Counting sheep is probably the oldest sleep advice， as old as drinking a warm glass of milk. But it turns out that counting sheep perhaps wont help you fall asleep. “It is only one of those old wives stories，” says Michael Decker， Ph.D.， a sleep specialist and professor at Case Western School of Nursing.

One saying is that the idea was brought into being when early sheep herders couldnt get to sleep at night because they were worried about all of the sheep in their field. So they would calm themselves by counting the sheep up to make sure they were all safe.

But this method probably wont work when you find it difficult to sleep. When falling asleep， it is likely to be more helpful to make the mind filled with something relaxing and passive， rather than active. “You have to keep record of those sheep. It takes a lot of work to count them all up，” Decker says.

A modern farmer actually counted real sheep when he couldnt fall asleep. And he asked an animal scientist at the USDAs Sheep Experiment Station whether the task would cause sleepiness. “I tried counting sheep once and its no use. It did not help me fall asleep… Its hard to imagine sheep jumping a fence because it is not something they do unless you dont want them to.”

A better method might be to use your brain to imagine a relaxing scene， such as a comfortable beach. In fact， a 2001 study published in a magazine showed that among a group of people with insomnia， those who used “imagery distraction”， fell asleep faster than those who werent given any advice. The study participants were instructed to imagine “a situation they found interesting and pleasing to the eye， but also pleasant and relaxing.”

Decker agrees that this type of guided imagery seems to be the best way to calm a racing mind. Try picturing a beautiful waterfall or planning a relaxing vacation. “We dont want to do anything that connects closely with deep thought.” he says.

Other tried-and-true methods for falling asleep include progressive muscle relaxation， meditation or a warm bath before bed. And if you cant fall asleep after 30 or so minutes in bed， sleep experts often advice you to get up and do something quiet and not exciting to your brain until you feel tired again， so your brain doesnt start to associate the bed as a place for insomnia.

“數(shù)綿羊”也許是最古老的幫助睡眠的建議，和睡前喝杯熱牛奶一樣古老。但事實(shí)上這一方法可能并不能幫你入睡?！斑@只是老婆婆們講的一個(gè)故事而已，”凱斯西儲(chǔ)大學(xué)護(hù)理學(xué)院的睡眠專(zhuān)家邁克爾·德克爾教授這樣說(shuō)道。

關(guān)于“數(shù)綿羊”來(lái)源的其中一個(gè)說(shuō)法是，以前牧羊人在晚上會(huì)因?yàn)閾?dān)心牧場(chǎng)里的羊而睡不著覺(jué)，因此他們每天晚上都會(huì)數(shù)綿羊，確保它們都安然無(wú)恙后才能放心。

可是當(dāng)你真的難以入眠時(shí)，這一方法也許根本起不到任何作用。因?yàn)楫?dāng)人們想要入睡時(shí)，讓大腦處于放松的、被動(dòng)的狀態(tài)比使之保持活躍的狀態(tài)更有效果?！霸诖竽X中數(shù)綿羊就需要一直記錄綿羊的數(shù)量，這會(huì)使大腦一直處于工作狀態(tài)?！钡驴藸柸缡钦f(shuō)。

有一位現(xiàn)代牧場(chǎng)主在難以入睡時(shí)會(huì)去數(shù)真正的綿羊，他去問(wèn)美國(guó)農(nóng)業(yè)部綿羊?qū)嶒?yàn)站的一名動(dòng)物科學(xué)家，這樣做是否真的可以幫助他入睡。農(nóng)場(chǎng)主說(shuō)：“我曾試過(guò)數(shù)綿羊，可是沒(méi)有效果，這并不能幫我入睡……很難想象綿羊跳過(guò)柵欄的場(chǎng)景，因?yàn)槿绻蛔屗鼈冞@樣做，它們絕不會(huì)跳柵欄的?！?/p>

幫助入睡的更好的辦法就是在大腦中想象一個(gè)使人放松的場(chǎng)景，比如一個(gè)舒適的沙灘。事實(shí)上，2001年有本雜志上發(fā)表的一項(xiàng)研究結(jié)果顯示：在患有失眠癥的人中，使用“場(chǎng)景想象法”的人們比那些沒(méi)有受到任何睡眠建議的人們?nèi)胨酶?。?zhuān)家建議那些研究對(duì)象幻想一個(gè)他們認(rèn)為有趣的、吸引人的，并且使人愉快和放松的場(chǎng)景。

這種有指導(dǎo)性的想象應(yīng)該是讓不斷運(yùn)作的大腦冷靜下來(lái)最好的方式，德克爾也對(duì)此表示認(rèn)同。試著在大腦中構(gòu)建一幅美麗瀑布的畫(huà)面，亦或是計(jì)劃一次輕松愉快的度假。他說(shuō)：“我們不建議在準(zhǔn)備入睡之時(shí)讓大腦進(jìn)行深入思考。”

其他一些比較靠譜的入睡方法包括漸進(jìn)式的肌肉放松法、冥想法和睡前的熱水澡。另外，如果你上床后30分鐘都無(wú)法入睡，專(zhuān)家建議在這時(shí)要起床做一些平靜的、不會(huì)使大腦興奮的事情，直到再次感到困倦，這樣你的大腦就不會(huì)把床與失眠這兩者關(guān)聯(lián)起來(lái)。