Among the most frustrating of sleep disorders, insomnia can be particularly maddening. The persistent inability to fall asleep, especially when you are tired, can leave you stressed and wound up and wondering what is wrong. Yes, an inability to sleep will occasionally occur, but persistent insomnia is no laughing matter.
Most everyone experiences some minor episodes of insomnia lasting from one night to intermittent episodes of sleeplessness for a few weeks. This form, called transient insomnia, is not unexpected and almost everyone will face it at some point in their lives. For instance, a particularly stressful week at work might leave someone unable to sleep for a few nights. But, once the week is over, they can get back to sleeping normally.
Some people may also experience acute insomnia, which is a form of short-term insomnia that can strike at some points in peoples’ lives. For instance, if someone is suffering through a job loss or a difficult divorce, they may experience a persistent inability to get good sleep for anywhere from three weeks to six months. Notice that, in the case of acute insomnia, this is not a nightly occurrence and the sufferer is still able to get good sleep on some nights.
The most severe form of insomnia is chronic insomnia, which occurs almost nightly for a month or longer. This form of insomnia often seems to arise from seemingly nowhere and leaves the sufferer almost no reprieve. Oftentimes, this can leave the person fatigued, but not actually tired enough to fall asleep. This situation can lead to depression, anxiety, an inability to concentrate, and a feeling of just “being in a fog” all the time. Obviously, this is a bad state for a person to live in and they need to find relief.
While the temporary forms of insomnia can be relieved by relieving the temporary causes of insomnia, this is not a solution for people who suffer from chronic insomnia. Thus, people with chronic insomnia need to find solutions that address insomnia specifically.
Many people turn to sleeping pills in these situations, but these are problematic in some ways. Sleeping pills can be addictive even in their most benign forms and, oftentimes, people will become permanently reliant upon sleeping pill to get their nightly rest.
Other people seek herbal treatments, such as valerian, chamomile or lavender, for relief from insomnia. Many of these herbal remedies are fairly benign, but they can still leave people reliant on them to fall asleep at night.
More traditional remedies for insomnia include exercising in the afternoon, drinking warm milk before bed, avoiding anything mentally stimulating in the evening, and just going to bed early at night and waking up early in the morning. Obviously, it is preferable to start with traditional remedies such as this and move toward herbal remedies or sleeping pills if these do not help.
While insomnia is frustrating for people who suffer from it, it is treatable. There are many remedies out there and people should not be afraid to try them. In most cases, people can simply wait out the circumstances that are causing their insomnia and they will be fine. However, if insomnia is an almost nightly occurrence for a month or more, it is time to talk to a doctor and see what remedies might be suitable.
Showing posts with label insomnia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label insomnia. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
10 Tips To Put Your Insomnia To A Rest
Do you feel tired and un-refreshed on waking in the morning?
Do you stay that way throughout the day?
Do you have difficulty concentrating during the day?
The World Health Organization says that one-third of the world's population experience insomnia at some stage in their lives, with approximately five per cent needing medical treatment!
To avoid medical intervention, try these natural techniques and remedies, and help put your insomnia to rest.
1. Relaxation
Relax before going to bed. Do some deep breathing, listen to soft music. According to Dr. Timothy Sharp from Sydney University, avoiding caffeine, alcohol and nicotine will also help.
2. Bedtime routine
Develop a bedtime routine so your body knows it's time to go to sleep. By winding down your physical activities and following a set routine prior to bed, your body will start to associate some of these actions with going to sleep. Start with a cup of hot milk. Milk contains a protein called tryptophan, which helps to promote sleep. This can be substituted with chamomile tea, which is known to calm the nerves. Follow this with a hot bath or shower, the heat will help to lower your internal body temperature, again telling your body to go to sleep.
3. Your bedroom is for sleeping only
Make your bedroom your sleep-room. Turn the lights off as soon as you get into bed. Don't read, eat or watch television in your bedroom, or do any activity that is not sleep related. Make sure the room is dark and cozy; include extra pillows on the bed and even some teddy bears. Make your bedroom into a sleep sanctuary, a room that you will instantly feel secure and comfortable in, and best of all, a room that you will crave to sleep in.
4. Calm down and clear your mind
Clear your mind of the day's activities or things that are due to be done tomorrow. Write a 'to do' list for the following day. Organize uniforms, lunches, etc ... the night before. Make arrangements earlier than usual so you don't worry.
