Imagine being deployed as a fighter pilot. Sleep is a luxury that you grab when surrounded by noise and movement, with your mind racing. Sleep would be hard to come by, wouldn’t it? It’s rumored that the U.S. Navy Preflight School engineered a sleep training method that has recently blown up on Tik Tok. As sleep apnea experts, we hear about sleep difficulties all the time. Even though CPAP machines can help you get better sleep, falling asleep with a mask on your face doesn’t make for the ideal situation. So, perhaps the military sleep technique could help you.
Let’s take a look at the method.
1. Relax your body regardless of where you are.
Relax every part of your body. If sitting, put your feet flat on the floor. Rest your hands in your lap. Now, focus on your face. Relax your face; first your forehead, now your mouth. With your eyes closed, completely relax your eye sockets. Don’t focus on anything at all here; let the eyes feel like they’re sinking back into your head.
Now, focus on your shoulders. Imagine them floating down into your body. Don’t push them down, but let all the air and tension leave your shoulders so they can fall on their own. Now, moving down your body, tell every muscle to sink down into the ground. After your shoulders, slowly focus on your upper arms, then lower arms. Release every muscle and imagine the limbs releasing all tension. Let your stomach loosen and move down to your legs, continuing the unwinding of every muscle.
2. Think of Nothing.
I don’t know about you, but the first thing that comes to mind every time I try to make my mind go blank is the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. And from there, my mind will spin through every single issue and concern in my life. This is not the time to air these worries. Every time something comes to mind, refocus on one of the following two things:
Black or white
This is the trick that works for me. Think of the word and visualize white or black, and your mind will start to clear. Pick one before you start trying, and do not change, even if it doesn’t work the first time. This is mind training, so changing is not allowing your mind to get trained.
“Don’t think”
Other testers of this method have found repeating “don’t think” will eventually stop their brain from racing. Personally, this is a reminder to me of all the things I shouldn’t focus on, but pick one of these two methods and stick with it for the first few nights before switching.
That’s it! The military sleep technique is meant to help you fall asleep in two minutes or less. We would love to hear if it worked for you. Let us know on our Instagram page: https://instagram.com/advancedhomecareonline
