efficient, so anyone can start tonight.
1. Relax your face. Focus on your forehead, your eyes, your cheeks, your jaw, and so on. Feel the tension held in them and consciously push it away.
2. Drop your shoulders. Let your arms flop down and your shoulders relax. Imagine there is a soft, warm wind gently pushing your arms down.
3. Take a deep breath. Slowly inhale and let it out. As you do so, focus on how it relaxes your stomach. Don’t try to hold your stomach in; let it all out.
4. Relax your legs. The warm wind is back, and this time it’s gently easing your legs down. Let your legs sink into the bed or the floor. They are leaden, and the bed is soft.
5. Clear your mind. There are a few ways to do this. For instance, try to visualize some calming images, like lying by a flowing river or staring at the clouds. If that doesn’t work, try saying the words “don’t think” over and over for about 10 seconds. If you get distracted, don’t get angry; just pull your mind back to one of those two techniques.
Practice makes perfect
What does the science say about the military method of sleep? It turns out that Winter and the U.S. Army might be on to something. Stages 1, 2, and 4 are otherwise known as “progressive muscle relaxation,” and evidence suggests it’s a good way to induce a calm, peaceful state. What’s more, the breathing techniques in stage 3 and the “guided imagery” of stage 5 have been shown to “enhance relaxation states, and improve overall well-being.”
But there’s also a hidden benefit lurking within the military method, and that’s the fact that it’s a method. Research has shown that keeping a routine is one of the best ways to improve your sleeping habits. It could be reading before bed, taking a shower, or doing some light exercise. The point is that routine itself is important. So give the military method a go, but don’t expect instant results. It can take between two and six weeks to become an expert — enough time for it to become routine. Stick at it, and you might just wake up feeling well-rested.
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從生理學解讀失眠的四個原因 - Emily Hylton-Jean
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這篇文章從生理學知識來分析「失眠」原因。讀了之後，我頗有「原來如此」的感覺。對我來說，難免得知恨晚。65歲以下又有失眠問題的朋友們，不妨參考看看。
4 Reasons You Can’t Sleep
Quick tips for better slumber.
Emily Hylton-Jean Ph.D., MPH, Reviewed by Margaret Foley, 12/03/24
Few everyday experiences are as satisfying as a good night’s sleep. And when it eludes us, night after night, we can start to form bad sleep habits out of desperation. As a psychologist working with patients with sleep difficulties, I’ve found that many folks have heard the conventional wisdom of sleep hygiene (i.e., don’t stare at a screen right before bed, keep the bedroom as dark as possible), but few understand the major factors that may be impacting their sleep architecture and interfering with their current sleep. Understanding these common problems—and identifying which may be impacting you—can help you make changes to improve your sleep quality.
Reason #1: Your Sleep Drive Is Low
The term “sleep drive” refers to our biological urge to sleep. Sleep drive functions similarly to hunger: As time passes since your last meal, you become progressively hungrier, and as time passes since your last sleep, you build a progressively higher sleep drive. We fall asleep best when our sleep drive is very high. Napping throughout the day weakens the sleep drive, just like snacking weakens hunger. Even if you are able to fall asleep easily on a day that includes a lengthy afternoon snooze, you are more likely to wake up after just a few hours because your sleep drive may not be high enough to keep you asleep throughout the entire night. Similarly, you may be tempted to sleep in after a night of tossing and turning, but your sleep drive won’t have time to build sufficiently during the day if you wake up late—which could lead to more difficulties sleeping the next night.
How to build your sleep drive: Avoid napping whenever possible (or keep naps to 30 minutes within the first half of your day), don’t sleep in past your regular wake-up time, and stay active during the day.
Reason #2: Your Internal Clock (or Circadian Rhythm) Is Out of Sync With Your Schedule
Our bodies cycle through changes on a roughly 24-hour basis. For example, our average core body temperature can shift as much as a full degree Fahrenheit (.5 degree Celsius) throughout the day and tends to be lowest at around 4 a.m. and highest at around 6 p.m. Our hormone production also shifts on a 24-hour cycle, which can impact our levels of alertness or sleepiness. Each person’s circadian rhythm is influenced by their own unique genetics. Some of us naturally have an earlier chronotype—meaning that our bodies naturally fall asleep and wake up earlier—and others have a later chronotype. Generally, we sleep best when our sleep schedule is regular and aligned with our circadian rhythm. If you are trying to force yourself to sleep between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m.—but your body naturally syncs best to a 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. sleep schedule—you will likely not sleep as well. Likewise, shift work (work that requires overnight labor) is associated with poorer sleep for most folks due to misalignment with their circadian rhythm.
