What to do if you can't sleep after changing beds

Everyone knows that everyone needs to spend one-third of the day in bed, which means that the sleeping environment is very important for everyone. If the sleeping environment is not good, it will not only affect the quality of sleep, but may also indirectly affect the next day's work and study. Therefore, a comfortable sleeping environment is very important. What should you do if you can't fall asleep after changing beds?

Many people may have had this experience: no matter whether the bed is soft or hard, and the pillow is made of sponge or buckwheat, you sleep soundly at home, and even if the surrounding environment is noisy, it will not wake you up; but when you travel or go on a business trip and stay in a hotel, even if the pillow is very soft and the bed is very clean, you will toss and turn in bed and find it difficult to fall asleep. Even the slight dripping sound of the water pipe in the bathroom will make you upset and unable to sleep.

This is what we usually call "bed recognition". This situation varies from person to person. Some people take a longer time to adapt, while others take a shorter time. Some people don’t recognize their beds at all and can sleep well anywhere. While some people will toss and turn, and even suffer from insomnia all night, when they move to a new place.

It's not that I don't want to sleep, it's just that I can't sleep

Why is this?

Recently, scientists from Brown University in the United States and the Sleep Institute of Freiburg University Hospital in Germany discovered that the reason why people are "attached to their beds" is that when they sleep in an unfamiliar environment, their left brain is still in an alert state, and they are not used to the new environment, are nervous, and lack a sense of security, which affects their sleep quality.

In order to study the impact of unfamiliar environments on sleep, the researchers invited 35 volunteers to participate in a sleep experiment and analyzed their sleep quality on the first and eighth days. The study found that when the volunteers slept in an unfamiliar environment on the first day, although the surrounding environment was comfortable and quiet and the brain was in a deep sleep state, the left brain was still particularly sensitive to the surrounding environment (especially sound) and would respond to environmental stimuli and changes. By the eighth day, this effect disappeared.

Researchers believe that sleeping in a familiar environment is less likely to cause the left brain to be alert and lead to insomnia than sleeping in an unfamiliar environment. Therefore, if you often need to stay out overnight, in order to "trick" the left brain's alert system, it is recommended that you bring your own pillow or other bedding to create a familiar environment. If possible, try to stay in the same hotel. In addition, you can take a hot bath, listen to some soothing music, or practice yoga before going to bed to relax your tense nerves and help you fall asleep.