A very serious bout of insomnia (I literally was awake all night) recently reminded me of how neglected this blog is and how easy it is to put this subject aside when I am not suffering from sleep problems. Aside from an occasional thought like, "Gee, I'm glad I'm not having all those insomnia problems now," it's easy to get sidetracked when things are going well. Of course, the flipside of that is when there is LOSS*, it is very difficult to blog.
*If you are just tuning in, a detailed explanation of the acronym LOSS can be found in my introductory post here.)
So. This recent insomnia also reminded me that it I am never guaranteed to be free of sleep issues and that I still need to maintain my good sleep hygiene (a term you will find if you do a bit of research on insomnia, particularly on the internets.) So I thought I would list some of the things that I have used, past and present, to help with sleep, starting with the ones I found most effective. The less effective ones may be saved for another post.
(Usual disclaimer: I am not a health practitioner; any course of treatment should be preceded by consultation with a health professional; the following remarks are from my own experience and/or research and what works for me may not work the same for you; use your own judgment.)
1. Winding down. This means avoiding stimulating activity such as watching TV or using the computer (I'm very bad about this one.) Turning down lights if necessary. Preparing the mind and body for the onset of sleep. Dr. Rubin Naiman discusses this at length in his book Healing Night (a book I have mentioned before and will continue to recommend throughout this blog, since it is so amazing.) If you want to see what he has to say on the subject, see Chapter 3, "Dusk: Surrendering To Sleep."
2. Tea. There are many tea options. For starters, there is good old Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime tea (you know, the one with the bears on the box.) I find that I like the flavor of this the best. It may be a nostalgic sensation, since I had this tea as a child. The herbal formula includes ingredients like chamomile and tilia flowers, commonly found to promote rest and relaxation. Sometimes, however, you need something that packs a bit more punch. Celestial Seasonings now makes a "Sleepytime Extra" which contains valerian, the mother of all herbal sedatives. I have tried this, but I felt a little too knocked out by it initially, which led me to decide I needed to control the amount of valerian myself. After consulting with a naturopath (which is what all of you are going to do before trying any of these, right? especially if you are pregnant) I got a dropper bottle of valerian tincture and added it to the tea itself.
However, valerian by itself has proved to be less effective than I would like. A high dose makes me feel drugged; a low dose doesn't have enough affect. I attribute this to valerian's function as, from what I understand, more of a physical relaxant than a mental one. To that end, I've added herbs like passionflower and meadowsweet to the arsenal. I have found passionflower to be particularly effective in easing mental anxiety and restlessness. Sometimes I take passionflower extract in tea by itself. The other two teas I use from time to time are Yogi Tea's Bedtime-which contains perhaps the most comprehensive blend of herbs to relax both body and mind, including passionflower, and has a very pleasant taste thanks to some cardamom and spices-and Traditional Medicinals' Nighty Night, which contains hops and catnip for an extra wallop (when I drink this one I definitely sleep like a log.)
I think changing the remedies from time to time is a good tactic for me, as it seems to keep my body from getting too used to one certain remedy and perhaps becoming inured to it. I don't claim to understand how all of this works; I only know what seems to work for me. The mind can be a tricky thing when convincing us of certain things. As Dr. Naiman points out, it is folly to become superstitious about one specific remedy or bedtime ritual, since the goal is to be able to sleep naturally and without the strong need for rituals and remedies. I remind myself of this when I get too dependent on a specific approach.
Which brings me to 3. Melatonin. This supplement may be well known to those who travel overseas often. It's often used to help reset one's internal clock when disrupted by a radical change in time zones. Melatonin, from what I understand, is stored in the body and released at a certain time of evening to signal the body to go to sleep. It does this based on the rhythm of daylight and darkness, so if you are deprived of light during the day and/or have bright lights at night, things may get thrown off. (That is my extremely nonscientific explanation.) Taking melatonin an hour or two before bedtime can help reset the body's internal clock.
I was given this by my naturopath during a very difficult bout of sleep problems. Only recently did I learn that it is not meant for very long term use (I had been using it for over 2 years) and the body's ability to sleep on its own is like a muscle that can atrophy if unused. Point being, once again, the goal is to get to a natural state of sleep, not to find a magic pill that will do it for me. (This is my own personal goal, because I value balance and holistic health for my body.) This is easy to say in theory but much harder in practice. I had become superstitious about the melatonin ritual in the way that Dr. Naiman warns against. So I stopped taking it. Nothing changed drastically, until the bout of extreme insomnia about a week or so later. But who can say they are related? In any case, I am determined to train my body to go to sleep when it needs to, and melatonin will be used for cases where I know there will be a large disruption in the sleep schedule.
4. Hot baths. This is a small one, but important. The ritual helps my body relax and get into sleep mode. Intense hot water and steam creates a drowsy sensation. The same can be said for hot tea, even without the herbal benefits discussed earlier. I would drink warm milk, but I am sensitive to dairy.
Incidentally, (since this would be related to baths), I know that lavender is considered a very effective relaxant when used in aromatherapy. I have experienced its relaxing effect generally, but when I've attempted to use it as a sleep aid I've gotten really weird results (wakefulness, disturbing dreams.) This has happened more than once so I avoid lavender for this purpose. I just mention this in case someone is thinking, "why isn't she talking about lavender?" I'm sure for other people it's fine.
5. Benadryl. I have mentioned in previous posts, I think, that I don't think there is a magic pill, and generally speaking I have found medication to be ineffective in the long term-for reasons I will go into later. However, for emergency situations, I have found Benadryl (drug name Diphenhydramine) to be most effective. Now, let me make one thing clear first-the brand name Benadryl is an antihistamine, and I am not trying to condone using an OTC medication for purposes other than what is indicated. However, if you look at several of the OTC sleeping aids on the market, you will find they have the exact same ingredient: only diphenhydramine. It is exactly the same as the antihistamine, only packaged differently. This was a revelation to me, and now I just buy whichever is cheapest or readily available.
I have found this to be the most effective medication because it works to knock me out, and although I am groggy for some time in the morning, it does not have any of the other more unpleasant side effects I've experienced with other pills. (By the way, I only take 1/2 a pill and that is plenty for me-a whole pill can make me sleep 10 hours or more, which is usually not necessary.) The grogginess is not ideal, so I definitely see this as a last resort (or emergency plan-for instance, if I know I will be sleeping somewhere I am likely to have difficulty getting to sleep and I have to drive the next day, like on a road trip.) Also, I use it sparingly because I know from experience that if used too often, it loses its effectiveness. This has also happened with all the prescription medications I tried, and I will go into the story of the failed remedies in my next post.
And with that, I've got to wrap this up, because although I am sure I failed to mention some remedies (such as deep breathing and mind-body exercises) I've got to get to bed and start that winding-down process by getting off the computer now. So I will leave with a promise to post again more frequently than I have been.
A good night's sleep to you all.
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