How to regulate your circadian rhythm: Wake up at the same time every morning, keep a regular daily schedule, and seek employment that allows you to sleep in alignment with your circadian rhythm.
Reason #3: You Have a High Level of Emotional Arousal
Would you be able to sleep if you could hear a tiger scratching and growling behind your bedroom door? Probably not, because our bodies respond to a potential threat with fear, which includes a sense of emotional arousal. You might experience tension in your muscles, notice your heart pounding faster, or feel yourself sweating through your pajamas. Unfortunately, our bodies respond to day-to-day stressors similarly to the threat of a wild animal—whether those stressors include a presentation you have for work tomorrow, a bill you can’t afford this month, or an argument brewing with your partner. We don’t fall asleep easily when we are in a state of emotional arousal. Over time, feeling stressed in bed can lead to negative associations. In the case of chronic insomnia, one can get so used to tossing and turning that even climbing into bed brings on a sense of stress. Have you ever woken up from dozing on the couch, climbed into bed, and then found yourself suddenly wide awake? This might be because you have developed an association between being in bed and feeling anxious. Improving sleep requires breaking this association and creating a new mental pairing: of being in bed and feeling sleepy.
How to calm emotional arousal: Engage in relaxing or soothing activities in the hour before your normal bedtime, and wait until you feel very sleepy to get into bed. If you wake up in the night and lie awake for more than 20 minutes, get out of bed and do a calming activity in a cozy, dimly lit area until you feel sleepy again. Practicing progressive muscle relaxation can help bring on sleepiness.
Reason #4: You Rely on Alcohol or Caffeine to Regulate Sleep
I frequently hear patients say that they don’t drink heavily, but they do depend on a “nightcap” to settle for sleep at night. Unfortunately, this is a double-edged sword, because alcohol’s initial sedating effect recedes within a few hours of sleep. Humans tend to sleep in a fragmented, restless fashion while metabolizing alcohol. So even if you fall asleep more easily, you are more likely to wake up during the night, and less likely to get high-quality sleep after even just one glass of wine. At the other end of the spectrum, caffeine is a stimulant that many folks rely on to remain alert during waking hours (and yes, I’m guilty of that one). Although the metabolism rate for caffeine varies by individual, the half-life of caffeine for the average adult is about four to five hours—meaning that if you consume 100 mg of caffeine in a large cup of coffee at 12 p.m., 50 mg will remain in your system at 5 p.m., and 25 mg will remain in your system at 10 p.m.
How to avoid substance-related sleep interference: Finish your last cup of coffee at least nine hours before bed. If you use a standard pre-workout caffeine supplement, finish it within 13 hours of your normal bedtime. Avoid any alcohol use within four hours of your standard bedtime, and focus on relaxation techniques (such as taking a warm bath, stretching, or doing progressive muscle relaxation) to calm your mind and body before bed.
These recommendations, based on cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) are covered in more detail in my article about harnessing biobehavioral processes for higher quality sleep. If you are experiencing significant daily distress or impairment from lack of sleep, seek out a physician or licensed mental health professional to find out if CBT-I, or another evidence-based treatment for insomnia, may be a good fit for you.
References
Colrain, I. M., Nicholas, C. L., & Baker, F. C. (2014). Alcohol and the sleeping brain. Handbook of clinical neurology, 125, 415–431. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-62619-6.00024-0
Del Bene VE. Temperature. In: Walker HK, Hall WD, Hurst JW, editors. Clinical Methods: The History, Physical, and Laboratory Examinations. 3rd edition. Boston: Butterworths; 1990. Chapter 218. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK331/
Fowler, S., Hoedt, E. C., Talley, N. J., Keely, S., & Burns, G. L. (2022). Circadian Rhythms and Melatonin Metabolism in Patients With Disorders of Gut-Brain Interactions. Frontiers in neuroscience, 16, 825246. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2022.825246
Gardiner, C., Weakley, J., Burke, L. M., Roach, G. D., Sargent, C., Maniar, N., Townshend, A., & Halson, S. L. (2023). The effect of caffeine on subsequent sleep: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep medicine reviews, 69, 101764. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2023.101764
Reddy, V.S., Shiva, S., Manikantan, S., Ramakrishna, S. (2024). Pharmacology of caffeine and its effects on the human body. European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry Reports, 10, 100138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejmcr.2024.100138
Vitaterna, M. H., Shimomura, K., & Jiang, P. (2019). Genetics of Circadian Rhythms. Neurologic clinics, 37(3), 487–504. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ncl.2019.05.002
Emily Hylton-Jean, Ph.D., MPH, is a psychologist, writer, and consultant committed to bridging the gap between scientific research and public knowledge.
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