Sleeping problems is among the most common of contemporary healthcare issues.
It seems that nearly everybody, from teenagers to the aged, tends to
suffer from sleep-related problems. While there are plenty of sleeping
aids in the form of prescription medicines, it is always better to seek
natural, safer alternatives. This means using simple techniques to fall
asleep instantly without undertaking risk of addiction caused by common,
sleep-inducing chemical formulations.
Understand Why Counting Sheep Makes Sense
Among the oldest and perhaps, the most controversial and debated of
natural sleeping aids is
the theory of Counting Sheep. There is nothing special about sheep and
visualizing or counting them doesn’t turn you into a freak of any sorts.
The idea behind this theory is highly rational.
When psychologists started advocating the principle of Counting
Sheep to sleep better what they meant was using it as a tool to
disengage your mind. When you are lying in bed, concentrating upon
counting sheep, you are essentially diverting your mind from other
worldly worries.
This allows your mind to achieve a sense of superficial relaxation. Though this kind of relaxation is short-lived, it helps in
falling asleep quicker. You can
count any animal or anything that appeals to you. Just do the counting
slowly and give at least a week for this method to work.
Declutter Your Mind with Writing
Most people
struggle to fall asleep because their
mind is overwhelmed with thoughts about how their day went or their
ongoing struggles. To vent such feelings before going to bed, try to
write them in a diary. This can be your nightly journal that you can
maintain like a personal, summarized version of your daily life.
Calm Your Mind by Boring It
Rather than listening to loud music or watching provocative TV
programs, it is better to do something boring. This includes reading the
newspaper. This idea is to engage your mind with something that doesn’t
stimulate it much. The more bored your mind gets as the night
approaches, better are your chances of
falling asleep faster.
Stick to a Routine to Fall Asleep Quickly
Our body follows an inherent day-night mechanism. This is often
referred to as the Body Clock. In accordance with this regimen, our
hormones are released and our energy levels are regulated throughout the
day. To ensure that your body clock is well attuned towards helping you
fall asleep, stick to daily routine. This includes a fixed time to
sleep and wake-up with a variation of not more than 45 minutes for each.
Relax Psychologically with Yoga
Contrary to popular belief, meditation and yoga can be done at night
too. Breathing exercises that help you be calmer are recommended when
seated on your bed. Try to learn some yoga poses that help to reduce
your anxiety levels. The less anxious your mind, greater are the chances
of you
falling asleep quickly.
Relax Physically with Warm Baths
Apart from psychological relaxation, you need to combine some form
of physical relaxation. For this, taking bath with lukewarm is
recommended. This helps to soothe the tired muscles, inducing a sense of
relief. Our muscles get tense when we are stressed. As the muscles
relax, our body re-discovers its unstressed, normal mode that helps to
sleep faster.
If taking warm baths doesn’t interest you, try to invest in a massage
chair. A few minutes spent on the chair will help your muscles detangle
themselves, helping you relax better.
Avoid Lazing in Daytime to Sleep Better at Night
To ensure that your body clock is not disturbed and you are not
using your quota of daily sleep before night-time, don’t laze around
during the daytime. Don’t take naps and stay away from habits that
induce a sense of sleepiness. This includes boozing. If your brain gets
to rest during the daytime, it re-balances the hormones, ensuring
that the bloodstream is occupied with balancing hormones during the
night-time. While this balance keeps your bodily functions in good
shape, it tends to disturb the critical, night-time sleep.
Don’t Exercise Late-night
Heavy exercising increases our heart rate and blood pressure. It
raises concentrations of hormones that increase our thirst and
hunger—these are anti sleeping factors. Thus, don’t exercise after 9 pm.
Even if you go for a night-time stroll, after dinner, keep the pace
slow.
Dietary Recommendations to Fall Asleep Faster:
1. Try to reduce your intake of tea or coffee after 6 pm.
2. Stay away from sweetened desserts or beverages after dinner.
3. Drink relaxing, herbal beverages like Chamomile tea after dinner.
4. Eat more of whole grain foods that help to
regulate blood sugar levels. This helps to avoid sugar spikes that often
prevent us from falling asleep.
It is Not Warmness of Milk but its Ingredients that Help to Fall Sleep
Another typical remedy for falling asleep faster that has been
misunderstood by many is drinking warm milk before going to bed. It is
not the temperature of the milk that makes it a sleeping aid. Milk
contains a very precious biochemical called Tryptophan. This is a
sleep-inducing compound. Drinking milk, at least a couple of hours
before going to bed, is recommended to benefit from its sleep-inducing
benefits.
Develop Better Sleeping Posture
To fall asleep faster, you need to adopt a better sleeping position.
This includes not using very thick pillows. Don’t sleep on your
stomach. Try to position a pillow between or below your knees if you
suffer from restless legs during the night. The mattress shouldn’t be
too soft or hard. It should provide sufficient support to your spine.
