Boring mental tasks can help with insomnia
Lots of children, teens, and adults have sleep issues.
Some have trouble falling asleep — lying awake for hours before slumber overtakes them. This is called “sleep-onset insomnia.” Some wake up in the middle of the night — once, twice, or even hourly until 4 or 5 a.m., struggling for 20 minutes or longer to fall back asleep after each awakening, finally drifting into deep sleep, only to be jarred awake by a way-too-soon alarm clock blasting them into their day. This is called “sleep maintenance insomnia.” There are also those who fall asleep and stay asleep just fine, but then wake up a couple of hours before they need to, thereby cutting off much needed rest and restoration. This is called “terminal (or late) insomnia.” A person can also have “mixed insomnia,” which includes a little of all of these sleeping problems.
People sometimes have these kinds of sleep problems for just a short while because of situational stress. This is called “acute insomnia” or “adjustment insomnia” and it resolves after a few months, as one’s body adjusts to the stressful situation. Sleep issues that persist longer than three months are called “chronic insomnia” and can be caused by many different physical and emotional conditions.
No matter what we call a sleep problem, we just want it to go away so that we can feel rested, calm, focused, and functional. There are many interventions that one can employ. Muscle relaxation addresses the fact that tension interferes with the relaxation required for the body to fall asleep. Aerobic exercise, yoga, or progressive relaxation are examples of muscle-relaxation strategies. Sleep hygiene strategies attempt to “set the scene” for sleep by establishing sleep routines and quieting protocols in the hour before going to bed. Evening journaling to release psychological stress helps clear the mind for restful sleep. Using herbs and oils or sedating foods and beverages can also help.
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