Fight Insomnia

Whatever we may say, the happiest moment of the happy man is that of his falling asleep, just as the unhappiest moment of the unhappy man is that of his awakening.

Arthur Schopenhauer, "The World as Will and Representation," 1844

If it's long after midnight and you're not sleeping right now, you probably suffer from a sleeping disorder. Believe me, I know what I'm talking about. I'm not sure if it's already so serious to call it disorder though. To tell the truth, I love being awake late at night and I welcome loads of ideas and inspiration that come at that particular time with excitement. Of course, providing that I don't have to wake up early the next day. Anyway, it is claimed that there are 4 main types of sleeping problems. These are dyssomnias, parasomnias, medical or psychiatric sleep disorders and sleep problems related to other issues such as pregnancy.* We all crave for a good deal of sleep at night and it's incredibly inconvenient and troublesome if we don't get it. Anxiety and tiredness, that's what we feel. The consequences appear to be far more serious if you just read some medical news. Here's some:

Experiments in rodents show that animals exposed to continued wakefulness die after a few weeks. In humans, sleep deprivation can bring on disruption of concentration, loss of libido and memory, lower immunity, depression and anxiety. (...) it is thought that sleepy drivers cause thousands of accidents a year.*

 Still worse, researches say that counting sheep, dating from the 19th century method of curing sleeplessness, is of no use. But.. Don't! Wait! The situation is not that hopeless. Namely, medical researches presented some ways of enjoying a good sleep. Together with my own advice, they may make quite a nice stuff for poor insomniacs. Let's start.

1. Stop thinking and clear your mind of worrying thoughts - as simple as that
2. Reduce alcohol consumption, caffeine and meal sizes **
3. Stick to a routine and go to bed at the same time **
4. Cut out noise as much as possible, as well as excessive heat **
5. Don't watch TV or use a computer prior to sleep **
6. Get your body extremely tired by doing physical exercises; personally I recommend yoga
7. Before sleep read a few pages of a book (treating about undisturbing and neautral subjects, that is to say)
8. If none of the above makes you enjoy your sleep, sit with your legs crossed on your bed, look your eyes up as high as possible, try to see your eyebrows, and do it as long as you are so tired that you dive in your pillow - yeah
9. If you're still there and sleepless you poor devil, rock your body on bed gently or, don't misunderstand me, lull your body to sleep; remember being lulled by your mum as a baby? exactly! those good ways...
10. Just tidy up your room, change the position of objects like bed (check out the Feng Shui) OR tidy up your life and sort out unsolved problems - that may be the main reason of your sleeplessness

I wish you and me a good sleep. Good night...



 * "The Pessimist's Handbook. A Companion to Despair." Niall Edworthy and Petra Cramsie. Doubleday, 2008.


** "The Optimist's Handbook. A Companion to Hope" Niall Edworthy and Petra Cramsie. Doubleday, 2008.


The rest was thought over, created and written by me and inspired by my lack of sleep. Thank you.