It's a new year and many people are making goals to improve their health in 2026. While quality sleep may sound like a simple way to improve your health, between 50 million and 70 million Americans struggle to sleep well. Without getting restorative sleep, you become susceptible to issues like elevated blood pressure or Type 2 diabetes.
You might have tried some of the most popular sleep hacks, from drinking the Sleepy Girl Mocktail to using sleep tech and breathing techniques. But you may not have heard of the "cognitive shuffle" method until now. Let's dig into what it is, if it works and what people are saying about it.
For more sleep hacks, see which foods you should eat before bed, how to stop getting up to go pee when you should be sleeping and why you might want to try the Scandinavian sleep method.
What is cognitive shuffling?
It used to be that counting sheep was all the rage. Thanks to social media platforms like TikTok, you can access newer sleep techniques. One that's been growing in popularity is cognitive shuffling for sleep.
Read more: Fall Asleep Fast With This Tried-and-True 5-Minute Hack
Cognitive shuffling is a cognitive behavioral therapy developed by Luc P. Beaudoin, who holds a PhD in cognitive science. The goal is to disrupt your thought patterns by focusing on words, phrases or images to help your mind relax. Focusing on random things distracts your mind from items that could cause anxiety or stress, which can disrupt your ability to fall asleep.
How to try cognitive shuffling for yourself
Get some good rest with a method better than counting sheep. Tommy/DigitalVision Vectors/Getty Images
After getting into bed, turn off the lights, relax and focus on a word that's at least five letters long and doesn't carry any emotional value to you. To demonstrate, you could think of a bobber. Next, you'll find words that begin with each letter of the word. Starting with "B," you could do bottle, basin or bobcat.
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