Insomnia is a sleep disorder which is characterized by the inability of a person to fall into sleep and or to stay asleep. Insomnia can affect people of all ages and the main symptoms include, difficulty in falling asleep, waking up during the night and difficulty in going back to sleep, waking up too early and feeling tired in the morning after waking up. Insomnia can be short term or long term. The main causes of insomnia are stress, illness, emotional or physical discomfort, environmental factors like sound, light, hot weather and some medications. The person may feel sleepy during the day and get irritated easily. They will have problems with concentration or memory.  It is necessary to treat the underlying conditions to get rid of chronic insomnia. You can try the natural home remedies or approaches to get rid of the problem of insomnia.

1 Eat Chicken
Eating chicken or turkey before going to bed can help you to get the sleep. Chicken and turkey contains the amino acid tryptophan which is necessary for the production of serotonin. Serotonin in the brain helps us to sleep.

Have a slice of turkey or chicken before going to bed.


2 Milk
Milk is another home remedy which contains tryptophan and which help you to get good sleep.

You can either take a glass of warm milk before heading bed or
You can take warm milk with a spoonful of honey in it


3 Eat Cookies
The carbohydrates in cookies help tryptophan to enter the brain and activate serotonin production. Any sugary food consumed 30 minutes before bedtime acts like a sedative.

Eat cookies half an hour before going to bed.
You can also have cookies along with milk to get better results.


4 Go For Early Dinner
Take your dinner at least two hours before you go to sleep.  It will be difficult to sleep when your stomach is full.

5 Limit Caffeine And Alcohol
Though alcohol makes you drowsy and put you to sleep, it causes you to get up in the middle of night with a headache, stomach ache etc and when the sedative effect of alcohol goes away it make difficult to get sleep again. Caffeine can stimulate your brain and make you remain awake.

Avoid excess alcohol intake
Avoid the intake of any caffeinated drinks after noon.


6 Valerian
This is a natural home remedy used to treat insomnia. This herb contains strong muscle relaxant and has sedative properties. This will help you to get good sleep without any hangover.

Take two capsules of valerian root an hour before going to bed.


7 Passion Flower
Passion lower is another herb with mild sedative effect. It is necessary to consume 4,000 to 8,000 milligrams of dried passion flower capsule for effective sleep.

Consume the capsules one hour before your bedtime.


8 Lavender
The smell of lavender acts as a mild tranquilizer. The aroma of lavender will soothe you to sleep.

Dab a bit of lavender oil onto the temples and forehead before you hit the bed.


9 Jasmine
Studies have shown that people who slept in jasmine scented rooms had better sleep than people slept in non scented rooms or even lavender scented rooms.

Apply a drop of jasmine essential oil on each wrist before you go to bed.
You can also keep a cotton ball with one or two drops of essential oil of jasmine added to it in your bedroom.


10 Take A Hot Bath
A hot bath can relax your body and mind and can ready you for a good sleep.

Take a hot bath at least two hours before bedtime.
You can add two cups of Epsom salt to a hot bath to relax the muscles.


11 Stick To A Sleep Schedule
Try to stick to a sleep schedule every day; do not change the sleep schedule on weekends. This will help the body to adhere to the pattern all week along.

Decide a time to go to sleep and to wake up in the morning
Wake the same time each day irrespective of the sleep you got the night before.


12 Do Not Take Naps During The Day
If you have insomnia, try to avoid daytime nap. The afternoon nap can disrupt your body clock.

No matter however tired you are do not nap during the day.
This will help you to get good sleep at night.


13 Turn Your Thermostat Down
It has been found that people sleep better when the sleeping environment is cool.

Turn the thermostat a few degrees down to get better sleep at night


14 Make Your Room Comfortable
It is necessary to make your bedroom as comfortable as possible to have a good night’s sleep.

BDST: 1549 HRS, Sep-21, 2013
SIS/SRS