Insomnia
In many cases insomnia can be remedied by a healthy diet and good sleeping habits. The most important factor is determining if the insomnia is caused by a medical condition. Medications or behavioral therapy have been effective treatments in numerous insomnia cases. Insomnia is often the result of stress or a physical or emotional condition that requires a different treatment. When the particular cause is addressed sleep patterns will usually return to normal.
Changing Your Lifestyle
Certain lifestyle changes can result in curing insomnia. This includes going to sleep when you get tired, getting up at the same time each morning, reducing stress, quitting smoking, avoiding drinking excessive quantities of alcohol, reducing caffeine and exercising. These changes can also lead to reducing the risk of many diseases and improving your overall health.
Insomnia Therapies
Behavior therapy teaches you how to change you environment so your sleep is improved. They are usually conducted by trained healthcare providers. These techniques include breathing exercises, reducing anxiety, biofeedback and muscle relaxation. This helps control your heart rate, breathing, mood and the tension in your muscles. Taking a warm bath before you go to bed, getting a massage and stretching can all help you unwind and sleep better.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is available on a one on one basis or with a group. A therapist can help you change any negativity present in your thinking patterns. Worries and fears are actually replaced with pleasing and relaxing thought patterns. Restricting you sleep has also been shown to be helpful. This deprives your body of sleep so the next night you are more tired. When your insomnia begins to improve you spend more time in bed sleeping. Exposing yourself to light is helpful if you fall asleep too early and wake up too early. This is a natural way to make adjustments to your internal clock.
Drugs to Treat Insomnia
When other treatments have not helped your physician may suggest medication. Since sleeping pills can become highly addictive most physicians will not recommend using them for more than a short period of time. The dosage and specific drug will depend on your medical history and symptoms. The most common drugs used to treat insomnia are anti-anxiety, tranquilizers and sedatives.
One of the problems with using drugs to treat you insomnia are the side effects. They are often worse in older adults and include night wandering, excessive drowsiness, balance problems, agitation and impaired thinking. Although it is not common some individuals will have swelling of the face and allergic reactions to these drugs.
Sometimes over the counter medications are effective although these can also have side effects. You could also give CBD tincture a try as the active component (CBD) has been shown to significantly help with insomnia. Your best option is to talk to your doctor about your insomnia to see which type of treatment may be the most effective in treating your case.
