There’s not much worse than lying awake at night. As hard as you might try to force your eyes shut and turn your brain off, it seems inevitable that soon the morning light will come creeping in and not long after, that dreaded alarm clock will ring to remind you of all the things you need to get up and get ready for on little to no sleep.
Insomnia is one foul beast and there’s no singular cause that explains your nightly battle; it could be stress-induced or due to a medical condition, among other reasons, but whatever the case may be, it’s never fun.
Tips to Beat Insomnia
If you’re having a hard time falling asleep and/or staying asleep, use these tips to beat insomnia and achieve the peaceful rest you crave and deserve.
1. Nourish the nervous system with nutritious food
In most cases, insomnia is the result of anxieties in the mind interfering with the body’s ability to surrender to sleep. If your nervous system is under routine stress, then you might try to eat more nutrient-rich food known to promote mental health. Base your diet on whole grains and increase your intake of fresh fruits and vegetables that are filled with essential vitamins and minerals that can make you more resilient to stress.
2. Avoid chocolate, caffeine, and alcohol
On the contrary, other foods are known to stimulate neurotransmitters which may make you more anxious at night as a result. Most people are aware of how the consumption of refined sugars can lead to a spike in blood glucose levels with an energizing effect, but they might not realize how long caffeine can stay in your system, or that chocolate can also keep you up.
Alcohol may also come as a surprise since it’s technically a depressant, but using the substance as a crutch for sleep is habit-forming and can cause you to wake up in the middle of the night once it’s been processed by your body.
3. Experiment with herbs for nerves
Rather than relying on sleeping pills you may become dependent upon, build an apothecary at home for an all-natural alternative. There are many different herbs that support nerve health, from Chamomile to Valerian Root and Ginkgo to Milk Thistle. While some of these herbal supplements have not yet been approved by the FDA, it could certainly be worth your while to experiment with holistic healing if you’re struggling to manage your insomnia.
4. Try taking cannabidiol to induce sleep
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a non-psychoactive chemical compound that occurs naturally in cannabis plants. This means that, unlike its THC counterpart, consuming CBD will never cause you to feel impaired. It offers a number of health benefits that improve your physical and mental wellbeing, including the ability to promote relaxation that leads to long-lasting sleep.
There are many different ways you can try CBD. It’s hard not to like CBD capsules that go down easy, but medicated gummies are equal parts delicious and effective before bed.
5. Turn the lights off well before bed
On the note of bedtime routines, make it a point to start winding down well before your targeted sleep time. For example, if you’d like to go to bed by 10:00 PM, you could use the 8:00 hour as the signal to turn off all the blue light emanating from your television and cell phone because it’s known to inhibit sleepiness. Make the room dimmer with ambient lighting and allow your eyes time to adjust, rather than subjecting your body to an abrupt transition that may be mentally jarring.
6. Receive acupuncture treatments
Acupuncture is another form of holistic medicine that’s been found highly effective at curing insomnia. Auricular acupuncture, in particular, is clinically proven to treat insomnia in patients with sleep disorders; studies have found that the most commonly used acupoints are the Shenmen, Heart, and Occiput. It may require several treatments to notice improvement, but these findings indicate that it may be certainly worth trying.
7. Listen to guided meditations
Another way to beat insomnia is to relax your mind into a state of sleep by listening to a guided meditation. The combination of calming sounds and a soothing voice instructing you to focus on your breath can help distract you from troubling thoughts so you can put your anxiety to rest and fall asleep faster.
These seven tips can help you naturally beat insomnia so you can go to bed quickly and wake up feeling restored. Give them a try to promote your overall wellbeing—mind, body, and soul.
