The phenomenon that you experience when you sleep in a new place, but you are not sleeping, is known as the "first night effect" (FNE). This effect is well known among sleep researchers.
It turns out that when you sleep in a new, unfamiliar place, your brain recognizes it as a potentially dangerous environment and does not allow you to fall asleep completely. In other words, we have difficulty sleeping because, like dolphins, only one hemisphere of our brain rests when we sleep in a new place. Yuka Sasaki, one of the scientists at the University of Broon, says that "our brain can have a miniature system of what whales and dolphins have."
A team of scientists from Brown University recruited 35 healthy volunteers: They invited them to spend 2 nights in a lab, with a week between nights, and explored brain activity.
They found an asymmetry in sleep depth between the left and right parts of the brain. The left hemisphere was not in a state of sleep as deep as that of the right and was more sensitive and sensitive to various sounds. A week later, during the second night in the lab, the depth of sleep between the hemispheres was much more symmetrical.
Although FNE, as a phenomenon, is quite interesting, it can bring a lot of trouble to those who experience it constantly. Lack of sleep can cause problems such as overweight, high blood pressure or diabetes - however, it is not as problematic as it seems. Researchers suggest some practical tricks that will help you overcome FNE and sleep well no matter where you spend the night. The goal is to make the place look like your bedroom.
Bring something familiar: your pillow, your favorite pajamas, or a hot drink you usually make before bed.
- Keep your usual sleep routine: try to go to bed at the same time and follow the usual routine rituals you follow at home.
- Do not think "oh not how I will sleep", but think like "how lucky I am to have the opportunity to sleep here".
Source: Healthline, Bright Side