ENDING THE CYCLE OF INSOMNIA

About one-third of adults around the world have a problem with falling or staying asleep every night.  Ending the cycle of insomnia almost seems to be an ideal situation in such a case. Wanting sleep so badly that you can’t get it. This surely seems to be an extremely horrifying situation. With a day’s work behind us, sleep is the most important portion of the day, when all the muscles can relax. The difficulty of falling asleep us followed by low energy and irritability throughout the day. Other symptoms include problems in focusing or learning, daytime sleepiness and an increased risk of motor collisions.

Insomnia is very easy to detect as the lack of sleep is its major symptom. Certain conditions might cause a person to be hit by insomnia for a day or two. However, the condition worsens and is also life threatening if it spans over days or weeks and even more than a month.

A chicken or egg problem is associated with insomnia. Does insomnia cause problems like depression, or do problems like depression and anxiety cause insomnia. The answers might vary, depending upon individual conditions. However, the major concern to be met with is the ability to overcome the cycle of insomnia.

Treating insomnia is not an easy task. Science as a whole has a fuzzy logic of what causes insomnia and what can be done to avoid it. While sleeping pills can pose as an immediate solution, they too cannot work well in the long run. So, what can be done to end the cycle of insomnia? What steps can be followed to end the cycle of this vicious disorder than can even lead to mental issues? Read on to find out.

1. Pink elephant

The pink elephant dilemma is one reason why people cannot get enough sleep. When you are told not to think of a pink elephant, you are most likely going to think about it. The more you think that you should not, the deeper you will get into the issue and will feel fully awake.

Same is the case with the problem that causes insomnia. When you are thinking about the problem and are consciously trying to not think about it, you are most likely going to think about it the entire night. The best solution to this problem is to let things flow. Let your mind wander. Give up the struggle of pressuring yourself. This will likely make you feel rested.

2. Cognitive Behavior Therapy

The behavioral techniques and cognitive methods that can be followed in order to cater insomnia are given below.

• A regular schedule helps. Go to bed when you are likely to feel tired and your body will adapt to the schedule in no time.
• White noise helps in phasing out outside sounds. Put on a low volume sound from a non-operating television channel, this will phase out outer noises and you will not be disturbed. Put on a timer so that your TV shuts off in the required time.
• do not associate your bed with wakefulness. Get up, roam around and come back to bed if you are unable to sleep.
• Moderate aerobic exercise during the day will make you feel tired and you will sleep better, however, avoid exercise two to four hours before ending the day.

• Do not drink caffeine drinks seven hours before bedtime.
• Do not smoke several hours before bedtime.
• Alcohol should be avoided three hours before going to bed. The body breaks down alcohol, thus compromising the quality of sleep.
• Maintain the temperature of your room for good sleep.
• Do not sleep late, and you will fall asleep better in the night.
• For each negative thought, think of a positive event.
• Isolate anxiety causing thoughts. Resolve daily conflicts in the workplace or in your college and do not bring your problems home.
• Get your health checked. You might have an associated problem in your health that leads to your body being unable to sleep. Take care of health related issues as fast as possible.
• Get your mental health checked. Sometimes, depression is also a cause of insomnia.
• Another way to break the cycle of insomnia is to use a LED flashlight. Amazingly, LED flashlight can be used to flash the light to your eyes for two to three times. This will make you start yawning and you will fall asleep faster.
• Do not have a full stomach before sleeping. Dinner should be light. A heavy stomach compromises sleep.
• When you sleep becomes interrupted, relax your body by squeezing your muscles. You will certainly relax and fall asleep soon.

If none of the above-mentioned ideas seem to work for you, you can use a sleeping pill to take care of the condition for one to two days. For an elongated problem with insomnia, consult a doctor as soon as possible, as neglecting it can cause life-threatening problems.