Thread: sleep...

There are several things you can do to help bring on sleepy time. I must first say that watching tv is a baaaaad idea! Yes, you eventually get bored and fall asleep, but it is not healthy only making the situation worse... not to mention creating a bad habit. It has been proven that television is extremely mentally stimulating even if you don't feel like it. Your brain is wired to react to light, sound, and movement. The more there is, the more alert your brain will be. The other downside to television is that it invokes feeling and thoughts which can continue into your sleep and make for a restless night. I think that the same might go for sleeping with a radio on. Anything that has the human voice will especially stimulate your mind.

As a replacement to television or radio, I would suggest a fan, humidifier, a cd that plays only relaxing sounds like wind or water, or something to that effect. The repetative sound is proven to have a calming effect. Some times the breeze of a fan can also be calming.

Make your bedroom a comfortable and enviting place which is reserved only for sleeping and relaxing. Try using darker color coordination in that room as this has a more calming effect then brighter colors. Avoid using your bedroom for exercize or other mentally stimulating activities as your brain will begin to associate that with your bedroom and not sleep.

Some people find that aroma therapy can help calm and prepare you for sleep. You want to find a soothing and subtle fragrance.

Before bed time, you should avoid television, radio, reading, computer, and anything mentally stimulating for an hour before bed (at least 30 minutes). You should try to do something calming and relaxing instead such as meditation, yoga, or a hot bath. Do not use that time to think about the things on your to do list or things that made you angry that day. Try to keep all those types of thought out of your head and replace them with happy and relaxing thoughts. Make sure to set aside time for that type of thinking way before bed time gets close.

You should also make sure your bed is ready to fall into an hour before hand. This way, once you reach your relaxed point, you are not fumbling with the blankets or clothes on the bed... etc etc. Be prepaired to go straight to bed! The more you have to mess with, the more you will slip away from your relaxed state of mind.

Also avoid consuming anything with caffiene. At all if possible. If you absolutely have to have it, then try not to consume any at least 3 to 4 hours before bed time. I highly recommend avoiding it all together because caffiene can stay in your system for a long time. Caffiene will make your mind race, your heart rate accelerate, can make you irritable, and just down right fidgety. It is very bad for people with insomnia. You should also avoid energy drinks and excessive sugar before bed time.

It has also been noted that women who exercize at least once a day are more likely to go right to sleep when they hit the bed. Without exercize, you begin to get a build up of adrenaline (energy) which keeps you awake. Exercizing releases the adrenaline and endorphines making you feel immediately relaxed after you sit down to rest. If you plan to do this, make sure it is at least several hours before bed time. It can take a while for your adrenaline to subside and the relaxed feel good state to kick in.

Hope this all helps!