Could a Yawn Trigger Your Next Breakthrough?

Yawning is more than a sign that you’re tired. In this episode, we break down what yawning may actually be doing in the body, why it shows up during transitions in alertness, and whether fake yawning can really help you fall asleep. You’ll also hear a simple way to think about yawning at night: not as a sleep hack, but as a signal that your system may be winding down. 

Also yawning could be a secret signal that triggers your next breakthrough.

Transcript

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Welcome back to Night Shift with Justin S. King, how to transform your life one night at a time. Tonight we are going to be talking about yawning. We tend to think that yawning means one thing that you're tired and the question is can you yawn yourself to sleep? Yawning usually shows up when your brain is changing states, when you're waking up, when you're winding down, when you're bored, when your attention is drifting, even when you're anxious. So a yawn is less like your body saying, Go to sleep now, and more like your nervous system saying, We're shifting gears. And the reason this may matter is because a lot of people assume that yawning is what makes you sleepy. The science doesn't really support that. Yawning is not a proven sleep button or signal. It also doesn't seem to be mainly about getting more oxygen. The old explanation sounds nice, but it has not held up very well. A better way to think about yawning is this. It may help regulate alertness, it may help your brain transition between states. And one of the stronger theories is that it may even help cool the brain slightly, supporting clearer function. That's why yawning can show up when you're tired, but also when you're understimulated, mentally foggy, or in a transition. Now the question is, can you yawn yourself to sleep? Probably not in any direct way. Fake yawning is unlikely to create real sleepiness if your body is not already ready for sleep. But fake yawning might still help you in one indirect way. It can act as a cue. If a fake yawn, a few yawns at night, you may relax your jaw, slow down a little, and signal to your body that the day is ending. And sometimes a fake yawn becomes a real yawn because yawns are weirdly contagious even in your own mind. So you probably can't yawn yourself to sleep, but you may be able to use yawning as part of a wind-down ritual. One interesting thing that I've learned as a side note about yawning is in the many breakthrough coaching sessions I've attended with with entrepreneur trainers and transformational leaders, they often will mention that if you yawn during a presentation, that it's a signal to your mind to pay attention. As I mentioned earlier, that a yawn can signal a shift. And so if you're yawning during a transformational meeting, that may not mean that the meeting is boring, but it may be that your mind is starting to expand a little bit. So you should pay extra attention to whatever is being taught at that time. But let's bring it back to yawning during sleep or in bed. If you want to try it out, you know, dim your lights, put the phone away, cool your room, and if a yawn comes, let it come. It may be a nice way to start to relax and say no to your system it's time to sleep. That's it for tonight's episode of Night Shift. I think the key takeaway would be when yawning during a transformational type meeting or when you're learning something new or during a hard conversation. That may be something to pay attention to rather than thinking you are tired, lean into it and think maybe there's something here that is trying to expand your brain. That's it for tonight. My name is Justin S. King, and I help entreprene find peace tonight, tomorrow, and for the rest of their lives through sleep optimization, emotion regulation, and discovering their purpose. Good night.