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Uh oh… is your parent or roommate headed in your direction? Pretending to be asleep can give you a way out of interacting with someone; plus, it even lets you eavesdrop on everything they’re up to. We’ve put together plenty of simple tips and tricks together to help you pull off your best sleepy poker face without letting anyone else in on the ruse. But what if you’re trying to trick yourself into thinking that you got a good night’s sleep? We’ve got you covered there, too. Scroll to the bottom half of the article for some easy hacks to help you feel energized and awake.
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QuestionHow can you tell if someone is fake snoring?Alex Dimitriu, MD is the Owner of Menlo Park Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine, a clinic based in the San Francisco Bay Area with expertise in psychiatry, sleep, and transformational therapy. Alex earned his Doctor of Medicine from Stony Brook University in 2005 and graduated from the Stanford University School of Medicine's Sleep Medicine Residency Program in 2010. Professionally, Alex has dual board certification in psychiatry and sleep medicine.This is tricky, since real snoring can sound like a lot of different things. Depending on whether it’s regular snoring or sleep apnea, it might be quiet or loud, even or irregular. In fact, irregular breathing can happen when a person is awake or dreaming.
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QuestionWhat happens when you fall asleep?Dr. Marc Kayem is a board certified Otolaryngologist and Facial Plastic Surgeon based in Beverly Hills, California. He practices and specializes in cosmetic services and sleep-related disorders. He received his Doctorate in Medicine from the University of Ottawa, is board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology, and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada.Sleeping causes most of the body's processes to slow down just a bit as the body rests, so breathing becomes much slower and regular. If you're trying to fake being asleep, maintain a steady rhythm of breaths in and out and make them very big.
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Tips
- Practice faking sleep alone by lying still and breathing deeply.Thanks
- Be prepared to “wake up” if you are disturbed while you are faking being asleep.Thanks
- You need to mentally stay alert while you fake sleep so you don’t end up falling asleep for real.Thanks
Tips from our Readers
The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
- I'm not a super great actor, so I use a blanket or pillow to hide half of my face. I usually cover my mouth area, so if I smile, it can't be seen.
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References
- ↑ https://sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/what-happens-when-you-sleep
- ↑ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2869.2010.00853.x
- ↑ http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/mind-guest-blog/night-noise-what-a-sleeping-brain-hears/
- ↑ https://health.clevelandclinic.org/what-is-the-ideal-sleeping-temperature-for-my-bedroom/
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/may/16/the-science-of-songs-how-does-music-effect-your-body-chemistry
- ↑ https://www.sleepfoundation.org/bedroom-environment/music-and-sleep
- ↑ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-2869.2004.00425.x
- ↑ https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?contenttypeid=1&contentid=2746
- ↑ https://www.health.com/condition/sleep/12-surprising-sources-of-caffeine
- ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223808/
- ↑ http://sleepeducation.org/news/2013/08/01/sleep-and-caffeine
- ↑ http://dailyhealthpost.com/5-surprising-reasons-to-take-cold-showers/
- ↑ https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bags-under-eyes/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20369931
- ↑ https://integracareclinics.com/stay-awake-with-these-quick-and-healthy-foods/
- ↑ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30951762/
- ↑ https://sleepfoundation.org/shift-work/content/tips-staying-awake-the-job
- ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3800667/
- ↑ https://www.sleep.org/articles/snacks-that-keep-you-awake/
About This Article
Article Summary
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To fake sleep when you're trying to avoid someone, start by picking a natural sleeping position, closing your eyes gently, and breathing rhythmically. If you hear a loud noise or are touched, take a short, sudden breath and twitch your body slightly before settling back into stillness. In order to fake that you got a full night’s sleep, take a cold shower to increase your heart rate and get your metabolism going. Then, get dressed and complete your typical morning routine to keep up appearances. To learn how use makeup to reduce the look of puffy eyes, keep reading!
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Reader Success Stories
- "It helped me because my mom is over protective and makes me go to bed at 7pm. And I usually get up and draw but my mom checks on me a lot, so I go back to bed and I learnt how to fake sleep now thanks to this article." ..." more
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"It helped me because my mom is over protective and makes me go to bed at 7pm. And I usually get up and draw but my mom checks on me a lot, so I go back to bed and I learnt how to fake sleep now thanks to this article."
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"It worked, it helped me to fake sleep when my mom came in."
"It really helped me from my mom so she did not yell at me when she checked if I was asleep or not."
"My family did not know I was awake so you really need to try this article."
"It really helps, I LOVE staying up late. When I'm awake, like at 5:00. I would get in trouble, so I try to look like fake sleeping, but I smile, so I love how this helped me."
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