Having trouble falling asleep? Why cognitive shuffling could be the solution for you

Have trouble falling or staying asleep? Are you also plagued by thoughts and wake up in the middle of the night? Then this technique can ease the brain and help you fall asleep.

It’s called ‘Cognitive shuffling.’ According to researchers, this technique may mimic what the brain does naturally when you’re dozing off, making it a natural aid for sleep problems and a valuable addition to a calming nighttime routine.

We take a look.

What is cognitive shuffling?

Cognitive Shuffling is introduced by scientist Luc Beaudoin in a research paper. It is a technique that is designed to facilitate falling asleep. This technique goes beyond the typical approach of trying to stop unhelpful thoughts. It rather encourages a string of random, unrelated thoughts or ideas to promote sleep.

Leah Kaylor, a Pittsburgh-based licensed clinical psychologist, PhD, author of If Sleep Were a Drug, said, “Cognitive shuffling is a mental technique designed to help you fall asleep by jumbling your thoughts in a way that distracts your brain from stress and worry,” as quoted by Everyday Health.

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This mirrors the random flow-of-thought pattern that occurs as your brain starts to drift off to sleep, making it easier to move from wakefulness into rest. Choose a neutral “stem” word (the word you use to start cognitive shuffling) that carries no emotional meaning or personal significance. This will reduce cognitive effort and help you wind down.

Another cognitive shuffling method involves picking a word and picturing something for each letter of it. For example, if the word is “cat,” you could imagine a car for C, an astronaut for A, and tea for T.

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What does the study say?

Based on Beaudoin’s theory of “somnolent information-processing, it argues that People with insomnia often get caught in troubling thought patterns, such as worrying, planning, or mentally rehearsing situations, which keep the brain active and alert. These patterns can be replaced with other mental processes that help the brain feel calm and ready to fall asleep.

In 2016, Beaudoin and his colleagues tested this technique in a study of 154 university students who were having difficulty sleeping.

One group was instructed to use an app developed by Beaudoin that plays random words into their ears so they can hold the image in their mind’s eye. Another group wrote in a journal about their worries and possible solutions, an established, evidence-based approach for managing insomnia, the BBC reported.

The results showed that the image-shuffling method was “just as effective” at reducing sleepiness. Additionally, it had the benefit of being something that could be done while lying in bed.

What do researchers & experts say about this technique?

Alanna Hare, a consultant and specialist in sleep medicine at Royal Brompton Hospital in London, UK, said, “Cognitive shuffling, super somnolent. It deploys a push-and-pull mechanism on the mind, both pulling you towards sleep while also quietening the intrusive worries that keep you awake,” as quoted by the media outlet.

Eleni Kavaliotis, a registered psychologist and sleep researcher at Monash University, Australia, said, “This technique works because it diverts your attention away from thoughts that interfere with falling asleep.

“In doing so, it attempts to mimic the scattered, disconnected and random thought patterns the brain naturally starts to generate as you fall asleep,” Kavaliotis added, as quoted by the media outlet.

Adding further, “The theory is that during cognitive shuffling the brain is in some relevant respects (not all) like normal sleep onset. Varied imagery is not just a byproduct of falling asleep, it’s a cue”.

Dr Kaylor said, “The best time to try cognitive shuffling is when your mind won’t stop racing, especially when you’re lying in bed awake for more than 15 to 20 minutes, or if you wake up in the middle of the night and can’t fall back asleep.”

In many ways, cognitive shuffling is considered a game-changing technique for sleep trouble.

With inputs from agencies