There are so many reasons why we do not always sleep well. Either we have trouble falling asleep, or we cant stay asleep, or both! This is something that I have experienced myself and it can be just exasperating! Some say if you cant sleep get up and do something, others say, stay in bed and read. I used to listen to sometimes 2 or 3 guided meditation cd’s a night, read endless chapters of a book, drink chamomile tea until it was coming out of my ears, and still I’d be awake! And the more I asked myself “am I feeling sleepy yet!” the more I felt awake!
Sometimes I would get up and do something (cleaning, paperwork etc) and by the time I decided to go back to bed, it was inevitably getting light, which used to make my heart sink, since I knew I was in for another day of tiredness and frustration due to my sleep deprivation. It becomes a horrid frustrating cycle! And bedtime becomes an intimidating prospect. I decided to look into this subject quite deeply, I tried and tested many practices and remedies of varying kinds. Eventually, I am ecstatically pleased to say that I effectively conquered this problem, and here are my findings…
Firstly, here are a few fundamental offerings that are so important to know. And info that I can literally witter on about to people in my shop endlessly, if someone tells me that they cant sleep.
Technology has given us connection to the worldwide web at our fingertips by way of computers, I phones, tablets etc which are more often than not, ON, 24/7. You will find them in every room, including the bedrooms, especially in children and teenagers rooms. We have cordless telephones probably by the bed and wifi that’s left on constantly.
We now know that racing pigeons struggle to find their way home these days and research has suggested that its because radiation waves from the transmitters in Britain interfere with the pigeons natural homing instincts. In the last few years since vast amounts of mobile masts have been erected, nearly half of racing pigeons become lost or don’t make it back at all. Not so long ago most of them would return home. Bees are also suffering as colonies collapse, experts looking at bees specifically say that apart from insecticides and gm crops having a devastating effect on bees, bee populations may also be vulnerable to other factors, such as the increase in atmospheric electromagnetic radiation as a result of growing numbers of mobile phones and wireless communication towers. The increased radiation given off by such devices may interfere with bees ability to navigate. A small study at Germany’s Landau University found that bees would not return to their hives when mobile phones were placed nearby.
So how does all of this affect us? Well without getting too technical, electrical equipment creates EMF’s (electromagnetic fields) which interferes with the brains sleep patterns. It can seriously keep you from not only falling asleep, but staying asleep. So definitely turn off computers, mobiles, cordless phones and switch off your wifi on a night before bed. Make it a rule in your house; it will be an excellent habit. You might say, “well I use my phone as an alarm clock” well invest in an old fashioned alarm clock or a battery operated one, it could mean all the difference to your sleep!
After I read all about this, I had an epiphany and decided to investigate further. I actually made an appointment with someone who measures the amount of emf’s active in your home.
The results were staggering and I then understood why I wasn’t sleeping. The findings were, that my wifi was transmitting all night in the room below my bedroom, the neighbours wifi was directly in the adjacent room to my headboard and my cordless phones were directly next to my bed. To top it off, my TV was constantly on standby next to my bed. My bedroom, which is supposed to be a haven of peace and tranquillity, was an electromagnetic frequency hotspot, in fact the guy said he had never taken such a high reading on his monitor. So I began the process of working out the solution, which involved purchasing new ‘green’ cordless phones that do not transmit radiation while not in operation. Blocking the neighbours wifi intrusion through my wall, which was more of a problem, since I had to have the wall painted with emf blocking paint and papered with a specially manufactured material. Turning off my wifi completely while not in use and switching my mobile phone off on a night and making sure that the tv was also off and not on standby. This might seem like an extreme length to go to, but guess what? it worked! I had a hunch after reading all that I had on this subject. Needless to say I slept, it took a week or two to return to a normal sleep pattern.
But what bliss! after five or so years of not sleeping properly. It was transformational on many levels. You may not need to go to such lengths, but certainly I now know that EMF’s are a problem for lots of people.
Check your diet – are you consuming food and drink that interrupt your bodies natural patterns?
Alcohol, caffeine and additives after 8.00pm are really unhelpful and will very likely keep you awake. Have a cup of Chamomile tea in the evening, it gets you mind and body relaxed, or there are some really good herbal tea infusions available specifically blended for bedtime.
The brain also needs a few hours before retiring, to wind down and switch off from the flashing images on the TV and computer screen.
Doing these few things maybe all that you need to do to get a proper refreshing nights sleep. Try it! But don’t give up after a couple of nights, it may take a while for a new sleep pattern to emerge.
If your problem is a busy head and stress. You still need to factor in the above, but also take a few other steps towards de-stressing yourself. A meditation cd that takes you on a journey set to gentle music will help to stop that inner chatter, long enough for you to fall asleep…
Nelsons night rescue remedy can be quite helpful. There are also some very peaceful cd’s of tranquil music to induce sleepiness. Sometimes a handful of skinned almonds that have been soaked in mineral or filtered water for the day and eaten an hour or so before bedtime, help to balance cortisol in the body and thus aid sleep. Or one of our little crystal sleep pouches that we put together at the shop often does the trick, very popular with mums that have sleepless babies and tots.
If you would like one please give the shop a call on 01923 852522 and we can post one out to you @ £10.95 plus postage.
I hope this info is helpful to you gaining a good night's sleep.
Sweet dreams
Dana x zzzzz
