pepopowitz’s Twitter Archive—№ 2,321

An article came up for me in my news aggregator about "this amazing one trick that will help you fall asleep in minutes." The trick was basically (1) lay down, (2) calm down, and (3) fall asleep. Like "draw two circles, then draw the rest of the f'ing owl" but for falling asleep.
On twitter.com ❤️ 6 Favorites 2020 Mar 27 Mood +9 🙂

…in reply to @pepopowitz
Anyway, given that we are living in dark times where I would blame no one for getting worked up about the pandemic by reading 30 articles right before bed, I thought I'd share what I think is a legit "one amazing trick" for falling asleep. I learned it from triathlon racing.
Permalink On twitter.com 2020 Mar 27 Mood +1 🙂

…in reply to @pepopowitz
The trick: keep your mind really really busy with something really really unimportant. My first triathlon race, I was worried I'd have a terrible time sleeping the night before - but then I fell asleep within minutes. It took me a few more races to realize why -
Permalink On twitter.com 2020 Mar 27 Mood -6 🙁

…in reply to @pepopowitz
As part of my pre-race freakout, as I laid down in bed, I started going through all of the steps I would take to set up my transition area. Literally every detail - empty my backpack in this order, lay the towel this direction, where to place my shoes...
Permalink On twitter.com 2020 Mar 27 Mood -1 🙁

…in reply to @pepopowitz
I continued this ritual for my first handful of races, and I would almost never make it all the way through the setup in my mind before I fell asleep.
Permalink On twitter.com 2020 Mar 27 Mood 0

…in reply to @pepopowitz
Now every night when I lie down, I play the alphabet game in my head. Pick a subject, and then think of one word starting with each letter of the alphabet. Animals, people I know, cities, places I want to visit..it doesn't matter - I almost never make it past M.
Permalink On twitter.com 2020 Mar 27 Mood 0

…in reply to @pepopowitz
I am as terrified as anyone right now, and I spend more time than I should thinking about the future or reading about the number of cases, but this "one neat trick" still shuts my brain down *fast* every night.
Permalink On twitter.com 2020 Mar 27 Mood -3 🙁

…in reply to @pepopowitz
So: play the alphabet game...make a grocery list...plan something step by step. Keep your brain really really busy on something trivial. That's my trick. It shuts down the rumination and puts me to sleep within minutes every night.
Permalink On twitter.com ❤️ 1 Favorite 2020 Mar 27 Mood 0