Your Brain Can’t Relax in Unfamiliar Places

You're not the only one who has experienced difficulty falling asleep in a hotel room or even at a friend's residence. Most individuals find it difficult to sleep in strange surroundings, and this is entirely your brain's responsibility, or at least half of your brain.

Why is it that when we try to go asleep in strange places, our brains are less likely to relax? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that our predecessors had to worry about predators and possibly attacks from competing clans. Your brain's right side will function better at falling asleep, while the left side seems to remain awake. Animals like dolphins, which actually can't fall asleep completely because they'll drown, exhibit the same behavior. Your brain needs to be on watch because it's not certain whether you won't drown at a Motel 6.

The First Night Effect is the name given to the phenomena since it occurs so frequently. It causes your brain to respond more quickly to nighttime noises and to wake you up more quickly in the event of an emergency. However, it usually only lasts one night. Brain imaging techniques used to track how it functions also reveal that many brains will relax after sleeping in the same area for two nights, allowing both sides to shut down and get slumber at the same time. However, it can take some people up to four days to truly unwind in a new location.