S-L-E-E-P whisperer

Bonny

It is both Buddhist and Hindu.
Om tare tuttare ture svaha - Buddhist
Om tare tu tare ture soha - Hindu
You are welcome :)




Yes. I had my curtains lined with 'black-out' cloth so my room is properly dark when sleeping (I live in a city - there's always lights on - though luckily I'm on a hill, so I still get to see stars on clear nights).
My sister-in-law solves this by using an eyemask (y'know like the ones you get on airplanes).
Electrosmog does also have a huge effect - some are more sensitive to it than others.
Some people are even sensitive to geopathic energies and find that sleeping with one's head pointing in the south-east corner is best (don't know why).

Also - if your bedroom is cluttered - all that clutter could be messing with your mind.
[ :) :joke: - here I really laugh because my bedroom is chocablock at the back, with a shelf full of esoteric books. And there's nowhere else I'll put them - so, that's that (until the day I have more space ofcourse).
It's also full of teddybears - and on one wall, full of all sorts of pictures of Deities and other "Spiritual paraphernalia" - including my own painting of my Patron Deity].

And as well as caffeine - avoid sugar before bed, or eating heavily.

I love how you say "bundle" into bed etc... This is a lovely way to think about it and it is better like this! Oh those esoteric books probably feel like friends... And the teddy Bears!!
Just lovely!
Well, this room isn't cluttered - I have had rooms that have been but not this one, as Ive got other spaces here to layer things in.
Yes electro smog does zap my energies. Im living in quiet place near beach so not much of that right now, thank goodness!!

Thanks so much!!
 

Bonny

Any suggestion on way of lying in the bed?

I heard that lying on the belly tends to quieten our emotions. Is this advisable re slumber?
Is the side best?
 

Tanga

Any suggestion on way of lying in the bed?

I heard that lying on the belly tends to quieten our emotions. Is this advisable re slumber?
Is the side best?

Well now - that could be tricky as between the person's body, and the type of bed - lying in different ways could be all different couldn't it?

For instance - I often don't lie on my left side, because my shoulder likes to threaten to sub-lux (half dislocate) - I'm hypermobile y'see.
And because my neck is so mobile - I have several different pillows and am forever changing between them.
When I was dancing regularly (belly dance) - lying on my back with my left foot tucked under right knee (like the classic Hanged Man position in-fact) was extremely comfortable.
I'm not dancing anymore (because I'm hypermobile and began having real trouble with my knees) so my back is less fluid now - lying on my back in such a position is no longer comfortable, and I sometimes stick a pillow under my knees to ease discomfort in my lower back.

Lying on one's tummy generally gives more of a cosy or protective feel - because all your vital organs are covered by the bed and you have your firmer/more solid backbone exposed to the air (through the cosy duvet ofcourse :) ). I find when I'm feeling cold - I warm up quicker lying on my tummy.

I would imagine side lying hugging a big fluffy pillow (half tucked between knees) could be pretty comfortable too. But - I move around a huge amount in bed - so I'd just end up chucking it on the floor.
 

jolie_amethyst

A variety of suggestions....

I'm a bit odd in that my favorite labradorite stone works both in daytime for focus and at night for sleep. I suspect because it calms my emotions to some extent, it manages both effects. But it may simply be that it's become something of a talisman--I ascribe behaviors like these to it, therefore my mind triggers them to occur when I'm in contact with the stone. All I know is, when I can't sleep, I bring it into the bed. I may hold it, or stash it under my pillow.

How comfortable is your bed? I added a 3" memory foam pad to mine recently, and after a couple of days of getting used it it, holy cow. I'm having a lot less trouble sleeping. (And less joint pain when I wake up.)

