Experts say it takes the average woman about 10 to 20 minutes to fall asleep. But when it’s you, it feels more like an eternity. And the longer you toss and turn, the less likely it is that you’ll get to sleep. So try this little bedtime routine (it really works). It’s an ancient Indian practice called savasana. And if you’ve ever taken a yoga class, you’ll know how instantly relaxing it can be.
Get Settled
Turn off the lights and the television (and the husband, if necessary), and lie down in bed on your back. Let your feet fall to the sides and your arms spread out with palms facing upward. Feel free to cover yourself if it’s chilly, put a pillow under your head, or slip a rolled-up blanket beneath your low back or knees. (We like a soothing lavender eye cover.) The idea is to get as comfortable, loose, and still as possible. (In Sanskrit, savasana actually means “corpse pose.”)
Relax Physically
Close your eyes and focus on progressively relaxing your entire body, from the tips of your toes to the top of your head. There are two ways to do this:
Option 1: One by one, focus on contracting and releasing muscle groups. Start by clenching your feet on an inhalation, then relax them on an exhalation. Do this all the way up your body—legs, groin, hands, arms, shoulders, even your face. You don’t have to contort yourself. Just thinking about relaxing your calves, back, cheekbones, and scalp will accomplish it.
Option 2: Imagine inhaling air through your toes, having it swirl around inside your leg, and then exhaling it back out your toes. Do this for each leg, each arm (in and out through the fingertips), your chest and heart (in and out through the belly button), and face and brain (in and out through the nose). Imagine the breath is scrubbing each body part clean of stress.
Relax Mentally
Your body should now feel heavy, like it has sunk way down into the mattress. But your mind, because it’s so restless, will still be active. Don’t try to clear it. Don’t try to stop the thoughts that are constantly streaming through its open door. Instead, acknowledge each new thought as if you were in a receiving line but then dismiss it without further consideration. After a while (greet/dismiss, greet/dismiss), try to pause within the space between introductions, if only for a millisecond. Exist in this black, sweet mindlessness. With practice, you’ll be able to stay there longer and longer, and drift away….
Although savasana is great for getting to sleep more quickly at night (it works for us in less than 5 minutes), it’s also effective for afternoon naps or just settling down enough to be able to escape the stress—imagine that!
Comments from Members
Thank you so much for this article; I really need help falling and staying asleep.
Thanks! I'll be trying this tonite 
i am going to try the greet and dismiss theory to help me mentally... my problem is lingering on each thought to long. can't wait to see if it works for me
I need help getting back to sleep once I wake up in the night. Maybe this will help.
going to try it.
I do something similar to this, and it always works for me. I try to completely relax by laying on my back while my mind travels over each part of my body, saying "I have no feet, I have no legs" and so on. I am usually asleep before I finish this ritual!
Wow-I can't wait to try this tonight. I have the worst insomnia, and I hate taking sleeping pills. I always wake up groggy the next morning. Hope this works!
Can you do anything about my husband pulling the blanket off me for himself?
I have tried the breathing method a million times before. I still have sleep issues. One thing ALWAYS works for me when everything else fails. I try to think of people who have double initials starting with AA,(example: Adam Ant) all the way to ZZ. Some letters I have to skip but I never make it to ZZ.
If you are a student, you don't need much time to fall asleep. You just pass out in your bed in minutes after all your classes and work every day.
Since having kids I find my sleep patterns have changed and I do have trouble falling asleep and sometimes staying asleep. I will try these tip and see what happens. Thanks!
I have a hard time falling asleep even wheni feel sleepy. I will give this a try and see if it works.
Will try and see if this works for me. Thanks for the post.
I'll try this tonight and see what happens but not counting on it i have pain in my knees i need that to stop then maybe it will work. any ideas?
Thanks for the tip i'll try it to night.
I will try this tonight. I have tried many things and nothing seems to work.
I will try this tonight also. I hope it works. Am tired of sleep aids.
I am so desperate to fall asleep easily. I know my big problem, working on my website right before bed. Anybody else on the computer before bed and then have a difficult time falling asleep?
it is so hard to fell asleep because i be up all day doing school online. and taking care of the kids. cleaning,cook. so i be up all nigth.
My husband really needs to try this, he has the hardest time falling asleep.
I do option #1 to WAKE UP in the morning lol so I don't think i'll try that one to fall asleep. It also helps if you count 100 backwards & really concentrate on only the numbers. Makes it hard to think about bills, kid problems etc. 
Cheryl, I definitely find that late night computer activity is not conducive to falling asleep. Hard to give it up!
I will try this tonight if my husband's snoring does't interrupt.
I have never had trouble falling asleep but will keep this in the back if my mind if that ever changes.
I am a therpist and most of my patients have great difficulty with sleep so we'll be passing these techniques on!
