The central idea is that simply lying down with your eyes closed in a quiet environment constitutes a beneficial form of rest—often called non-sleep deep rest (NSDR)—which allows for partial recovery and reduces anxiety related to the inability to fall asleep.

noli's read

Science supports the idea that restful wakefulness, including techniques such as Yoga Nidra or meditation, promotes mental and physiological recovery. Observational studies and research on stress reduction (notably cited by researchers such as Andrew Huberman) show that these states of deep relaxation can restore certain cognitive functions and lower cortisol levels. While it is established that this does not replace restorative sleep phases, particularly deep sleep, the benefit lies in the management of nervous arousal. The potential exaggeration lies in the idea of direct equivalence: restful wakefulness does not allow for memory consolidation or the complete metabolic regulation induced by sleep. The community strongly converges on this advice, using it as a practical tool to break the vicious cycle of nocturnal performance anxiety. It is a stress management strategy validated by practice, although formal scientific literature is still in the exploratory phase regarding the specific benefits of 'NSDR' compared to actual sleep.

the sources

1. 1Pandi-Perumal SR, Spence DW, Srivastava N, et al. 2022
2. 2Dewar M, Alber J, Cowan N, Della Sala S. 2014
3. 3Weng L, Yu L, Rong J, et al. 2025
4. 4r/sleep