5. Give time back to yourself
Instead of trying to cram as much as you can into the day then find you haven't left much time to sleep, try to find short cuts or solutions to give a little time back to yourself. Make a double casserole and freeze half for another night. Spot clean the house as you go. Have more barbecues, using paper plates (less washing-up). Offer to pay the kids, or the neighbour's kids, to do some extra chores.
6. A balanced diet helps to make a balanced mind
If you're lacking in essential vitamins and minerals your body cannot operate at its best. Throw out the junk food and fizzy drinks, and make a new start to good physical and mental health. Add in some regular exercise and watch your body respond with some improved sleep.
7. Don't lie in bed if you can't sleep
If you don't feel sleepy enough to drift off, your mind will probably anguish over the fact that you can't get to sleep. This will only make it harder to get to sleep each time you experience this. Get out of bed and go into a different room. Do something to distract yourself until you do start to feel sleepy and then try to sleep again later.
8. Medications may interfere with your sleep
It has been shown that some of the medications below may cause sleep problems. Check with your doctor if you are experiencing insomnia and are also taking any of these medications - amphetamines (diet pills), antidepressants, beta blockers (heart and blood pressure), cimetidine (ulcers), clonidine (blood pressure), cortisone, diuretics (fluid), levodopa (parkinsons), methyldopa (blood pressure) and ventolin (asthma).
9. Above all: de-stress
Sharp says that stress is the worst cause of insomnia. Use some of the techniques above and try to remove as much stress out of your life as possible, and finally put your insomnia to rest.
Do you stay that way throughout the day?
Do you have difficulty concentrating during the day?
The World Health Organization says that one-third of the world's population experience insomnia at some stage in their lives, with approximately five per cent needing medical treatment!
To avoid medical intervention, try these natural techniques and remedies, and help put your insomnia to rest.
1. Relaxation
Relax before going to bed. Do some deep breathing, listen to soft music. According to Dr. Timothy Sharp from Sydney University, avoiding caffeine, alcohol and nicotine will also help.
2. Bedtime routine
Develop a bedtime routine so your body knows it's time to go to sleep. By winding down your physical activities and following a set routine prior to bed, your body will start to associate some of these actions with going to sleep. Start with a cup of hot milk. Milk contains a protein called tryptophan, which helps to promote sleep. This can be substituted with chamomile tea, which is known to calm the nerves. Follow this with a hot bath or shower, the heat will help to lower your internal body temperature, again telling your body to go to sleep.
3. Your bedroom is for sleeping only
Make your bedroom your sleep-room. Turn the lights off as soon as you get into bed. Don't read, eat or watch television in your bedroom, or do any activity that is not sleep related. Make sure the room is dark and cozy; include extra pillows on the bed and even some teddy bears. Make your bedroom into a sleep sanctuary, a room that you will instantly feel secure and comfortable in, and best of all, a room that you will crave to sleep in.
4. Calm down and clear your mind
Clear your mind of the day's activities or things that are due to be done tomorrow. Write a 'to do' list for the following day. Organize uniforms, lunches, etc ... the night before. Make arrangements earlier than usual so you don't worry.
5. Give time back to yourself
Instead of trying to cram as much as you can into the day then find you haven't left much time to sleep, try to find short cuts or solutions to give a little time back to yourself. Make a double casserole and freeze half for another night. Spot clean the house as you go. Have more barbecues, using paper plates (less washing-up). Offer to pay the kids, or the neighbour's kids, to do some extra chores.
6. A balanced diet helps to make a balanced mind
If you're lacking in essential vitamins and minerals your body cannot operate at its best. Throw out the junk food and fizzy drinks, and make a new start to good physical and mental health. Add in some regular exercise and watch your body respond with some improved sleep.
7. Don't lie in bed if you can't sleep
If you don't feel sleepy enough to drift off, your mind will probably anguish over the fact that you can't get to sleep. This will only make it harder to get to sleep each time you experience this. Get out of bed and go into a different room. Do something to distract yourself until you do start to feel sleepy and then try to sleep again later.
8. Medications may interfere with your sleep
It has been shown that some of the medications below may cause sleep problems. Check with your doctor if you are experiencing insomnia and are also taking any of these medications - amphetamines (diet pills), antidepressants, beta blockers (heart and blood pressure), cimetidine (ulcers), clonidine (blood pressure), cortisone, diuretics (fluid), levodopa (parkinsons), methyldopa (blood pressure) and ventolin (asthma).
9. Above all: de-stress
Sharp says that stress is the worst cause of insomnia. Use some of the techniques above and try to remove as much stress out of your life as possible, and finally put your insomnia to rest.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)