{"id":1194,"date":"2011-01-11T13:06:09","date_gmt":"2011-01-11T21:06:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thisrestlesspilgrim.wordpress.com\/?p=1194"},"modified":"2015-03-19T14:29:00","modified_gmt":"2015-03-19T21:29:00","slug":"advice-from-an-insomniac","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/2011\/01\/11\/advice-from-an-insomniac\/","title":{"rendered":"Advice from an insomniac"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>As some of you know, I occasionally have a real issue with insomnia.<\/p>\n

It first became a real problem in my final year of University. \u00a0However, it was shortly after leaving University that it really started to become a regular (frustrating) feature in my life.<\/p>\n

The cause of the insomnia eventually became clear – stress. \u00a0When I can’t sleep, it’s because I’m worrying about something<\/em>. Even at times when I’m not conscious that I’m worrying, my body refuses to let me sleep. \u00a0My body clearly knows me better than my own conscious mind! \u00a0My body decides it wants to help me and that the best way to do that is to deprive me of sleep until 3am each night, thereby giving me ample opportunity to reflect on the possible sources of this stress in my life!<\/p>\n

But anyway, this isn’t really a post about insomnia. \u00a0A few of my friends have recently indicated from their Facebook statuses that they’ve been sleeping poorly. \u00a0An adult needs about 7-8 hours of sleep every night so here are some helpful strategies I’ve used over the past ten years to get good night sleep…<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Tip #1. \u00a0Have a “bed time”:<\/strong> Chances are that you haven’t had a “bed time” since your youth, but I have found that keeping a regular bedtime helps train the body to be ready for sleep at the right <\/em>time.<\/p>\n

Tip #2. \u00a0Get up consistently early:<\/strong> As well as going to bed at a regular time, getting up at a regular time helps a lot too. \u00a0Get up at the same time every morning, especially <\/em>when you are in the depths of insomnia.\u00a0After a bad night’s sleep there is always the temptation to sleep in and catch up on the sleep lost during the night. \u00a0Don’t do it! \u00a0The problem with doing this is that, in doing so, you start to shift your sleep pattern later and this is likely to make the insomnia even worse.<\/p>\n

It is also important that you get up early – I’d recommend 6:30am. \u00a0When you start doing this you’ll feel like death for most of the day (particularly after a bad night) but at least you should be ready for sleep in the evening and your body will soon get used to getting up early.<\/p>\n

Tip #3. \u00a0Exercise regularly:<\/strong> If your body isn’t physically tired, it’s not going to want you to sleep. \u00a0Therefore, make sure you wear it out through exercise. \u00a0There are also many other benefits to regular exercise, including better health, reduced stress and a good work\/life balance, all of which should help contribute to a good night’s sleep.<\/p>\n

Tip #4. \u00a0Get a decent bed:<\/strong> It’s ridiculous how long I went sleeping badly without even considering getting a new mattress! \u00a0We spend approximately 30% of every 24 hour period in bed, but rarely spend the money on a bed to ensure that those hours are beneficial. \u00a0It is particularly important to have a bed which provides good back support.<\/p>\n

Tip #5. \u00a0Setup your bedroom:<\/strong> You want to ensure the environment in which you sleep is\u00a0conducive to it.\u00a0\u00a0This means having a clean and tidy room, fresh bedsheets and no extraneous light.<\/p>\n

When I’m sleeping badly, I like having some relaxing classical music playing quietly in the background to distract my mind as I’m trying to sleep.<\/p>\n

Room temperature is particularly important for me. \u00a0I find it much easier to sleep in a room that is cool, since if I get hot, I get restless and I can’t sleep. The temperature of my feet is\u00a0particularly\u00a0important (okay, I know this is a little weird), so much so, that if I get too warm I’ll go and stand barefoot\u00a0on some cold floor tiles or even stick my feet in the bath and run them under cold water.<\/p>\n

Tip #6. No laptop or TV in bedroom:<\/strong> Some people find watching TV helps them sleep, but for me the complete opposite is true. \u00a0If I watch TV or use my laptop in bed it stimulates my brain rather than sending me gently off to sleep.<\/p>\n

Tip #7. \u00a0Drink the right stuff:<\/strong> Drinking alcohol will often get you to sleep, but the quality of the sleep will usually be worse.<\/p>\n

Caffeine will wake you up and so it should be avoided for several hours before bed. When my sleeping habits are bad I don’t drink any caffeinated drinks after midday. Instead, I’ve found it to be beneficial to drink a warm, milky, malty drink about half an hour before bed.<\/p>\n

Tip #8: Get ready for it:<\/strong> By the time you actually climb into bed, you want to be in a nice and relaxed state, ready for sleep. \u00a0This means that you have to prepare yourself for sleep a few hours before you actually hit the hay.<\/p>\n

This usually means that,\u00a0in the hours leading up to bed,\u00a0lowering the lighting in your apartment, putting on some relaxing music and avoiding TV and any sources of stress. You also shouldn’t exercise too close to bedtime, although personally, I’ve found swimming to provide a means of tiring and relaxing my body.<\/p>\n

Tip #9:\u00a0If it’s not working, stop trying:<\/strong> If I’ve been trying to get to sleep for fifteen minutes and I’m not drifting off, I get up and go do something else. \u00a0Lying in bed staring at the ceiling just gets frustrating and means you’re even less likely to get to sleep. \u00a0I usually go and have a cool shower (because I’ve usually got too hot) or go and read a book in the living room, only returning to bed when I think I can sleep.<\/p>\n

Tip #10. \u00a0Prayer & Examination of conscience:<\/strong> As I said at the beginning of this post, my insomnia primarily comes from stress and, as useful as points 1-9 are, it’s best to get to the root of the problem.<\/p>\n

I find I usually have a better night’s sleep if I’ve prayed before going to bed, usually Night Prayer, Rosary or some Scripture. \u00a0This prayer time usually involves some kind of examination of conscience – reflecting upon the day, the stresses and strains,\u00a0the successes and failures. \u00a0In considering these, I hopefully recognise them, offer them to God and ask for forgiveness.<\/p>\n

“In your anger do not sin. \u00a0Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” – Ephesians 4:26-27<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

These practices help root out the causes worry, anger and conflict and remind me that God is in charge, not me.<\/p>\n

Anyway, I hope some of these are useful in helping you achieve that decent night’s sleep. G’night…Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz….<\/p>\n

“I lie down and sleep comes at once, for in you, O Lord, I rest secure” – Psalm 4:8<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As some of you know, I occasionally have a real issue with insomnia. It first became a real problem in my final year of University. \u00a0However, it was shortly after leaving University that it really started to become a regular (frustrating) feature in my life. The cause of the insomnia eventually became clear – stress. \u00a0When I can’t sleep, it’s<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[2969,81],"class_list":["post-1194","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-faith","tag-featured","tag-insomnia"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1194"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56302,"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194\/revisions\/56302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1194"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1194"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/restlesspilgrim.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}