Do you struggle to fall asleep each night and wonder why it’s so damn difficult?
There can be a whole lot of reasons why you are suffering from insomnia, but a few of the common causes that we see in clinic are high stress levels (even though you might not feel stressed, your body can be physically stressed) overthinking and poor sleep routine.
If your sleeping problem is lasting longer than 4 weeks, it means that it’s turning into a chronic problem which will only lead to a whole bunch of other problems like: Diminished memory, poor concentration, headaches, irritability and daytime drowsiness. It can also start to affect your mood and create more anxiety.
Adults ideally need 8 hours of sleep per night for optimal health. If you aren’t getting 8 hours of sleep a night, you’ve got some work to do!
Follow our four top sleep tips to get you sleeping as snug as a bug fast.
Four Natural Solutions for Insomnia
1. Get Some Green Space in the Afternoon
Going for a walk in the afternoon and being exposed to the late afternoon sun can help to stimulate melatonin production regulating the circadian rhythm. It can also help to increase the length of sleep by up to two hours extra when compared to a walking in the morning.
The process of walking in the afternoon, preferably in green space like in a park, in the bushland or amongst trees, aims to reduce stress hormones, making you feel more relaxed and calm towards the end of your day, helping you to unwind.
2. Take Magnesium Before Bed
Magnesium is an essential mineral to reduce cortisol production, a stress hormone that can keep you awake at night. If your cortisol is too elevated towards the end of the night, it will inhibit melatonin (your sleep hormone) production, stopping you from falling asleep easily.
Taking 500 mg of magnesium bisglycinate or magnesium citrate ½ an hour before bed, will help this natural process and aid sleep.
3. Brain Dump Your Worries
Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night worrying about a certain task you have to do the next day, or something you forgot to do? Well you aren’t the only one! Being woken up with a worrying mind is not fun and very common in the modern day busy world we live in.
Brain dumping your thoughts onto a notepad before bed will allow you to collate your ideas, thoughts, and to do list for the next day without feeling the pressure of remembering everything you need to do as soon as you wake up.
The key is to write a short list of ideas, thoughts or reminders for the next day half an hour or so before bed. Try not to think too deeply about each thought as this could have the opposite effect and cause you to think more about the problem.
Either a short sentence, or bullet points will be enough to quieten the mind chatter, and allow you to attend to it the next day supporting a restful sleep.
4. Legs Up the Wall
If you’ve ever done yoga you might be familiar with legs up the wall. Do this restorative legs posture for 15 minutes before bed while doing some relaxed breathing. This pose combined with controlled breathing leads to a slowing down within your body, creating a lowered heart rate which elicits the relaxation response and, in turn, helps lower anxiety, stress and insomnia.
Legs up the wall also moves lymph, fluid, and blood away from swollen ankles, tired feet and legs into the lower belly and relieves tension in the lower back and hamstrings.
Here’s how to do it:
- Roll out a yoga mat near a wall
- Swing your legs up onto the wall so that your heels and sitting bones are supported against it.
- If you have any discomfort in your lower back, adjust your body slightly back from the wall so that your sitting bones are not touching it.
- Rest your head on the mat or a towel, keeping your spine straight, and bend your knees a little so your kneecaps won’t lock.
- Practice relaxed breathing while breathing into any tension you are holding onto in your body and using your breath to relax these areas.
- Do this for 15 minutes, then crawl into bed.
This yoga posture is super simple to implement, and will calm the body and nervous system in no time. Then once you feel relaxed crawl into bed and go to sleep.
There you have it, our top four natural health solutions to get you sleeping deeper and longer.
Question of the Day
What tip are you going to start implementing this week? We would love to know!
Let us know below, or tag us on instagram, facebook or comment on our youtube video.
