I’ll be honest ― I didn’t even know falling asleep in five minutes was an option until I read that one in seven Brits do.
The gap between lying down in your bed and starting to snore is called “sleep latency” ― healthy people can expect to fall asleep between 10 to 20 minutes after going to bed, the Sleep Foundation says.
Any longer than that, and the site claims your sleep “efficiency” will be affected.
But if, like me, the thought of nodding off so soon after your head hits the pillow feels completely alien, some sleep experts think the numbers 10-3-2-1 can help.
What is the 10-3-2-1 sleep method?
According to Dr Peter Tierney, a health and sports researcher, the numbers provide “an easy-to-follow set of ‘rules’ for people to help support sleep.”
They refer to the hours before you go to sleep, and inform what you should and should not do, or drink, in the hours leading up to your bedtime.
They stand for:
- 10: Avoid drinking caffeine within ten hours of your bedtime.
- 3: Don’t eat any large meals closer than three hours before you sleep.
- 2: Leave any work you’re trying to do behind within two hours of hitting the hay.
- 1: Steer clear of any screens at all in the hour before you settle down.
The Sleep Foundation has linked doing all of these too late in the day to a longer sleep latency.
Some experts add a “zero” number to that list, which is the amount of times you should hit the snooze button when you wake up.
Indeed pressing “snooze” has been associated with worse sleep quality overall.
When should I worry about not being able to sleep?
The NHS says that other signs can indicate insomnia, especially if you:
- wake up several times during the night
- lie awake at night
- wake up early and cannot go back to sleep
- still feel tired after waking up
- find it hard to nap during the day even though you’re tired
- feel tired and irritable during the day
- find it difficult to concentrate during the day because you’re tired.
If you’ve had trouble sleeping for months, changing your habits hasn’t helped, and/or your lack of sleep is affecting your daily life, they add, speak to your GP.