If you can't block light from the room, use a good sleeping mask. My personal favorite is from a company called Bucky; unlike the dainty satin ones, theirs have additional padding to block out light from beneath the nose area, and stand out far enough from your face that you can open your eyes completely without touching the mask. Which is silly, because of course, you can't see anything when you do that! :joke:

White noise can be helpful. So can earplugs. Guided meditation is also useful for some people. I'm a writer with a rampant case of ADHD and head full of characters that like to chat; meditation to them was never easy, and to my characters, it mostly signal my brain is now available; they take it as a sign to talk more. Which is not good for sleep! Instead, I'll spin myself a quiet story with a familiar character-friend, a tale that meanders around aimlessly, doesn't touch on vibrant emotions or situations, and is just boring enough to fall asleep to. (If an idea worth writing about or a forgotten task *does* occur to me, I do add it to the notebook on my phone....and then PUT THE PHONE DOWN AGAIN. That part is key, or I'll be up all night.)

On getting onto AT when you wake up: you don't need me to tell you how bad an idea this is. Put the phones, tablets, laptops, etc. away from the bed if you have to. If you can't, at least make sure you're running f.lux on them to mitigate the effects of blue light on your sleep. Blue light is highly stimulating, and you'll stay awake longer when exposed to it! (F.lux cannot be run on stock Apple iphones and ipads; they need to be jailbroken to run this. Please send feedback to Apple; this functionality should have been built into iOS years ago.)

Sleep studies are a necessary fact of life for many. It's always important to rule out issues like sleep apnea.

Herbally--valerian is the only "traditional" herb that seems to work on me. Others, like kava kava, have no effect. As most prescription sedatives are also a problem (my metabolism is unusually efficient at getting rid of them, to the point that anesthesia is an issue for medical procedures!), it doesn't surprise me that most herbs don't work either. Other supplements, like magnesium, have some small sedating effect that works better IF I also take valerian. So I do use that regularly.

If it's medically legal in your area, a high CBD product can make a huge difference. As these are derived from cannabinoids found in marijuana, they're not readily obtained for many, and if you're an active dreamer or prone to nightmares, it may be best to use this very sparingly. But they can work for severe insomnia, and high CBD-low THC supplements can be useful with a number of other health issues that may be contributing to sleep issues. Because they're created with very little of the THC component, there's no "high" associated with this substance. (Capsules and tincture of this stuff probably kept my husband alive long enough for chemo to do something about his cancer, by controlling his nausea enough to eat and his anxiety/panic enough to let him sleep. Nothing else medically prescribed was working on either of these issues, even in combination. And unlike most drugs, it actually does have a sedating effect on me.)

Lying on your stomach can do a real number on your neck if you do it regularly. The subsequent migraines aren't worth it. I grew up doing it, and have permanent neck & upper back issues as a result. Strongly not recommended. Finding the right bed and pillow are a better idea.

While not eating before bed is probably a good idea, if you're like me with irregular eating schedules to match your irregular sleep schedule, you may HAVE to have a snack to quiet your stomach some nights. Look online for lists of sedating foods.

That's all that's coming to mind at the moment, but I'll be back when I figure out what I've forgotten due to lack of sleep! LOL
 

UrbanBramble

I'm an expert on lack of sleep. :) Old timer insomniac over here.

Valerian and Hops are both good basic sedative herbs that work for most people. Some people get agitated by valerian and can't take it for sleep, but otherwise it works. Other herbs may help depending on your sleep patterns, matching the right herb to the specifics of your sleep problems is a little bit of a science. If you give more info - do you have racing thoughts? Do you doze? Do you fall asleep and wake up later in the night? Do you dream? Does your body feel restless? Do you have any chronic pain? - I can make a more specific recommendation.

General other sleep hygiene things... if you aren't tired, you won't sleep. So get up out of bed and go do something as opposed to just laying there trying to fall asleep. Make bed only for sleep, do your other down time activities somewhere else in your house. Give yourself 30 minutes to fall asleep at night with no screen. Reading or journaling on paper is good for that. A small amount of carbs can help, like a piece of toast or a glass of milk. Warm tea can help but be aware if getting up to pee will make you more likely to stay up.

