Having insomnia can basically ruin your life. Some nights you’ll sleep fine, but others you won’t fall asleep until 4 or 5 in the morning. Or maybe you fall asleep right away but then shoot awake at 4am. I’ve compiled a list of things you can do to solve your insomnia for good. Here are my top tips.
1. Melatonin
Did you know that melatonin is actually an antioxidant? That’s right, it’s actually really good for you and when taken in small amounts, it can be just what you need for a good night’s sleep. Take the melatonin at the same time every night otherwise you might mess up your circadian rhythm. Make sure you don’t take any more than 1 mg. Anymore than that and you will be tired the next day and will probably have some strange dreams.
2. Don’t eat before 7
For some people, insomnia is caused by their digestion. The food moving in their body is making their nervous system fire off. If you’re tossing and turning and waking up too early, this could be the culprit. Don’t eat past 7 o’clock. Try it for a few days and see if it works! It could be the answer for you.
3. Desensitize yourself to noise
What I find really helps for light sleepers is getting a fan or a noise machine. You can find 10 hour YouTube videos of rainfall or wind. It helps cancel out any sudden noises.
4. Don’t think too much
If you’re a light sleeper, chances are you have a sensitive nervous system. Your nervous system can fire off from anything from stressful thoughts to over working to over eating! Take it easy before bed, you don’t want to get caught in a cycle of stressful thoughts. It just builds and builds and before you know it, the birds are singing.
5. Don’t move a muscle
Once you are in a comfortable position. Stay there. Fight through the urge to switch to the other side. It will be like having an itch you can’t scratch. It will feel torturous for a minute or so, but just hold on! By doing this you are telling your brain to go to sleep. You’re kind of tricking it, in a way. This won’t work if you’re mind is racing. In fact it might result in a stressful, scary dream.
6. Herbs
There are some herbs that really help with calming your nerves. California poppy and Chamomile are especially good. Passionflower can help calm down an active mind. Valerian also works in high doses. These herbs are best when consumed in a tea form, that way it absorbs into your system right away.
7. Drink a little red wine
I’m not advocating getting drunk every night, but having a little red wine never hurt anyone. Do you ever notice that wine gives you a sleepy drunk feeling? Use that to your advantage! Have 5oz before bed and you’re off to dreamland.
