If you can’t fall asleep right away, it’s not necessarily a sign of insomnia. There is a delay in the onset of sleep – the time it takes to fall asleep. We understand how long this period should last and what to do if sleep doesn’t come for too long.
It Takes From 15 to 30 Minutes to Fall Asleep
Delayed onset sleep is the time that passes between the time a person goes to bed and sinks into sleep. During this time, the heart rate slows down and a light phase of sleep sets in.
The normal rate is 15 to 30 minutes. If it takes more time, you can talk about insomnia, and if it takes less time, you can talk about lack of sleep.
If it takes a person less than 5 minutes to fall asleep, they have a serious lack of sleep. A delay of up to 10 minutes indicates tolerable insomnia, and up to 15 minutes indicates manageable insomnia.
Sleep Latency Is Affected by Age, Chronotype, and Habits
While at 20 it takes an average of 20 minutes to fall asleep, at 80 it takes 26 minutes. These data were obtained by American researchers, interviewing 26 thousand people.
Most often this is due to the fact that with age, the duration of sleep decreases, while the free time that can be spent on sleep, is more. Sleep disturbances, such as apnea, prevent older people from falling asleep.
Sleep time is also affected by chronotype. For example, owls take longer to fall asleep, while skylarks, on the contrary, fall asleep faster and their sleep quality is higher on average.
Sleep latency is also increased by poor sleep hygiene, anxiety or stress. Researchers from South Africa found that people who are stressed before going to bed take longer to fall asleep the next day. They also have a harder time concentrating during the day and sinking into a deep sleep at night.
How to Determine Your Sleep Latency
There are special medical tests for this purpose. For example, you can take a polysomnographic test. It will help know not only the time of sleep latency but also to find out the reasons that prevent you from falling asleep.
You can also determine sleep latency yourself at home. To do this, take a spoon and a plate and lie down so that the hand with the spoon hangs from the edge of the bed, and the plate stands under it on the floor. Turn on a stopwatch and try to relax and fall asleep.
When you fall asleep, the spoon will fall, hit the plate, and wake you up – that’s how you know how much time has passed. This test is best performed in the first half of the day, before 3 pm.
How to Fall Asleep Faster
When you cannot fall asleep for a long time, there is anxiety, and it can cause insomnia. A vicious circle occurs: a person goes to bed, cannot fall asleep, is anxious because of this and cannot fall asleep even longer because of this anxiety. To prevent this from happening, use these tips:
- Adhere to a sleep schedule. Try to go to bed and wake up at the same time. This way your brain will get used to the schedule and know exactly when it is time to go to bed. To follow this advice, you’ll have to stop playing Legacy of Dead free play games and watching YouTube right before you go to bed. But you’ll notice positive changes in several days.
- Add exercise. Exercise in the afternoon, but not before bedtime, helps you fall asleep faster.
- Give up gadgets before bedtime. The blue screen light blocks the production of the sleep hormone melatonin. Therefore, it’s better not to watch TV or use a smartphone, tablet or computer an hour before bedtime. If it’s difficult, switch your devices to night mode: it reduces the negative influence of screen light.
- Take a hot shower before bed. Hot water improves the body’s thermoregulation, and this helps you fall asleep faster.
- Use aromatherapy. You can use lavender oil or tangerine oil, a type of tangerine. Tangerine oil has a soothing effect on the brain and helps you relax and fall asleep.
