4 natural ways to get relief from insomnia

4 natural ways to get relief from insomnia

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If you suffer from insomnia, it can be really frustrating at times. Not being able to sleep for days can have a significant impact on your health and wellbeing. Going to a sleep therapist is a solution. You might get some medicines to treat your condition. But there are some natural ways you can get relief from insomnia.

Eat food containing tryptophan

Before going to bed, you must eat food containing tryptophan. This is an amino acid helps to make serotonin which in turn helps you to fall asleep. These foods include warm milk and cookie. You should refrain from eating spicy and sugary foods. These may disrupt your sleep.

Smell essential oils

Lavender acts as a mild tranquilizer. You can dab some of this oil on your forehead and temples before going to sleep. The lovely aroma will help you sleep. Jasmine also works equally well. You can also take a warm bath adding few drops of ylang-ylang oil or lavender oil to your bathwater. This will make you feel relaxed and help you in having a good sleep at night.

Maintain your sleep cycle

You should go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. This makes your body prepared for sleep at the right time. You should go out jogging every morning to feel energized during the day. You will then feel relaxed at night and will be able to sleep well. Try not to take a short nap in the afternoon.

Prepare your room

You should have the right environment for sleeping. You must leave all your electronic gadgets out of your bedroom. You should turn your alarm clock the other way round so that it’s light doesn’t disturb you. You must make your room dark. You should make the room cooler than the normal room temperature. It will help you to sleep well. You should sleep on a good mattress always.

Try out these natural remedies at home and see the results yourself. These techniques have proved to be effective over time. So, these should work for you as well.

Is stomach sleeping harmful?

Is stomach sleeping harmful?

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The way you sleep in your bed can affect your sleep. People sleep in different positions. Some sleep on the sides, some sleep on their back, while others sleep on their stomach. But many people believe that stomach sleeping is harmful. Here are the reasons why.

Causes strain on the spine

You will start experiencing pain when you sleep on your stomach. The spinal strain is the thing you should be most concerned about. These pains can be dreadful. You will also feel the pain all throughout the day. When you sleep on your stomach, it exerts pressure on your spine. This is because the body cannot maintain a neutral position to keep your body in a balanced state. Spinal strain can also lead to numbness in many parts of your body.

Causes neck pain

You will have neck problems if you sleep on your stomach. In order to breathe, you will need to turn your head either left or right consistently. So, your neck gets twisted and your head and spine get misaligned.

Disrupts sleep

Because of back pain or neck pain, you may have to wake up in the middle of the night. This will affect your sleep. If the problem persists then you may suffer from insomnia as well.

People still sleep on their stomach, despite all these disadvantages. You should try to avoid sleeping in this position. Pregnant women, particularly, must avoid this position; it might be dangerous for their unborn baby. You should practice safe sleeping position in order to remain healthy and sleep well at night.

How melatonin and other hormones are connected to sleep?

How melatonin and other hormones are connected to sleep?

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Melatonin is an important hormone that affects your sleep. There are other hormones as well that have an effect on your sleep quality. Melatonin affects your sleep in many ways.

It controls your sleep cycle

 It controls the cycle of your sleeping and waking. When you are exposed to light, your brain gets stimulated. There is suprachiasmatic nucleus  (SCN) in the brain that sends signals to the rest of the parts of the brain that deals with hormones. When we are exposed to light, the SCN releases stimulating hormones such as cortisol and increases our body temperature as well. During daytime, the SCN prevents the release of melatonin hormone. During the night, at about 9 pm, the melatonin hormone gets released and makes you feel sleepy till the next morning. During the daytime, this hormone stays inactive.

Causes winter depression

During the winter, the days are shorter. So, the melanin gets released either earlier or later than the normal time. This leads to winter depression. The production of melatonin drops suddenly. This affects your sleep.

Used as supplementary

Melatonin supplements are great for treating insomnia or jet lags. So, if you are suffering from sleep problems, you can take some melatonin supplements to get good results. It can help you to fall asleep quickly.

Consequence of electronic devices

When you take electronic devices in your bed, the blue light from the screens of these devices affects your melatonin levels. So, you find it more difficult to sleep. On the other hand, red light can induce sleep as it improves melatonin levels.

Reason for stress

Before your bedtime, the level of melatonin increases and that of cortisol decreases. If you are suffering from stress, then it’s likely that the two hormones will become misaligned. So, you will have sleep problems.

Melatonin hormone and other hormones play a vital role in your sleeping habit. These hormones control whether you will have a good sleep or bad. You should try to keep aside your electronic devices before going to bed. It is better to sleep when the melatonin levels are high. You should try to avoid any distraction before sleeping.