Struggling to Sleep? Try ‘Cognitive Shuffling’! | Hypnos Beds
We all struggle to sleep from time to time, whether it be through stress, excitement, worry, or our over-active imaginations. If, like some of us, the traditional ‘counting sheep’, method may not be enough, there is another mental strategy that can help calm a racing mind and make it easier to drift off. It’s called cognitive shuffling.
What Is Cognitive Shuffling?
The technique was developed by cognitive scientist Dr. Luc Beaudoin, adjunct professor at Simon Fraser University. Central to the method is training your brain to gently redirect your attention away from worries and toward neutral thoughts that encourage its transition into sleep mode.
Here’s how it works; once you’re in bed and struggling to doze off, choose a neutral word between five and twelve letters long that doesn't trigger emotions or stressful associations. It's best to avoid words connected to work, your finances or any personal concerns. Choose a generic word, something banal like sunbeam, dolphin or pavement.
Next, go through the word one letter at a time. For each letter, think of as many unrelated words as possible that begin with that letter. If your chosen word is “meadow” you might think of words such as:
- M: moss, mug, mattress, mushroom etc
- E: emu, echo, elm, egg etc
- A: alpha, acorn, ant, aquarium etc
Continue until you can no longer think of additional words, then move on to the next letter.
A key part of the process is briefly picturing each word in your mind. For example, if you think of "emu," take a moment to imagine that emu before moving on. The image doesn't need to be detailed, just a quick mental snapshot.
The goal isn't to complete the exercise perfectly, and you may lose track of where they are or forget which letter comes next. That's completely normal. If you reach the end and remain awake, simply choose another neutral word and repeat the process. Oh, and try to avoid words with repeating letters, because you’ll just end up repeating the same list of words you’ve already thought of and you’ll lose concentration.
Why Does It Help?
When people lie awake replaying conversations, reviewing their day, or worrying about future events, the brain stays engaged in problem-solving mode. Cognitive shuffling interrupts that cycle by giving the mind a simple, low-stimulation task to focus on.
Rather than telling yourself not to think about your worries - which often has the opposite effect - you redirect your attention to a series of random, unrelated images and words. Because these thoughts are neither exciting nor emotionally charged, they can help the brain gradually settle into a state that's more compatible with sleep.
The technique also provides an alternative to staring at the clock or becoming frustrated about being awake. Instead of dwelling on sleeplessness, you're actively engaging your mind in a calm and structured exercise that encourages relaxation.
For many people, cognitive shuffling offers a practical way to quiet mental chatter and create the conditions needed for sleep to arrive naturally.