I don’t know about all of you, but as a kid, whenever I couldn’t fall asleep, my mother would tell me to lie down, close my eyes and count sheep. I always thought to myself “how can I count sheep that aren’t even there?”

Sure, use your imagination. To me, that didn’t make sense because then you’re focused on imagining these sheep that aren’t even there.

On top of that, you’re also focused on counting.

Anyway, if you couldn’t guess, that never really worked for me. Over the years, I've figured out some tips and tricks to help me fall asleep and it just wouldn't be right not to share them.

1. Turning on white noise.

They do make white noise machines, but if you don’t feel like investing in one of those you can get an app on your smartphone that offers various white noises to play in the background as you’re falling asleep.

2. Take a bath.

I know some people really don’t like baths, but honestly, they are one of the best ways to help you relax. A nice warm bath, maybe a bubble bath, is sure to help you relax and fall asleep easier.

3. Don’t go on your phone or electronic devices for an hour before bed.

The light directly in your face is said to make your brain think it’s still daylight and time to be awake. Eliminating screens for an hour before bed will make it a lot easier to wind down and transition to sleeping.

4. Hide your clock.

Looking at your clock doesn’t help you when you’re trying to fall back asleep because it freaks your mind out to see how long you’ve been awake. Once you realize this, you’ll just keep worrying about not falling asleep and how much sleep you’ve lost. It’s a recipe for disaster.

5. Drink warm milk and cinnamon.

One of the things that helps me most when I can’t sleep is to heat up some milk and add a dash of cinnamon. Warmth makes me feel very calm and relaxed, which of course, will help with falling asleep.

6. Read a book.

Try not to read an intense thriller because that’ll just get your blood pumping even more. But another thing I was told was to read a simple book, even one you’ve read multiple times before, and it’ll help to get your eyes heavier. This one actually works, and I swear by it. Try using a book light though, so there’s not too much bright light.

7. Using a sleep mask, ear plugs or both.

I actually sleep with an eye mask every night so that it keeps out any light that could possibly shine towards me and keep me up — or even worse wake me up to start with. You might feel silly with all of that just to fall and stay asleep, but if it works, it works.

8. Concentrating on taking deep breaths.

If I focus my mind on steadying my breathing and making each breath deeper it really helps me relax. It keeps you thinking about something other than any thoughts that could be going through your mind right before bed.

Moral of the story is that you really don’t need to count sheep if you’re struggling to fall asleep. Really, with the help of our friend Google, you could find even more that aren’t on these list. These are my favorites, though, and they’ve never failed me so I definitely suggest giving them a shot. Wishing you many sleep filled nights to come!