natural remedies to falling asleep?

[Point5]

I am at my wits end. This insomnia is really getting to me, to the point where now I really just feel like crying when I cant sleep. I have to get up early for work and only getting a couple hours of sleep is making me crazy.

I have tried it all - sleeping pills (otc and doctor prescribed), meditation, exercise, reading, watching tv, humming, counting sheep, etc....

I have had sleeping problens for many years but lately its been bad. Its almost 1 am here and I am wide awake.

Doe anyone know any other secrets to falling asleep?

[WockaWocka]

I suffer from insomnia too, and I know how frustrating it can be. You try everything and sometimes even the best remedies don't work.

 

Here are a few highlights from my insomnia battle that may be useful to you:

 

* when you can't fall asleep after 20-30 minutes, stop trying. Instead get up, move out of bed, turn a light on, read a book, do something active and wait until you feel tired.

 

* melatonin supplements can be very helpful for getting to sleep naturally. My problem with them is that despite being natural they give me a bad 'hangover' the next day. But some of my friends swear by them.

 

* valerian root is a natural muscle relaxant you can take before bed. Epsom salt baths are also a great way to relax before you fall asleep.

 

* you mentioned exercise already and I have to say this is one of the things that works best for me. If I'm out of shape I exercise in the evening because it makes me drowsy, if I'm in better shape I have to exercise in the morning because it keeps me alert, but by the end of the day my body is ready to rest.

 

* try not to use your bed (or your room, unless you live in a high-rent area like me!) for anything except sleep.. or sex It confuses your brain if your sleeping area is also used for reading, studying, tv, etc.

 

* your body habituates to any sleeping pill after a few days, so you can't expect any one drug to be effective much more than a week. I try to rotate between tylenol pm, ambien, and nothing (if I don't have to get up early the next day) in order to keep my body guessing. If I stay with one med for more than a few days in a row it won't work.

 

Wishing you sweet dreams!

[Kitkat973]

Chamomile tea. Warm honey with milk. Soothing music. link removed

[myhonestanswer]

No TV or computer within two hours of trying to sleep. Boring, but true. I like to read. Sitting still in one place gets you ready for sleep.

 

Also, make sure the temperature is right, not too hot and not too cold.

 

Try to make your bedroom a haven - restful, pretty. Maybe a lovely new set of sheets? Also make sure you have the right level of light in there. I like pitch black, but I know others prefer different.

 

And, when you have the chance to lie-in, DON'T. This is so important. You must keep getting up and the same time, every day of the week. I've known lots of people with sleep problems, and this is the ONLY thing that really gets it sorted. If you stay in bed until 1pm twice a week, and get up at 6am five times, it's no wonder your mind and body are confused, you know?

 

I hate to state the obvious, but no caffeine. That includes chocolate, black tea, diet coke etc. I only have ONE coffee at 8am or I am screwed.

 

If I can't sleep, it sounds stupid, but I always 'pretend' to sleep. Play a game where someone watching you must think you are asleep. So keep your eyes shut, look relaxed. It's weird, but it works for me.

 

Finally, it's really important for me to relax my whole body to get to sleep. If you've ever done yoga you'll probably know how to tense and release each muscle from the feet up. That really sets me up for sleep.

[Seraphim]

Melatonin.

[Point5]

Thanks guys

I have tried all of your suggestions. I hate giving up tho.

I can never sleep in, on days i dont have to work, my body automatically wakes me up at 8am. So even if I wanted to, I couldnt.

I've tried melatonin, but it still didnt work.

i dont take sleeping pills every night, I am too scared to because I dont know the effect its having on my organs so I take it once a week, at the most.

Once I get health insurance, I am going to see a sleep doctor.

[MakeItCount]

Melatonin is NOT scientifically proven, and has different effects on different people. I would stay the hell away from that. The problem with taking things like that is that the body may stop producing it (pineal gland in this case). Kind of like steroids...body stops producing testosterone because so much is being taken in artificially. That's why a lot of guys experience ball shrinkage. Haha.

 

How often do you work out? Do you drink caffeine past 12pm?

