11 Unusual treatments for insomnia that you’ve probably never heard of
Monday, August 5, 2024.
Tossing and turning, counting sheep until they unionize?
You're not alone.
Around 30% of adults have short-term sleep issues.
Many folks say a good night's sleep is at the top of their wish list for a better life.
But let's face it: getting quality sleep can feel as tricky as finding a unicorn in your backyard.
Poor sleep can affect memory, attention, performance, and overall alertness. But fear not, gentle reader!
Here are 11 tips that are sure to turn your sleep from a nightmare into a dreamland.
Digital Detox
Digital devices are the scourge of sleep. Around half of all teenagers check their phones after going to bed, and one in ten check their phones 10 times during the night. Basic rules for a digital detox include avoiding screens before bedtime, changing pre-bedtime habits, reducing exposure to blue light, and setting the phone to ‘airplane mode’ (Hale & Guan, 2015).
Don’t Watch the Clock
‘Watching the clock’ while trying to sleep is a surefire way to worsen your insomnia.
It's like watching a pot that never boils.
Research finds that clock-watching leads to higher use of prescription sleep medications. Insomniacs often use clock-watching to calculate how much sleep they’ve lost, which leads to frustration and what psychologists call ‘losing sleep over losing sleep’ (Perlis et al., 2005).
Smell Your Lover
Sleeping with the scent of your romantic partner’s shirt can improve sleep quality as much as taking melatonin supplements.
Dr. Marlise Hofer, the study’s first author, says: “Our findings provide new evidence that merely sleeping with a partner’s scent improves sleep efficiency. We saw an effect similar in size to taking melatonin supplements” (Hofer et al., 2020).
Avoid Junk Food
It turns out that eating junk food doesn’t just expand your waistline; it also reduces the time you spend in deep sleep, the most restorative part of the sleep cycle.
In one study, participants who ate a healthy diet enjoyed more deep sleep than those who consumed high-fat, high-sugar foods. So next time you reach for that midnight snack, think twice! (St-Onge et al., 2016).
Have a Bath 90 Minutes Before Bed
Having a bath or shower around 90 minutes before bedtime helps you fall asleep faster, sleep longer, and sleep more efficiently. The best temperature for the bath or shower is between 104 and 109 degrees Fahrenheit. Hot baths and showers work by lowering the body’s core temperature, which signals to the brain that it’s time to sleep (Haghayegh et al., 2019).
Eat More Vegetables
A poor diet may be partly to blame for insomnia. People who eat a lot of refined carbs, especially added sugar, are more likely to experience insomnia. In contrast, eating more fiber, vegetables, and whole fruit can help you sleep better. Dr. James Gangwisch, the study’s first author, says: “By identifying factors that lead to insomnia, we may find straightforward and low-cost interventions with fewer potential side effects” (Gangwisch et al., 2019).
Write a To-Do List
Writing a to-do list for the next day before bedtime can help you fall asleep faster. The more specific the list, the better.
Dr. Michael K. Scullin, who led the study, says: “We live in a 24/7 culture where our to-do lists are constantly growing and causing us to worry about unfinished tasks at bedtime. Writing them down can counteract nighttime difficulties with falling asleep” (Scullin & Bliwise, 2018).
Exercise for Deeper Sleep
Contrary to popular belief, exercise can actually improve your sleep.
A study confirms that people who exercise spend more time in NREM (non-rapid eye movement) sleep, which is the most restorative phase. So, if you want to sleep like a baby, a little exercise might just do the trick (Kredlow et al., 2015).
Forget About Your Coffee Consumption: Avoid the Real Hidden Culprits… Alcohol and Nicotine
Surprisingly, caffeine is not linked to worse sleep. It’s actually alcohol that leads to sleepless nights. Drinking alcohol within four hours of going to bed is linked to sleep disruption. Nicotine is even worse, leading to an average of 43 minutes less sleep among insomniacs (Jaehne et al., 2012).
Don’t Listen to Music. Curb the Kenny G
While many people believe that listening to music before bed helps them sleep, research finds it actually disrupts sleep. Music can get stuck in your head as an ‘earworm,’ which can interfere with your ability to fall asleep and stay asleep (Scullin et al., 2015).
Spend Less Time in Bed
I know it sounds counterintuitive, but spending less time in bed can actually help you fight insomnia.
Researchers followed people’s sleeping habits for a year and found that 70 to 80% of short-term insomnia can be nipped in the bud by simply reducing time spent in bed. Wow ! What a counter-intuitive hack!
Dr. Michael Perlis, director of the Penn Behavioral Sleep Medicine Program, explains: “Those with insomnia typically extend their sleep opportunity. They go to bed early, get out of bed late, and they nap. While this seems reasonable short-term, it creates a mismatch between the individual’s current sleep ability and their current sleep opportunity; this fuels insomnia” (Perlis et al., 2005).
I hope these tips help.
Be Well, Stay Kind, and Godspeed.
REFERENCES:
Gangwisch, J. E., Hale, L., Garcia, L., Malaspina, D., Opler, M. G., Payne, M. E., ... & Zammit, G. K. (2019). High glycemic index diet as a risk factor for insomnia: Analyses from the Women's Health Initiative. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 110(2), 429-439.
Haghayegh, S., Khoshnevis, S., Smolensky, M. H., Diller, K. R., & Castriotta, R. J. (2019). Before-bedtime passive body heating by warm shower or bath to improve sleep: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 46, 124-135.
Hale, L., & Guan, S. (2015). Screen time and sleep among school-aged children and adolescents: A systematic literature review. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 21, 50-58.
Hofer, M. A., Ghera, M. M., & Zeamer, A. (2020). Adult sleep influenced by the presence of infant body and sleep scent. Journal of Sleep Research, 18(2), 205-213.
Jaehne, A., Unbehaun, T., Feige, B., Lutz, U. C., Batra, A., & Riemann, D. (2012). How smoking affects sleep: A polysomnographical analysis. Sleep Medicine, 13(10), 1286-1292.
Kredlow, M. A., Capozzoli, M. C., Hearon, B. A., Calkins, A. W., & Otto, M. W. (2015). The effects of physical activity on sleep: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 38(3), 427-449.
Perlis, M. L., Giles, D. E., Mendelson, W. B., Bootzin, R. R., & Wyatt, J. K. (2005). Psychophysiological insomnia: The behavioural model and a neurocognitive perspective. Journal of Sleep Research, 4(3), 185-193.
Scullin, M. K., & Bliwise, D. L. (2018). Writing to-do lists before bed helps people fall asleep. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 147(1), 23-29.
Scullin, M. K., Gao, C., & Pruiksma, K. E. (2015). Music, sleep, and memory: The role of sleep in music-induced memory consolidation. Psychology of Music, 43(4), 545-560.
St-Onge, M. P., Roberts, A., Shechter, A., & Choudhury, A. R. (2016). Fiber and saturated fat are associated with sleep arousals and slow wave sleep. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 12(1), 19-24.
