Difficulty Sleeping??

Having difficulty sleeping?? Here are some ways to get a better night sleep.

It's 2 am and you are tossing and turning wondering when and if you are going

to fall asleep tonight. It is something that happens to most people from time to time but

it begins to affect your life once it goes from an occasional to more frequent. An

estimated 30-50 % of the population suffer from short term insomnia and about 10%

suffer from chronic insomnia. Insomnia is considered chronic after a duration of 3

weeks.

Having a good night of sleep is essential for our physical, mental and emotional

well being. Lack of sleep has been linked to everything from stress and obesity to

disrupted thought patterns. Insomnia effects our mood, our work and our appetite. It

can affect our driving, concentration and memory. A good night sleep is not a luxury, it

is a necessity.

The good news is that there is help!

The first steps to fight insomnia are to create a stress free environment in your

bedroom. With our intense connection to technology this can be very challenging. I

have heard many people say, "I wish I would have read that email tomorrow morning,

it kept me up all night". Learning when to shut off the computer, cell phone and

television are crucial to getting a good night's sleep. Electronics stimulate our mind

and keep us in an alert state which can disrupt our sleep. An activity such as reading is

much more effective in having a good night sleep than an activity that has to do with

electronics before or even in bed. Also, making sure your room is completely dark and

at a comfortable temperature for you. Keeping a notepad and pen near your bed can

also be helpful if there are ideas or concerns that are keeping you up. You can them

just jot them down and know restfully that they will be waiting for you to think about

tomorrow.

A wonderful technique with no side effects that has been proven to help with

insomnia is hypnosis. Hypnosis for insomnia is extremely effective and has long

lasting results. It is easy, painless and has positive results that go way beyond getting

a good night's sleep. Not only will you have more pleasant dreams but you will begin

to remember them more often as well. If you are suffering from insomnia, set up an

appointment for Hypnotherapy at Mind Therapy Group and rest assure that you will

soon be getting a great night's sleep!

Written by:  Mina Sulkowski, LMHC
Email: mina@mindtherapygroup.com