Back to sleep

What to do if you wake up in the middle of the night

This week: Create a sleep signal. TOUCHING your ear, stroking your cheek, and putting your thumb and finger together when you’re feeling naturally sleepy before bed will light up a neural pathway in the brain to stimulate sleep, says Pat Duckworth, a Harley Street hypnotherapist. ‘It’s called anchoring,’ she says. ‘You’ll need to do it several times so the two become linked.’ Then when you can’t sleep, press the point and you should drop off.