Getting to, staying there, or good quality sleep — when I mention sleep, conversations perks up as people share their struggles or those of family or friends.
A myriad of cognitive, physical, mental, and functional problems can come from a lack of sleep: http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/excessive-sleepiness-10/10-results-sleep-loss ) One psychiatrist thinks it can cause ADD and ADHD; (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/opinion/sunday/diagnosing-the-wrong-deficit.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0)
There are many tips out there, some well-known, others less so:
Sleep hygiene — most of us at least try to do these common-sense things:
*get enough exercise during the day
*avoid action-based movies in the evening
*limit caffeine intake during the day, large meals close to bedtime
*stop all electronic/screen exposure at least an hour before bedtime
*keep the room extra-dark, even if you have to use a sleep mask
*follow a bedtime routine
Chemical help:
*B and C vitamins help the relaxation response
*many are magnesium-deficient; oral or topical supplements can help greatly
*essential oils, especiallly lavendar, chamomille and vetiver are quite effective
*pharmaceutical sleep agents: Benadryl or stronger
If you’re nutrient-deficient, you certainly need those chemicals. But nobody’s diphenhydramine*-deficient or Ambien-deficient, and natural methods of helping us to
others less so:
*B and C vitamins help the relaxation response
*many are magnesium-deficient; oral or topical supplements can help greatly
*essential oils, especiallly lavendar, chamomille and vetiver are quite effective
Do you want to kill two or more birds with one stone? Addressing some of the causes helps more than just how you sleep. If your body’s reflexes are keeping your body alert, maturing your nervous system will help your entire being, rather than masking them.
I have clients and students who not only get much better sleep from my techniques, but the work they do with this helps with things like bladder function, memorization, posture, neck control and more.
A nice story:
I had a delightful call from a lovely Mennonite lady on the east coast. She’s part of a group of neurophysiologists that have had wonderful success simply doing the exercises as described in Dempsey and Blomberg’s book, Movements that Heal. While they’ve seen it do wonders with their clients, she told me a few of their personal stories:
One of the group had been in a car wreck, and ever since has had sleep disturbances, most particularly waking at 12:30 every night, and pacing until she could get back to sleep a few hours later.
She had not been doing the exercises for long when she noticed that she now gets a good night’s sleep, without that meddlesome 12:30 awakening! Moreover, the caller’s daughter, who has had difficulties sleeping as a result of Lyme’s disease, is now sleeping much better herself, after doing the exercises!