October• 2018 | 19AS SOON AS YOU LIE DOWN AT
night, does your mind go straight to
anything you could possibly stress
about? How can you get to sleep
when all you can think about is how
you still need to tell a friend you
can’tmakeyourbrunchdate?It’s
naturaltojumptostressorswhen
yourmindinallyhassomequiet
timetowander,butaracingmind
canleaveyoutossingandturning.
hankfully, scientists have found a
possible cure to help you shut down
those anxious thoughts andinally
getsomeshut-eye.
Baylor University researchers
investigatedwhetherdiferenttypes
of writing could ease people into
sleep.Toindout,theyhad57young
adults spend ive minutes before
bedwritingeitherato-dolistforthe
daysaheadoralistoftasksthey’d
inishedoverthepastfewdays.he
volunteers slept at the lab where
researchers could measure their eyemovement and brainwave activity,
and weren’t allowed to use their
phones or do work after lights-out.
heresultsconirmthatnotall
pre-sleep writing is created equally.
hosewhomadeto-dolistsbefore
bedwereabletofallasleepnine
minutes faster than those who wrote
aboutpastevents.hequalityofthe
lists mattered, too; the more tasks
and the more speciic the to-do lists
were, the faster the writers fell asleep.
Onthelipside,thosewhowrote
longlistsofaccomplishmentstook
longer to fall asleep than those who’d
thought of fewer past activities.
he study authorsigure writing
downfuturetasks‘oloads’the
thoughts so you can stop turning
them over in your mind. You’re
tellingyourbrainthatthetaskwill
getdone–justnotrightnow.
So, try takingive minutes to
jotdownato-dolist.It’seasyand
cheaper than other sleeping aids.HowtoDoze Off Faster
BY MARISSA LALIBERTEWritingato-dolist
before bedtime may help
you fall asleep quickerPHOTO: GETTY IMAGES