Hopefully that helps.
 

jolie_amethyst

A crystal specific follow up on insomnia...

So, since this thread first came up, I had another BAD go round with insomnia and another round with nightmares/overactive dreaming. Because of this, I started hunting out specific crystals from my collection that might help.

I picked up a 3" zippered fabric coin purse & added the following stones, based on recs here, meanings listed elsewhere, and a little intuition:

Rose quartz
Howlite
Sodalite
Labradorite
Unakite
Snowflake Obsidian
Blue Lace Agate
Amethyst (This one can be too active for some people, but it's my birthstone & it didn't doesn't bother me that way.)

Typically on the nightstand are black tourmaline & lepidolite, with a clear quartz point, in a bed of mixed color moonstone chips. Smoky quartz may be on the nightstand or in the pouch--it gets moved around as I don't have enough of it yet.

For practicality, the little bag is tethered to the bed with a long leash and then tucked under the pillow. I've had too many mornings previously where I had to hunt under the bed to find where my favorite palmstone had wandered off to!

So far, it's been a week, and I've had less struggle getting to sleep. Before bed, or when I wake up in the middle of the night, I'll reach under the pillow, find the pouch, and thank the stones for their efforts. That seems to be enough to trick my mind into going back to sleep, at least so far. I'll admit to some skepticism, but anyone who has gone through multiple sleepless nights knows there comes a point where you'll try anything at all. :thumbsup:

Added a pic; stones are no more than 3/4" on their longest side.
 

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celticnoodle

Jolie, I'm glad you are finding some relief and getting proper rest. Lately, I've been having issues with sleeping, and my general go to tea--chamomile doesn't seem to be working well anymore. Perhaps I'm building a resistance to it now? I hope to God not, as I have also been under some stress and it could just be the stress.

However, just to be on the safe side, I may put the same stones into a bag like you did. Worth a try anyway. I have all those stones you mentioned. I'll try to get them together tomorrow.

I do still try the chamomile tea. I don't have any valerian tea though, so need to pick that up. Perhaps even mixing it with the chamomile.

Lovely pic btw, Jolie. thank you for sharing the pic and post. Sweet dreams, Jolie! :)
 

jolie_amethyst

CN--I'd say you don't need all of these, or even most. Grab whatever ones are handy (or other blue or grounding stones you're partial to), and tell them what you need help with. Fingers crossed you find a combination that works well for you!

If you tolerate lavender, I also made a linen spray from lavender essential oil, a bit of rubbing alcohol, and water. I've been using that on my eye mask every few days. I think mine was about 10-15 drops of oil, an ounce of alcohol, and 3 ounces of water in a 4 ounce spritzer bottle. There are recipes for DIY linen sprays all over the web; any essential oil you find calming should help.
 

daphne

On getting onto AT when you wake up: you don't need me to tell you how bad an idea this is. Put the phones, tablets, laptops, etc. away from the bed if you have to. If you can't, at least make sure you're running f.lux on them to mitigate the effects of blue light on your sleep. Blue light is highly stimulating, and you'll stay awake longer when exposed to it! (F.lux cannot be run on stock Apple iphones and ipads; they need to be jailbroken to run this. Please send feedback to Apple; this functionality should have been built into iOS years ago.)

What is F.lux, does it help with sleep, can you please give some details?
 

jolie_amethyst

F.lux is an app that mitigates the effect of blue light from your device screens at night by changing the color of your screen. People have been using it on laptops and such for years; blue light is known to stimulate the brain into thinking that it's time to wake up. Its effects can last for hours. (It's the same color light used to treat seasonal affective depression--and boy, does it ever wake you up!) The alternative is to not use devices for a couple of hours before bed, but nowadays, that's not practical for many of us.

A Google search will pull up f.lux's site. I believe the app is still freeware, and can be run on Windows, Macs, and jailbroken iPhones/iPads. For Android, there's apparently an app called "Twilight" that behaves similarly.