What do you do to go to sleep when it is way past time to be asleep?

I’m wide awake, too. When there’s a lot on my mind, I don’t sleep well, like tonight. If I don’t have any big plans in the morning, I don’t fight it. I just stay up and read books and things on the computer.
If I have to get a good night’s sleep, and i have at least 8 hours, I take a dose of Melatonin. It works for me.

Put a fan on to block out noise.
Read.

That usually does it.

Fluthering has worked this evening. Late night, but an easy schedule in the morning. Thank you for your help..:)

Drink warm milk. For some reason it works for others.

If I really need to get to sleep, will take a Tylenol or Advil PM. It makes me just sleepy enough that I can get there and keeps me asleep for eight or nine hours.

Though, it can make it very difficult to get up in the morning.

Like you, I have to distract my brain. To switch off. Do something that doesn’t require much thought like watching crap TV, read a novel, fluther (not that fluther requires no thought but it isn’t work). Then I can usually go to bed and sleep. I know I have this problem so I try not to work in the two or three hours before I go to bed. It helps me to relax.

I read before bed.

I read or watch a DVD that has nothing to do with work or anything important. Pure entertainment. I find this relaxes me and gets my mind off what is keeping me awake.

1. If you are laying in bed for awhile and not falling asleep, get up and do something. Treat your bed as a place just for sleeping . After you are up for some time (reading sitting up on a couch or accomplishing something), you may feel really tired. Then you can go back to bed. I tend to find that this is very relaxing. I associate lying in my actual bed with some relief – phew!, I can finally close my eyes and lay down.

2. Apparently, the light from monitors/mobile phones, etc can cause some insomnia in some people. Doesn’t seem to affect me, but my wife has to read a paper book.

3. If you meditate, try a body scan meditation. I have a difficult time staying awake during meditation if it’s late at night. If you are laying down in bed and meditating for the body scan, you are trying to stay awake, but I find it nearly impossible.

4. Stay away from alcohol.

5. This one seems to really work for me, and is somewhat related to #1: Pretend you don’t have to sleep. “Wow, I really want to read ___ and I now have time to!” If I’m trying to stay awake through my sleepiness, I am no longer resisting falling asleep, and it seems to come easier.

I watch TV usually. I usually don’t try to go to sleep. Trying is annoying and frustrating in my opinion. I never just lie in bed and wait for sleep, that’s for sure. It’s easier now that I am not on a regular schedule, and almost never have to wake to alarm.

Even when I had to work 9–5 M-F I took a nap if I do not get enough sleep, I make it up. I don’t obsess about a rigid schedule. Since I naturally am an evening person, I have had to adjust to the “norm” at times, early to be early to rise. I hate it. At night I am more productive, so I go ahead and get some stuff done if I cannot fall asleep. Pay some bills, go through a pile of papers.

Something you are doing is riling you up so change your before bed-time routine and stay off the computer. Perhaps fill a warm bath with bath salts and read a good book. That works best for me.

The things that wind you up mentally?
Write them down, in big lines or detailed, that is up to you, but it can be a way of emptying your head/giving peace of mind.

Melatonin taken nightly prior to bedtime. On the odd night that I wake to early, I take liquid melatonin to get back to sleep quickly.

I pop in an Eckhart Tolle CD, the guy will put you to sleep in about 3 minutes with his soothing voice. I figure I get my teachings subliminally during sleep.

I used to find putting on a Scott Walker CD worked. “There’s no regrets…” snorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeee