如何专心睡眠 当我们的思维停不下来的时候

Part of the body’s process for falling asleep each night involves a lowering of the body temperature. If you are in a room that is too hot it can disturb your internal sleep processes. To get slightly more technical, the metabolism of your brains frontal cortex wants to be cool when falling asleep. Insomniacs have a higher metabolism in their frontal cortex which is said to contribute to their inability to sleep. The body loses its ability to regulate its temperature at night, so finding the right balance is important.
每天晚上，我们身体的入睡都包含体温降低这一过程。如果你处在一个非常热的屋子中，这会扰乱你身体内部的睡眠过程。用稍微技术化一点的语言来说，当睡眠时，你大脑中额叶皮质的新陈代谢也需要放慢速度。失眠症患者的额叶皮质代谢水平更高，这也导致了他们没有入睡的能力。身体丧失了夜间调节体温的能力，因此寻找到一种正确的平衡（模式）十分重要。

2. Buy red lights
2. 购买红光灯

You know that sort of bluish glow given off by our TVs, computers, and phones? That seemingly serene blue light is literally robbing you of sleep. The short-wavelength of blue light stops the production of melatonin— a hormone necessary for sleep. Exposure to blue light can even throw off our circadian rhythm. If purchasing all red lights is a bit too drastic for you, aim to reduce the amount of light you use at least two hours before bed.
你知道我们的电视、电脑和手机发出的光稍稍有些偏 蓝色吗？那种看似平静的蓝光其实会剥夺你的睡眠。短波蓝光会抑制睡眠所需激素——褪黑素的产生。置身在蓝光之中甚至能够让我们不再遵守昼夜节律。如果全部购买红光灯对你来说有点极端，那么就至少在你睡前两小时降低你所使用的灯光量吧。

3. Breathe out of your left nostril
3.用左侧鼻孔呼吸

In yoga this is called nadi shodhana or alternate nostril breathing. Cover your right nostril and practice breathing in and out of your left nostril ten-times. The practice of breathing through your left nostril is said to help relax your sympathetic nervous system. Just simply focusing on the task of breathing can help you drown out other distractions.
在瑜伽中，这被称为“纳地净化调息”（nadi shodhana）或者“鼻孔交换呼吸法”。堵住你的右侧鼻孔，练习用左侧鼻孔呼吸十次。据说这种用左侧鼻孔进行的呼吸练习能够放松你的交感神经系统。仅仅集中精力呼吸就能够帮助你忘记其他的杂事。

4. Go outside in the morning
4.早晨出门转转

Being in the sun — especially upon first waking — tells our circadian rhythm to reset itself. The best time for this to happen is between 6 and 8:30 a.m. You should aim for at least 30-minutes of sun exposure a day to receive the maximum benefits. Sunlight inhibits the production of melatonin, which is responsible for making you tired. Being tired during the day will likely rob you of that feeling later at night when you need it the most.
晒晒太阳——尤其是刚醒来的时候——能够让我们的昼夜节律自我重置。最好的晒太阳时机是上午6:00至8:30之间。为了获取最大的好处，你至少应该每天晒半小时太阳。日光抑制了褪黑素的合成，而褪黑素会让你感到疲倦。白天的疲倦会让你在夜晚丧失这种感受，而在夜晚，我们才最需要疲倦的感觉。

5. Visualize yourself asleep
5.形象化你的睡眠

You are a leaf on the wind, watch how you soar off to sleep land. Visualizations draw focus away from thoughts which have emotional content. Experts say it is important to associate positivity with sleeping. This can help remove some of the anxiety we have built up around falling asleep each night. Researchers at Colorado College recently found that the simple act of believing that you received more sleep than you did is enough to give your brain some of the positive effects of sleep.
你是风中的一片叶，观察一下你是如何飞舞到睡眠大陆上的。形象化能将我们的注意力从带有情绪内容的想法中转移出来。专家说，将睡眠同实在的事物联系起来是非常重要的。这可以帮助你消除一些在每晚入睡过程中产生的焦虑。科罗拉多大学的研究者近来发现，一种简单的行为，即相信自己的睡眠时间比实际睡眠时间多,足够给予你的大脑一些积极的睡眠效果。

There are a lot of really useful sleeping tips out there, but they are all variations on the same theme. Preparing the mind and body for sleep is all about reducing the emotional content in our thoughts and eliminating as much external stimuli as possible. You should absolutely explore a variety of sleep routines and practices. Doing so can help you understand the barriers that prevent you from achieving a quiet mind.
除此之外，还有许多非常实用的睡眠小妙招，但是它们都是基于同一个原理变化而来。让思维和身体为睡眠做准备，就要减少我们思维中的情绪内容，尽可能多地消除外部刺激。你绝对有必要发掘各种各样的睡眠方法，进行各种各样的睡眠练习。这么做能帮助你理解那些妨碍你拥有一个平静思维的桎梏。

Sleep is a process. It doesn’t just happen the moment you get into bed. The body is preparing itself for sleep all day. It actually helped me to think of sleep something ongoing as opposed to something that was just supposed to happen. It took some of the pressure off of me. My body was actually made to do this. Trusting and listening to my body’s natural process really helped me find a better way to fall asleep.
睡眠是一个过程。它不仅仅发生于你躺在床上的时刻。我们的身体一天到晚都在为睡眠做准备。它实际上有助于我将睡眠想象成为一个不间断发生的过程，而不是一件应该会发生的事情。这让我减轻了一些压力。我的身体其实就是这样构造的。相信并倾听我们身体的自然过程，的确有助于我找到一种更好的入睡方法。