 

I take a very mild sleeping pill (Zipoclone, I think? I'll have to check my bottle). I only take half a pill a few nights a week when I feel like I'm wide awake and it's bedtime for various reasons. Some great posts in here though...try some relaxation exercises. I took a class on that (woot options haha), and it seriously improved my quality of life. We spent hours laughing at how lame it was, but I realized over time that my energy skyrocketed, I wasn't anxious anymore, etc etc.

[Point5]

Melatonin is NOT scientifically proven, and has different effects on different people. I would stay the hell away from that. The problem with taking things like that is that the body may stop producing it (pineal gland in this case). Kind of like steroids...body stops producing testosterone because so much is being taken in artificially. That's why a lot of guys experience ball shrinkage. Haha.

 

 

O_O I didn't know that, luckily, I'm a girl, lol.

[luminousone]

Hi point5

My condolences - I didn't used to have problems, but the medication I am on has done something to me too...

 

I used to have a student job years ago at a nearby medical school. I guess they were studying the effects of light therapy on the rhythm of sleep hormones.They were using light boxes and then taking blood to measure the sleep hormones. Some people were there because their sleep schedule was not normal - like I remember one lady said that before they started the study with her, they tested the rhythm of her hormones, and her natural day cycle was actually 25-26 hours long, rather than 24. So that put her sleep schedule off a few hours each night, until it cycled through to normal hours for a few days again. They were trying to manipulate her sleep and hormone rhythms with full spectrum lights.

 

The kind of doctor that was doing the research was an endocrinologist. You might check to see if there are any sleep studies going on at your local medical school and they would likely do a full consultation for you and give you treatment if you participated in their study...

 

Do make sure you are out in the natural sunlight each day for 15 minutes.

 

You might also consider biofeedback - to teach you some relaxation skills.

 

But I really think that you should get your hormone levels checked to see if they are off.

[Naomi99]

Masturbate. I'm serious!

[MakeItCount]

Masturbate. I'm serious!

 

+1. Forgot about that. Hahaha.

 

And both guys and girls have a pineal gland point5 Stay away from those steroids...you wouldn't want your balls to shrink! hahaha. Have you looked into relaxation exercises? I can dig up my old notes to remember which ones worked best for me if you like.

[mfan]

If I can't sleep, it sounds stupid, but I always 'pretend' to sleep. Play a game where someone watching you must think you are asleep. So keep your eyes shut, look relaxed. It's weird, but it works for me.

That is a really cute idea. I definitely agree with it, because the most important thing is to relax and keep your eyes closed. It doesn't matter whether you actually go unconscious or not; your body will regenerate anyway.

 

I second the masturbation idea, but you probably already thought of that.

 

I'll probably catch heck for this, but you could try not eating for 4 hours before bed and then have 1 glass of red wine. That'll knock you out.

[WockaWocka]

I definitely agree with it, because the most important thing is to relax and keep your eyes closed. It doesn't matter whether you actually go unconscious or not; your body will regenerate anyway.

 

From my understanding of the research there's something really special about REM sleep. It has a unique ability to help us regenerate and recover. Resting may be better than nothing, but it's not enough.

 

From an evolutionary perspective there is an enormous "cost" to the fact that we need 8 hours of sleep per day. It left our ancestors so much more vulnerable to being eaten by wild animals while they slept. So given that risk you have to imagine that it was outweighed by the unique benefits of sleep.

 

But none of that info is helpful when you have insomnia (I know!!) and that's why I'd encourage you to get up and try to read a book or do some work when you can't sleep. I hate pulling myself out of bed like that, but almost as soon as I turn the lights on and try to read for a while my body 'realizes' that it's super drowsy and I fall asleep right after.

 

+1 on masturbating! I feel sooo relaxed after a good 'O' or two

 

Cheers

[Ariel85]

This may sound odd, but is your room too warm? I can never sleep if the room isn't cold enough.

[SpottiOtti]

If I can't sleep, I have a glass of wine and read research articles. Works every time.

