Based on a study of the University of California at Berkeley, there was made a list of rules for healthy preparation for sleep. In a recent study one group of insomniacs was treated with Halcion (a tranquilizer), while another group learned to do some muscle relaxation techniques combined with the steps listed below. At first the participants of Halcion group got more sleep. However, the other group had caught up by the second week, and by the fifth week the second group (behavior-training group) was both falling asleep quicker and sleeping better than the first one.
Here are some advices based on the schedule of sleep they were given:
- Go to bed and get up on a regular program.
- If your insomnia stems from concern or grief, try to correct what’s bothering you, accepting that you may not be able to change your problems overnight, but by taking one step at a time optimistic changes can be achieved. A pastor, counselor, or a friend may support you through the difficulty.
- Don’t drink alcohol before bedtime—and don’t smoke. Alcohol can disturb sleep patterns and make insomnia worse. Nicotine also contributes to sleeplessness.
- Avoid eating a heavy meal in the evening. The evening meal should be the lightest of the day. Don’t drink large amounts of liquid before going to rest. In addition to the discomfort of having a intense meal sitting in the stomach to be digested, the process of absorption requires energy which is used and in this way detracts from the energy necessary to fuel the process of restoration and recovery vital to most advantageous body functions.
- Eliminate caffeinated beverages.
- Avoid daytime naps, even when you are exhausted.
- Spend an hour or more relaxing before you sleep, for example read. Listen to music, or take a hot bath. Try to fill your thoughts with something that will calm and uplift your mind, body, and spirit.
- If you are not capable to fall asleep after twenty minutes, get up and do something rather than lying in bed trying to fall asleep. But don’t bring work to bed. Meditation, counting sheep or reconstructing a joyful event or narrative may lull you back to sleep.
- Avoid reproaching yourself. Don’t make your sleeplessness a cause for extra worry. Insomnia is not a crime. Sleeping exactly eight hours is sometimes impossible. Avoid setting up a chain of thinking in which disturbance and anxiety keep you fretting over lost sleep.
- Avoid watching the clock. Turn it to the wall if you can’t help looking at the time and distressing.