cognitive shuffling = Kognitives Mischen, Kognitives Shuffling, Einschlaf-Technik
“COGNITIVE SHUFFLING: A mental trick to help you quiet racing thoughts and fall asleep.”
Kristen Rogers — CNN (8th April 2025)
—
“TikTok is full of sleep hacks that users say have changed their lives. One of the latest trends gaining traction is ‘COGNITIVE SHUFFLING.’ A doctor on TikTok recently shared a video explaining the technique, describing it as a “simple mental exercise” that improved his sleep.”
Maggie O'Neill — Very Well Health (4th October 2024)
cognitive shuffling
noun
- technique used by some to help them fall asleep: picture a series of unconnected objects, or think of a series of words beginning with letter, etc.
Collins Dictionary
—
PHRASE ORIGIN
The term "cognitive shuffling" was invented by Dr. Luc Beaudoin, a cognitive scientist at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada. When speaking to other cognitive scientists, he calls the concept "serial diverse imagining".
"Cognitive", from the 1580s, meaning "pertaining to cognition," derived from Latin cognit- (past participle of cognoscere "to get to know, recognize"), combining com "together" + gnoscere "to know." The term was adopted by psychologists and sociologists after c. 1940.
"Shuffle" originated in the 1530s from Middle English shovelen or Low German schuffeln, meaning to move clumsily or deceitfully, also referring to evasive or tricky behaviour.
The "cognitive shuffling" technique appears to have been developed and publicized around 2016-2017, as evidenced by a 2016 medical research announcement about Beaudoin's work being presented at an international sleep conference and a 2017 CBC News report about the technique gaining attention from major media outlets.
The term has gained renewed attention as a viral TikTok trend in 2024-2025.
The metaphorical use of "shuffle" captures the essence of the technique - randomly mixing or rearranging thoughts and images without logical connections, much like shuffling a deck of cards creates random order.
—
HOW TO COGNITIVE SHUFFLE
- Pick a random, neutral word
Choose a simple word that does not trigger strong emotions or memories (e.g., "apple," "cake," "home").
- Focus on a letter
Take the first letter of the word.
- Generate associated words
Think of as many words as possible that start with that letter.
- Visualize the words
For each word, try to visualize it mentally.
- Move to the next letter
After a short time, move to the next letter of your initial word and repeat the process.
- Redirect your thoughts
If distracting thoughts or emotions surface, gently redirect your focus back to the random words and imagery.
—
SYNONYMS
alphabet game, beditation, bedtime thought game, brain quieting, calming the chatter, clearing your mind, cognitive distraction, COGNITIVE SHUFFLE, cognitive strategy, cognitive trick, counting sheep, drifting off, falling asleep game, letting go, letting your mind wander, mental shuffle, mind wandering, night-time brain game, quieting the mind, relaxing the mind, serial diverse imagining, sleep exercise, sleep hack, sleep method, sleep onset strategy, switching off, thought disruption, thought diversion, thought shuffle, word shuffle
—
SMUGGLE
OWAD into a conversation today, say something like:
“I’m experimenting with COGNITIVE SHUFFLING. How do you manage to fall asleep?
—
P L E A S E S U P P O R T O W A D
On evenings and weekends, I research and write your daily OWAD newsletter together with Helga—my lovely wife and coaching partner—and our eagle-eyed daughter, Jennifer.
It remains FREE, AD-FREE, and ALIVE thanks to voluntary donations from appreciative readers.
If you aren’t already, please consider supporting us — even a small donation, equivalent to just 1-cup-of-coffee a month, would help us in covering expenses for mailing, site-hosting, maintenance, and service.
Just head over to DonorBox:
Please help keep OWAD alive
or
Bank transfer:
Paul Smith
IBAN: DE75 7316 0000 0002 5477 40
Important: please state as ’Verwendungszweck’: “OWAD donation” and the email address used to subscribe to OWAD.
Thanks so much,
Paul, Helga, & Jenny Smith
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Feedback, questions, new word suggestions to: paul@smith.de
- OWAD homepage, word archive, FAQs, publications, events, and more: www.owad.de
---
- To unsubscribe from OWAD, CLICK HERE