The leaves of Mimosa pudica close at the slightest touch. Then, after a prudent period of time, they reopen unharmed. Puñui panga seems to fall asleep at the slightest touch and then wakes up again refreshed. Amazonian Kichwa use the plant to help babies fall asleep more quickly, to cure more difficult sleep disorders like insomnia, or even heartbreak. The idea is to heighten the affinity between the patient and the plant so that, to various degrees, the plant's sleeping behavior is shared flowing from the body of the plant into the body of the patient inducing sleep.