| Insomnia: What Can I Do for Myself? |
| By Darien Simon, M.S. |
|
While there are several different professional services that can help combat your insomnia, there are also things you can do for yourself. Start by examining your sleep habits and your sleep environment. Do you have good sleep habits? A sleep-conducive environment?
Try keeping a regular schedule—go to bed at the same time every night, and get up at the same time every morning, even weekends, no matter how little sleep you've gotten during the night. Get some vigorous exercise every day, but make sure it is not within two or three hours of bedtime. Avoid consuming too much food or drink shortly before bedtime, to prevent nighttime trips to the bathroom. If you awaken during the night, or find yourself not falling asleep shortly after going to bed, get up and go into another room to do something quiet until you feel tired. Make sure you don’t stay in bed tossing and turning and worrying about the sleep you aren't getting. Also, try to avoid long naps during the day, as they may interfere with your ability to get to sleep at night. Take a close look at your bedroom. Is it comfortable? When you go to bed, is the room temperature on the cool side? Is the room dark? Is the room quiet? Is your bed comfortable? Your pillow, too? Is the room restful, or filled with stimuli such as television, computers and computer games, or other potentially noisy devices? Do you use your bedroom for work or other activities, as well as sleep and sex? If your bedroom is too warm, too light, too noisy, uncomfortable, or used for many different activities, you may be able to minimize, or even cure your insomnia by changing your sleep environment. |
| Privacy & Security
© 2007-2008 Upstate Dream Institute, LLC All Rights Reserved. |
|
