Us freelancers are prone to work overload! I have phases when my mind is like the inside of a very full washing machine on at full tilt. Or I have a worry that won’t go away and I fret at it like a dog with a bone. Result? Insomnia!

That maelstrom of tossing and turning, staring up at a darkened ceiling, scowling into the back of your loved one’s deeply asleep neck and huffing and puffing in a state of mental frustration - then waking up next morning with a face like a bloodhound with a hangover!

While I can’t guarantee these tips for overcoming insomnia will work for you, you are likely to get some benefit somewhere along the line.

Supplements & herbs

Some insomniacs use teas or herbal tinctures made from valerian, passiflora, wild lettuce, chamomile, lavender, hops and passion flower. Valerian has undergone the most studies and appears to be modestly effective. Try Potter’s Nod Off.· Take the supplement 5HTP (5-Hydroxytryptophan). 5HTP is a compound created in the body which is used to regulate serotonin levels in brain and central nervous system (serotonin makes us relaxed!). It is the effects on the levels of serotonin in the body that gives 5HTP its active effects. It is reported that modern hectic living – everyday stress, worries and bad eating habits lowers serotonin levels in the body.

Nutrition

Eat a large lunch and have a light evening meal at least three hours before bed.· Reduce the number of cups of coffee, tea or cola drinks you drink, especially later on in the day. · Only drink alcohol in moderation. It may bring on sleepiness, but will tend to cause early waking. · Pomegranates are believed to be able to help insomniacs sleep.· Warm milk contains high levels of tryptophan, a natural sedative. Adding honey to warm milk helps get the tryptophan in your system faster.

Preparing for sleep

Regular daytime exercise can help you to feel more relaxed and tired at bedtime. However, you should not do exercise near to bedtime if you have insomnia.· Mentally dealing with the day’s unfinished business is also helpful. Writing down any worries to deal with the next day may help to clear them from the mind and prevent them re-surfacing in the early hours.

Relaxation techniques aim to reduce your mental and physical arousal before going to bed. There are a number of techniques. For example, progressive muscular relaxation has been shown to help promote sleep. This technique consists of tensing and relaxing various muscle groups in sequence.· The bedroom should be a quiet, relaxing place to sleep. It should not be too hot, cold, or noisy. Earplugs and eye shades may be useful if you are sleeping with a snoring or wakeful partner. Make sure the bedroom is dark with good curtains to stop early morning sunlight. Don’t use the bedroom for activities such as work, eating or television. Consider changing your bed if it is old, or not comfortable.

Hide your alarm clock under your bed. Many people will ‘clock watch’ and this does not help you to get off to sleep. · It is pointless going to bed until you feel sleepy. Ignore the clock - time is the insomniac’s curse. · Using aromatherapy, including jasmine oil, lavender oil, mahabhringaraj and other relaxing essential oils in a warm bath may help induce a state of restfulness.· Stop smoking – nighttime breathing problems are more likely in smokers. Do not smoke before bed or if you wake in the middle of the night.

In the Buddhist tradition, people suffering from insomnia or nightmares may be advised to meditate on “loving-kindness”, or metta. This practice of generating a feeling of love and goodwill is claimed to have a soothing and calming effect on the mind and body. This is claimed to stem partly from the creation of relaxing positive thoughts and feelings, and partly from the pacification of negative ones. In the Mettā Sutta, Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, tells the gathered monks that easeful sleep is one benefit of this form of meditation.· Listen to soothing music. · Work out how many hours sleep you can manage with before daytime sleepiness becomes a problem. Becoming unnecessarily stressed over insomnia can lead to a vicious cycle.

Pay attention to your body rhythms. Try to get into a routine of wakefulness during the day and sleepiness at night. The body becomes used to rhythms or routines. If you keep to a pattern, you are more likely to sleep well. Therefore no matter how tired you are, do not sleep or nap during the day. It’s best to go to bed only when sleepy-tired in the late evening - Switch the light out as soon as you get into bed. Always get up at the same time each day, seven days a week, however short the time asleep. Use an alarm to help with this. Resist the temptation to ‘lie-in’ even at weekends.

Still awake?

If you cannot get off to sleep after 20-30 minutes - get up. Go into another room, and do something else such as reading something mundane or watching harmless TV. Do something absorbing and distracting (nothing to do with work), ideally involving the eyes and hands, perhaps do a jigsaw, make models. Rather pointless, but so is insomnia, and is better than lying in bed trying to listen to relaxation tapes. Go back to bed when sleepy.· Don’t worry if it is 6.00 am, you are still awake doing that ridiculous jigsaw and have to get up at 7.00 am for work or to get the kids up. You’ll be sleepy that day, so minimize driving. No daytime naps, but try and stay awake until about 10.00 pm. The good news is that sound sleep that night is almost guaranteed.

Treating insomnia with more sleep loss can be very effective - it is rather like a homeopathic approach - aggravate the illness a little.

Therapies

Specific sleep therapy includes cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), which deals with misconceptions about sleep such as believing that frequent short naps during the day are good for you.· Traditional Chinese medicine has included treatment for insomnia throughout its history. A typical approach may utilize acupuncture, dietary and lifestyle analysis, herbology and other techniques, with the goal of resolving the problem at a subtle level. Although these methods have not been scientifically proven, some insomniacs report that these remedies are sufficient to break the insomnia cycle without the need for sedatives and sleeping tablets.

Author’s favourites!

• Vogel’s Night-time Flower Essence or Bach Flower Rescue Remedy.
• Have a bonk. Your partner may or may not appreciate being woken up or drawn back from the brink of unconsciousness – but it’s worth a try!
• Creating the synopsis for a steaming, roller-coaster of a novel.
• Remembering the names of all the people I knew at school.
• Several complete breathing cycles and relaxing all the muscles in my body.
• Kicking the cats off the bed (I’ve got four – so the bed can get very over-crowded)
• Thumping my husband until he turns over and stops snoring!

If you’re still awake after having read this fascinating list of possibilities to help you fall into oblivion, then I suggest you try reading War and Peace or The Grandfather Clock Maintenance Manual or Teach Yourself Latin or Working with Concrete or… sweet dreams!

photo credit: xxyx