Insomnia

Insomnia is a sleep disorder disease. A person suffering from Insomnia cannot sleep at night and wakes up tired in the morning.

Today this disease has assumed an alarming proportion and doctors all over the world are prescribing sleeping pills to cure this problem. Insomnia deprives a person of the much needed rest and can interfere with his daytime actions. It can become a health hazard and at times can be fatal.

Sleep is important because it gives absolute rest to the body and is essential for its efficient functioning. It relieves from tension, brain and body gets rest and helps to wake up fresh and relaxed in the morning. The total amount of sleep needed varies from person to person. For an average person, a sleep of seven to eight hours is enough. But some people can get away with four to five hours of sleep because their sleep is deeper and more refreshing.

Usually senior citizens are affected by insomnia. As age grows, sleep is interrupted by some periods of wakefulness at night; this affects the quality rather than quantity. As a person grows older, the number of hours required for sleep is reduced; sleep goes on decreasing from 9 hours a night at the age 12 to 6 hours at the age 80. This makes a good quality sleep very important.

Causes of Insomnia :  

Insomnia may be caused by any of the following factors:

• Mental tension due to anxiety, worries, overwork and overexcitement.
• Suppressed feelings of resentment, anger and bitterness.
• Constipation, dyspepsia, over-eating at night, excessive intake of tea and coffee and sleeping without having food.
• Smoking, as it irritates the nervous system.
• Worrying about falling asleep.

Doctors all over the world prescribe sleeping pills, but they are habit forming and become less effective if taken over a long period of time. Sleeping have many side effects e.g. they lower I.Q., numb brain and can be deadly if taken before or after alcohol or taken in excess, indigestion, skin rashes, and lowered resistance to infection, circulatory and respiratory problems, poor appetite, high blood pressure, kidney and liver problems and mental confusion.

One should have a disciplined sleeping pattern i.e. go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time in the morning. Getting 2 hours of sleep before midnight has more effect than 4 hours of sleep after midnight.

Natural Cure for Insomnia :

Chronic insomniac, are deficient in some key nutrients like B-complex vitamins, vitamins C and D as well as calcium, magnesium, manganese, potassium and zinc. One cannot sleep well if any of these nutrients are not present in the sufficient quantities in the diet.

Changing eating pattern will go a long way toward treating and curing insomnia. Avoid white flour products, sugar and related products, tea, coffee, chocolate, cola drinks, alcohol, fatty and fried foods, foods with additives, excessive use of salt and strong condiments. Include fresh and dried fruits, whole cereals, seeds and yogurt. One of the main meals should be a large mixed salad while the other should be protein-based. Drinking a cup of milk with honey at bed-time is conducive to good sleep as milk contains tryptophan, an amino-acid that promotes sleep.

Never force yourself to sleep, as it will drive the sleep further away. Divert mind with soft music or light reading. While on bed, try visualizing a blank black wall filling your entire field of vision. Think about light and cheerful matters. Wear light bed clothes and try to relax. Lie on your side with legs one on top of the other and head and shoulders slightly forward and not on the back. Change the position of arms and legs at night and if you are a healthy sleeper you’ll change your position from one side to another many times at night.
Controlled breathing also helps. Lie on your side in bed and then take three deep breaths while expanding the abdomen completely. Hold your breath as long as you can. Repeat the same process again. You’ll sleep faster because carbon dioxide collects in the body and induces natural sleep.

Regular exercise during day time and mild exercise during the night will improve the quality and quantity of sleep. Regular exercise helps to eliminate lactic acid from the body and thus eases stress and muscular tension. It also produces hormonal changes which benefits the body and sleeping pattern. The best exercises are walking, jogging, skipping and swimming. Avoid heavy exercises at night, since they can keep you awake.

Yoga asans could be used to treat insomnia. Yoga will help you in two ways:
• Tones up the glandular, respiratory and nervous system.
• Induces physical and mental relaxation as an outlet for your problems.
Yoga asans beneficial for insomnia are shirsasana, sarvangasana, paschimottanasana, uttanasana, viparitakarani and shavasana.

Apply hot packs to the spine before sleeping. Also, applying hot fomentation to the spine, hot foot bath or an alternate hot and cold foot bath at bed-time will be very effective. Taking a cold hip bath with your feet in hot water and prolonged neutral immersion in bath at the temperature of 92 degree F to 96 degree F when you are very nervous is another effective treatment.

Eliminate as many stress factors as possible. Do any relaxation method or meditation. Cultivate the habit of doing any work slowly especially eating, walking and talking. Limit your working day to nine or ten hours and work for five and half days a week. Go for some creative hobby and devote some time daily on this. Do not set  unrealistic targets and complete one task before starting another.