 

Also, someone was telling me about some new research which indicates that some people don't need as much sleep as others. They call them "short sleepers". Have you read about this at all, anyone? Maybe OP is a "short sleeper"?

[Silverbirch]

I was told this by a doctor and forgot about it until now. It did work for me when I remembered to try it. Before bedtime, rub lavender oil into the soles of your feet and then put on warm comfy socks.

[MakeItCount]

I was told this by a doctor and forgot about it until now. It did work for me when I remembered to try it. Before bedtime, rub lavender oil into the soles of your feet and then put on warm comfy socks.

 

On your pillow should work too. Why the feet? Lavender definitely relaxes thoughl

[Kerrian]

I find white noise works for me when I have insomnia. I get it in clusters of days - but if I set link removed to a certain amount of time, on medium oscillation and it just lets me relax and get to sleep, even when I've spent hours staring at the ceiling trying to count sheep. When nothing else works - this does.

Don't know if you've tried it already, but fingers crossed!

 

Oddly, what one of the above posters said about 'pretending' to be asleep works for me too. I close my eyes and imagine myself in a relaxing situation when I have to be asleep or still while something is going on around me, like, sunbathing on a warm beach with my eyes closed. No idea why it works so well, but more often than not, this is how I get to sleep.

[Silverbirch]

I'm not sure why the feet, but I'm sure it works better than the pillow for some reason. I know of people who rub Vics Vapor Rub into their feet when they get a chest cold and swear it works.

 

I've had a book on Reflexology for years which I refer to sometimes, and I find it good. A lot of the pressure points for various ailments are in the hands and feet. I used to visit a friend in hospital who has since passed away. She had lymphoma with secondary tumors around the brain. I was giving her foot massages and rubbing lavender oil into her feet, and she used to rave to people saying it helped her a lot. I'll have a look in the book and see if it says anything for insomnia. I know that once I gave somebody a type of hand massage - actually pressing certain points in the hands and fingers for a headache, and they claimed it worked. Be back.

[Silverbirch]

I find white noise works for me when I have insomnia. I get it in clusters of days - but if I set link removed to a certain amount of time, on medium oscillation and it just lets me relax and get to sleep, even when I've spent hours staring at the ceiling trying to count sheep. When nothing else works - this does.

Don't know if you've tried it already, but fingers crossed!

 

Okay, this is a bit odd, but my father was exactly the same. I cannot stay awake for very long if the television is going with tennis on. It's to do with the rhythmic sounds of the balls hitting the courts, and the sound of the applause. It's sort of hypnotic in a relaxing way. With my father, if any of us changed the station or turned the television off while the tennis was on and he appeared to be asleep, he would wake immediately and tell us to turn it back on. . . . He was a big tennis fan, but I wonder if he ever saw a full match.

[anya1607307555]

 

 

I swear by this from The Body Shop

[MakeItCount]

 

I swear by this from The Body Shop

 

Essential oils are excellent for relaxing. this could work too.

[Batya33]

 

I swear by this from The Body Shop

 

Wow -been looking for a product just like this! Definitely going to try it.

[Batya33]

This may sound odd, but is your room too warm? I can never sleep if the room isn't cold enough.

 

Yes Ariel -same here- I thought it was odd that I needed the room to be cold (so I can snuggle and "cocoon" in my comforter) but it's true - definitely agree with this.

[teabee]

Okay, this is a bit odd, but my father was exactly the same. I cannot stay awake for very long if the television is going with tennis on. It's to do with the rhythmic sounds of the balls hitting the courts, and the sound of the applause. It's sort of hypnotic in a relaxing way. With my father, if any of us changed the station or turned the television off while the tennis was on and he appeared to be asleep, he would wake immediately and tell us to turn it back on. . . . He was a big tennis fan, but I wonder if he ever saw a full match.

 

Ha! That's quite amusing. It seems counterintuitive, but I've always sworn that extended action scenes in movies will put me right to sleep. The only time I've ever fallen asleep in a movie theater was during The Perfect Storm, essentially during the part with the most action. Same thing with drawn-out action scenes in war movies and things. Maybe it is the same premise as white noise and tennis matches.