Tips to make you feel Sleep-i

Welcome Back to the Sandman,

In my last article, I mentioned I would explain how nutrition & exercise is essential to good sleep patterns.  Well, I am about to do just that!  Generally speaking the KEY to well-being is good health & HOW do we attain good health? - by looking after ourselves! You see, most people whom suffer from sleep problems are mainly defined into 2 categories - 

• Psychological Problems
• Biological Problems

The people whom are in the psychological category have "under-lying" issue's that require specific attention.  Some of these people may have experienced serious trauma in their past or present & that is the reason for their lack of sleep - they may also be taking prescribed medication - i.e "anti-depressants" or "sleeping pills" which are considered in many professional circles as controversial and unnecessary especially when these people may have already had some form of addiction - in which case you are simply replacing one addiction with another.  That is why Psychologists promote natural/alternative therapy which again, I will go into details in a further blog.

Now the people in the Biological category may not have any serious psychological issue's but rather certain health issues - for example they may be lacking in exercise, proper nutrition, bad circulation, high blood pressure, insufficient quantities of vitamins & minerals etc!  All of these factors can be attributed to a serious sleep problem.  Infact, if you consider an obese person, they will attest that they have a terrible sleep pattern and they are always fatigued & lethargic.  This is because of their eating habits & lack of exercise & nutition. No matter who you are & from what walk of life, all our Sleep Needs are the same.  Exercise is so IMPORTANT  - you should always commit yourself to getting at least 30 minutes exercise every single day without fail.  This can be a brisk walk in the park with your dog or a swim down your local pool, or a workout in the gym - exercise doesn't have to be a chore - it can be FUN if you do it correctly & in the right quantity. Make gradual adjustments to your daily diet to incorporate, a generous helping of fruit, vegetables, fish (oily fish rich in omega 3) preferably & nuts & seeds & vitamin & mineral supplements are fantastic ways of compensating for the lack of these nutrients in our modern western diets. I will again of course explain in detail the specific types of vitamins & minerals available & which are most beneficial to your needs, being sleep & general heath & well being!

CALCIUM believe it or not is an excellent nutrient for inducing sleep because it induces a natural feeling of relaxation - that is why a glass of hot milk has long been a remedy for bedtime - though I recommend that you take Calcium in its pure powder form or you can get it in capsules also from your local health store - this is more potent & you will get a much greater quantity that you would from milk.

You can also draw a hot bath with Lavender & Chamomile oils to relax your muscles & induce a sleepy state - also a few lavender drops on your pillow - these subtle vapours will travel through your head & make you sleepy - Sleep Fast!

Choline & inositol are fantastic nutrients because they have so many roles within our bodies that benefit, one of which is of course sleep.  Much like Calcium, they relax your cognitive functions & allow clean passive traffic through your mind & body while actually giving your body a detox at the same time - Wonderful;)

Well - next time, ill be digging much deeper into the the nutritional science of the vitamins & minerals & giving you some action plan tips that I have used myself to get great results.  I will also be talking about DREAMS & NIGHTMARES, what causes them & what exactly are they about & can we ever truly understand them.

Until next-time!

SLEEP-WELL

SANDMAN