What is ‘cognitive shuffling' and does it really help you get to sleep? Two sleep scientists explain

Daily Maverick

6 days ago

Is there any science behind this TikTok trend? Cognitive shuffling attempts to mimic the thinking patterns good sleepers typically have before drifting off.
If you've been on social media lately – perhaps scrolling in the middle of the night, when you know you shouldn't but you just can't sleep – you might have seen those videos promoting a get-to-sleep technique called 'cognitive shuffling'.
The idea, proponents say, is to engage your mind with random ideas and images via a special formula:
pick a random word (such as 'cake')
focus on the first letter of the word (in this case, C) and list a bunch of words starting with that letter: cat, carrot, calendar and so on
visualise each word as you go along
when you feel ready, move onto the next letter (A) and repeat the process
continue with each letter of the original word (so, in this case, K and then E) until you feel ready to switch to a new word or until you drift off to sleep.
@dr.karanr
Cognitive shuffling @Joel Chesters
♬ original sound – Dr Karan Rajan
It's popular on Instagram and TikTok, but does 'cognitive shuffling' have any basis in science?
Where did this idea come from?
The cognitive shuffling technique was made famous by Canada-based researcher Luc P. Beaudoin more than a decade ago, when he published a paper about how what he called 'serial diverse imagining' could help with sleep.
@drsermedmezher
'Nothing Gets Me to Sleep at Night' #wait Cognitive shuffling is a technique designed to help eliminate insomnolent thoughts by mimicking the natural pattern of thinking that occurs during the pre-sleep state. Normally, as we drift off to sleep, our minds wander randomly through disconnected images and thoughts, a process that helps us transition into sleep. However, when we struggle with insomnia, our minds often get stuck on repetitive or stressful thoughts, making it difficult to relax. Cognitive shuffling works by deliberately introducing a sequence of random, neutral thoughts or images to break the cycle of overthinking. By mentally focusing on unrelated, non-stressful words or objects (such as visualizing different items that start with each letter of the alphabet), the brain is distracted from more pressing concerns and begins to engage in the kind of mental drift that naturally precedes sleep. This gentle distraction quiets the mind and mimics the normal pre-sleep state, easing the transition into rest and helping to alleviate insomnia. #insomnia #sleep #tired
♬ Get You the Moon – Syf
One of Beaudoin's hypothetical examples involved a woman thinking of the word 'blanket', then thinking bicycle (and imagining a bicycle), buying (imagining buying shoes), banana (visualising a banana tree) and so on.
Soon, Beaudoin writes, she moves onto the letter L, thinking about her friend Larry, the word 'like' (imagining her son hugging his dog). She soon transitions to the letter A, thinking of the word 'Amsterdam':
and she might very vaguely imagine the large hand of a sailor gesturing for another order of fries in an Amsterdam pub while a rancid accordion plays in the background.
Sleep soon ensues. The goal, according to Beaudoin, is to think briefly about:
a neutral or pleasant target and frequently [switch] to unrelated targets (normally every 5-15 seconds).
Don't try to relate one word with another or find a link between the words; resist the mind's natural tendency toward sense-making.
While the research into this technique is still in its infancy, the idea is grounded in science. That's because we know from other research good sleepers tend to have different kinds of thoughts in bed to bad sleepers. People with insomnia are more focused on worries, problems, or noises in the environment, and are often preoccupied with not sleeping.
Good sleepers, on the other hand, typically have dream-like, hallucinatory, less ordered thoughts before nodding off.
Sorting the pro-somnolent wheat from the insomnolent chaff
Cognitive shuffling attempts to mimic the thinking patterns of good sleepers by simulating the dream-like and random thought patterns they generally have before drifting off to sleep. In particular, Beaudoin's research describes two types of sleep-related thoughts: insomnolent (or anti-sleep) and pro-somnolent (sleep-promoting) thoughts.
Insomnolent thoughts include things such as worrying, planning, rehearsing, and ruminating on perceived problems or failings. Pro-somnolent thoughts on the other hand involve thoughts that can help you fall asleep, such as dream-like imagery or having a calm, relaxed state of mind.
Cognitive shuffling aims to distract from or interfere with insomnolent thought. It offers a calm, neutral path for your racing mind, and can reduce the stress associated with not sleeping. Cognitive shuffling also helps tell your brain you are ready for sleep. In fact, the process of 'shuffling' between different thoughts is similar to the way your brain naturally drifts off to sleep. During the transition to sleep, brain activity slows. Your brain starts to generate disconnected images and fleeting scenes, known as hypnagogic hallucinations, without a conscious effort to make sense of them.
By mimicking these scattered, disconnected, and random thought patterns, cognitive shuffling may help you transition from wakefulness to sleep. And the preliminary research into this is promising. Beaudoin and his team have found serial diverse imagining helps to lower arousal before sleep, improve sleep quality and reduce the effort involved in falling asleep. However, with only a small number of research studies, more work is needed here.
It didn't work. Now what?
As with every new strategy, however, practice makes perfect. Don't be disheartened if you don't see an improvement straight away; these things take time.
Stay consistent and be kind to yourself.
And what works for some won't work for others. Different people benefit from different types of strategies depending on how they relate to and experience stress or stressful thoughts.
Other strategies to help create the right conditions for sleep include:
keeping a consistent pre-bedtime routine, so your brain can wind down
watching your thoughts, without judgment, as you lie in bed
writing down worries or to-do lists earlier in the day so you don't think about them at bedtime.
If, despite all your best efforts, nighttime thoughts continue to impact your sleep or overall well-being, consider seeking professional help from your doctor or a trained sleep specialist. DM
This story first appeared in The Conversation. Melinda Jackson is an associate Professor at the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health at the School of Psychological Sciences at Monash University. Eleni Kavaliotis is a research Fellow in the Sleep, Cognition, and Mood Laboratory at Monash University.