Are You Sleeping as Well as You Could? Bed, Bath and Insomnia

Years ago I read an essay that referred to sleep as the sex of the nineties. It still seems to be true. Everyone I know is tired. Here are great tips from recovered and recovering insomniacs.

My cousin, when he awakes in the night, takes off his pj's and walks around. Getting cold and then returning to a warm bed puts him back to sleep. This works for me, except I just kick off the covers till I start to shiver. Then pull them up again and return to dreamland.

My father kept a stack of crossword puzzles on his night table; doing puzzles took his mind off any problems. I find puzzles too stimulating, though I like to close my eyes and ponder new ideas for my writing. This nudges my worrywart out of my thoughts.

My friend Baxter suggests equipping your bedroom and environs with any or all of the following:

• An eye mask
• A white noise machine or a fan
• The weight of extra blankets
• A boring book
• Music or a story, using special headphones
• Lavender oil as aromatherapy
• A hot bath
• A yoga mat
• A glass of (ideally warm) milk
• A journal to put troubling thoughts on paper and out of your head
• Baxter also advises turning in early along with the cycle of the dark sky.

My friend Daniel keeps a rowing machine in a guest bedroom. I 'm one of those people, he says, who can do exhausting exercise two hours before going to bed and I sleep far better.

Every evening another friend makes a to do list for the following day, again putting on paper thoughts that might otherwise invade the mind while trying to sleep.

Others talk about the importance of exercise during the day. 

Sleeping with a pet can be disruptive, though it can also be soothing. My neighbor told me "sometimes with Bo, I feel like a kid with a stuffed bunny. I put my hand in the cavity where his back paw meets his body and it soothes me."

And this from my friend Jackie: 

• Tense all your muscles, starting at your toes and moving up you body to your face  (squeeze your facial muscles in a grimace). Then slowly release the tension.
• Count backwards from a high number. If that doesn't work, count backwards by, say, threes.
• I leave some work (reading, writing, bills) nearby, and if I'm not asleep in a half-hour or so, I do the work. 
• Same applies if I wake up in the middle of the night. The thought of getting up to do work is a soporific— given the choice between working or sleeping, sleeping usually wins out.
• You won't like this one — don't nap! Or if you do, no longer than 20 minutes.
• Go to sleep the same time every night and get up the same time, like midnight to 7 or 8 and DO NOT VARY. Do this for several weeks. (I worked with a sleep specialist to determine my hours and how long to do it). You gradually reset your clock. Then try to stick to it.

Erika Shay and Parvati Shallow, whose ESP Wellness Center helps individuals promote personal well-being, advise:

• Lie in bed, face up, and try to focus your attention inward, try to look down your nose with your eyes closed.
• Then focus on your breathing, and whatever thoughts come thru your head, let them—just don't "talk back" or respond to them.
• Let the thoughts drift in and then out of your head.
• Alternatively, repeat something you want to embrace, for example, say, "I embrace life."
• Or I say, "I am healthy, I am happy, I am successful, I embrace life."
• Your brain reinforces your thoughts.

Above all, have faith; panicking about sleep makes it harder to settle down.

Of course, if sleep problems persist, you should consult a doctor, if possible one who specializes in sleep.

What ideas do you have for soothing yourself to sleep? Please share!

CHECK OUT SOME RELATED ARTICLES:

DOES YOUR BED MAKE YOU HAPPY? A GUIDE TO BUYING A BED, BEDDING & BEYOND

CAN SEPARATE BEDS SAVE OR DESTROY A MARRIAGE?

SHOULD I BUY INTO FENG SHUI?

IS YOUR BURGLAR ALARM PROTECTING YOU? WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW FROM A TOP SECURITY EXPERT

FIND, PREVENT AND DEAL WITH BEDBUGS