<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Sleepy Birds</title><description>Four free, browser-based tools for adults who cannot sleep, and honest writing about sleep. No account, nothing to download, nothing to buy.</description><link>https://sleepybirds.com/</link><language>en-gb</language><item><title>What is 4-7-8 breathing?</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/learn/4-7-8-breathing/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/learn/4-7-8-breathing/</guid><description>4-7-8 breathing: in for four, hold for seven, out for eight. How to do it, why a long out-breath can calm you, and what the evidence does and doesn&apos;t show.</description><pubDate>Sat, 17 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Learn</category></item><item><title>The military sleep method</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/trends/military-sleep-method/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/trends/military-sleep-method/</guid><description>Can a relaxation routine said to come from US Navy pilots get you to sleep in two minutes? Where it comes from, what the evidence says, and how to use it.</description><pubDate>Tue, 06 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Trends</category><category>Techniques</category><category>Racing mind</category></item><item><title>Weighted blankets</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/trends/weighted-blankets/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/trends/weighted-blankets/</guid><description>Do weighted blankets help you sleep? What the trials found, who they might suit, and the one group that should never use them.</description><pubDate>Tue, 06 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Trends</category><category>Sleep aids</category><category>Anxiety</category></item><item><title>Sleepy girl mocktail</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/trends/sleepy-girl-mocktail/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/trends/sleepy-girl-mocktail/</guid><description>Tart cherry juice, magnesium and something fizzy: does the viral bedtime drink help you sleep? What the studies behind each ingredient found.</description><pubDate>Tue, 06 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Trends</category><category>Sleep aids</category><category>Supplements</category></item><item><title>Sleep inertia: how long morning grogginess really lasts</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/blog/sleep-inertia-morning-grogginess/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/blog/sleep-inertia-morning-grogginess/</guid><description>Published figures for morning grogginess range from five minutes to four hours. Why they disagree, what a study of 2,300 adults found, and what shortens it.</description><pubDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Waking up</category><category>Sleep stages</category><category>Naps</category><category>Research</category></item><item><title>Try to stay awake: the sleep technique the guidelines disagree about</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/blog/paradoxical-intention-try-to-stay-awake/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/blog/paradoxical-intention-try-to-stay-awake/</guid><description>Paradoxical intention means gently trying to stay awake. US and European guidelines disagree on it. The instruction, the evidence, and when to choose it.</description><pubDate>Thu, 24 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Techniques</category><category>CBT-I</category><category>Sleep effort</category><category>Racing mind</category></item><item><title>Can&apos;t sleep? Get out of bed. And don&apos;t look at the clock</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/blog/cant-sleep-get-out-of-bed/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/blog/cant-sleep-get-out-of-bed/</guid><description>Can&apos;t sleep? The 20-minute rule says get up, but its author never named a number. The original instruction, and how to use it at 3 a.m. without clock-watching.</description><pubDate>Wed, 23 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Techniques</category><category>Night waking</category><category>CBT-I</category><category>3am</category></item><item><title>Cognitive shuffle stopped working? Here&apos;s what to change</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/blog/cognitive-shuffle-not-working/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/blog/cognitive-shuffle-not-working/</guid><description>The cognitive shuffle often works for a week, then fades. The method rarely breaks: the seed word, the pace or how hard you&apos;re watching for results has drifted.</description><pubDate>Tue, 22 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Techniques</category><category>Cognitive shuffle</category><category>Racing mind</category><category>Troubleshooting</category></item><item><title>What normal sleep actually looks like</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/learn/what-normal-sleep-looks-like/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/learn/what-normal-sleep-looks-like/</guid><description>Six facts about ordinary, healthy sleep that tend to surprise people who can’t sleep — and why they help.</description><pubDate>Tue, 22 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Learn</category></item><item><title>Does counting sheep work? What the Oxford study actually found</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/blog/does-counting-sheep-work/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/blog/does-counting-sheep-work/</guid><description>The 2002 Oxford study on counting sheep is quoted everywhere, usually wrongly. What it tested, what it found, and what works better for a racing mind.</description><pubDate>Mon, 21 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Techniques</category><category>Racing mind</category><category>Research</category></item><item><title>What is a cognitive shuffle?</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/learn/cognitive-shuffle/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/learn/cognitive-shuffle/</guid><description>A cognitive shuffle is a way of occupying a busy mind at bedtime with a stream of calm, unrelated images. Here is how it works and what is known about it.</description><pubDate>Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Learn</category></item><item><title>Why your mind speeds up the moment you lie down</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/blog/why-your-mind-speeds-up/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/blog/why-your-mind-speeds-up/</guid><description>Your thoughts are not louder at night. Everything else has gone quiet — and a mind with nothing to do reaches for whatever is unfinished.</description><pubDate>Fri, 20 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Night mind</category><category>Racing mind</category></item><item><title>What is paradoxical intention?</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/learn/paradoxical-intention/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/learn/paradoxical-intention/</guid><description>Paradoxical intention means gently trying to stay awake instead of trying to sleep. It sounds odd, but it targets the effort that keeps many people up.</description><pubDate>Sun, 15 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Learn</category></item><item><title>What sleep trackers can and cannot tell you</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/blog/what-sleep-trackers-can-tell-you/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/blog/what-sleep-trackers-can-tell-you/</guid><description>Wearables are good at some things and guess at others. Here is how to read the numbers without letting them keep you awake.</description><pubDate>Mon, 02 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Habits</category><category>Trackers</category></item><item><title>Sleep cycles, and why ninety minutes is only an average</title><link>https://sleepybirds.com/learn/sleep-cycles/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://sleepybirds.com/learn/sleep-cycles/</guid><description>Sleep runs in cycles of roughly ninety minutes, but the length varies between people and through the night. Here is what that means for planning a bedtime.</description><pubDate>Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Learn</category></item></channel></rss>