| Lying in bed late at night you can feel very | | | | stressful situations and your mind will be |
| alone when everyone else in the house is | | | | going over and over the situation trying to |
| sound asleep. Take comfort in knowing that | | | | resolve it somehow. Your mind cannot relax |
| you are not alone and in fact insomnia is a | | | | and therefore you will find it very difficult |
| very common sleep disorder. In fact, it is | | | | to fall into a deep sleep. |
| estimated in the United States that $2.5 | | | | |
| billion is spent each year on prescribed | | | | Once you start having trouble falling off to |
| anti-insomnia medications and that doesn't | | | | sleep at night, then you will tend to go to |
| take into account how much is spent on | | | | bed with the thought in your mind that you |
| natural medicines used for insomnia. | | | | are not going to be able to sleep. The mind |
| | | | has amazing powers over the body and if the |
| The amount of sleep you need will vary from | | | | mind is telling your body that you won't be |
| person to person and most people will find | | | | able to sleep, then your body will believe it |
| that they tend to sleep less as they get | | | | and stay awake. If you can break this habit |
| older. For example, children are recommended | | | | your sleep patterns should return to normal. |
| to have 12 hours of sleep per night while for | | | | |
| adults the recommended sleep is between six | | | | Some tips for beating Insomnia are: |
| and eight hours per night. This is because as | | | | |
| we get older our bodies produce less | | | | - The first thing to do is to have a physical |
| melatonin which is a hormone that helps | | | | and make sure there is no underlying medical |
| control sleep. | | | | condition that may be causing your |
| | | | sleeplessness. |
| However, if you are not receiving those six | | | | |
| to eight hours of sleep at night and wake | | | | - Get yourself into a good routine, and that |
| each day feeling like you haven't slept then | | | | may include making sure you don't have any |
| you may be suffering from insomnia. | | | | caffeine within a few hours of going to bed |
| | | | and having some quiet time leading up to bed |
| The main symptoms of insomnia are: | | | | time. |
| | | | |
| - Difficulty in falling asleep at night | | | | - Try some relaxation techniques such as |
| | | | meditation, soft music or yoga. This will |
| - Waking up during the night and being unable | | | | help to relax your body and your mind in |
| to fall back to sleep | | | | preparation for sleep. These techniques are |
| | | | also extremely good for helping you with deal |
| - Waking up extremely early in the morning | | | | with stress. |
| | | | |
| - Feeling tired all day and feeling like you | | | | - Try some herbal medication for a few days, |
| haven't slept at all. | | | | just long enough to break the habit. Once the |
| | | | habit is broken and your mind stops thinking |
| There are many things that can cause insomnia | | | | that you will be unable to sleep then your |
| but generally it tends to be psychological | | | | insomnia should stop. |
| and often becomes a habit. | | | | |
| | | | In some cases insomnia may just stop on its |
| Stress, anxiety and depression are the most | | | | own, but often it is a matter of trying some |
| common causes of insomnia as when you are | | | | of these steps and developing a positive |
| anxious your body finds it hard to relax and | | | | mental attitude. Then you can stop lying in |
| settle into sleep mode. If you go to bed | | | | bed listening to your family snoring and join |
| stressed you will be thinking about your | | | | them instead. |