If you find it hard for the sleep to come to you even after lying in the bed for hours, here are a few tips to help you out.
A large number of people, especially in the cities, find it difficult to sleep owing to the stressful fast-paced urban lives. Few of them try tricks like a warm bath, or hot milk before bed to put out the stress and sleep comfortably, though many of them cannot sleep even then. Many others have to rely on sleeping pills to force them into slumber. However, the pills have their own disadvantage and you cannot take them for longer periods. Sometimes avoiding late-night habits preventing you from sleep would alone be sufficient.
Let’s take a look a few tricks to help you sleep better:
1Pressure points
Our body has got certain pressure point which when pressed appropriately promotes sleep. One such point is at the top of the nose, between two eyebrows. Press the point firmly but gently with your thumb. You can hold the pressure for about 20 seconds. Repeat the process twice.
Sit over the bed’s edge and place your place your right foot across the left knee. Press the small indent between the big toe and second toe. Next, locate the point right below the second toe’s nail on the upper side. Gently press the toe at this point between forefinger and thumb.
2Relaxing your muscles
Relaxing all the muscles can help you a great deal preparing your body for sleep. Moreover, the process is so simple and benefits so great that you would want to do this regularly even when you have no trouble sleeping.
Lie on the bed with your back. Curl your toes under your foot tightly while taking slow and deep breath through the nose. Release. Next, squeeze the foot upwards while breathing and release. Repeat the process with other muscles of the body going upwards—the calf muscles, thigh muscles, buttocks, abdominal muscles, chest, arms, and neck muscles. Remember to take slow deep breaths each time.
3Let your imagination loose
Imagining yourself in the situation or place you want to be at could definitely make you feel better. Try to use different senses (visual, auditory, touch, smell and taste) in your imagination, more the better. If like beaches, visualize yourself at a beach, the touch of sand under your feet, the smell of salty breeze. Or, if you like flowers and greenery imagine yourself in a garden and smell the flowers, feel the soft breeze etc.
You’ll feel tranquil and find it easier to sleep after that.
4Inhaling through the left nostril
This method reduces blood pressure and has an overall soothing effect.
Lay on the bed turned to the left side. Rest a finger on the right nostril and close it. Begin inhaling through the left nostril, slow and deep.
This method is especially beneficial when sleep is interrupted by hot flushes at menopause or overheating.
You may also perform Yoga like Pranayam for complete relaxation of body and mind to help you sleep.
5Humming
Humming or chanting has been age-old yogic method of meditation which tends to calm a person’s nerves.
Start by sitting comfortably. Next, you should close the eyes, relax your shoulders and jaw while keeping the mouth softly closed. Now, deeply inhale through your nose as much as is comfortable. Make sure your chest doesn’t rise while breathing but only abdomen.
Gently breathe out from the mouth while keeping the lips together and hum. Keeping humming for the entire breathe. You should be able to feel vibrations in your chest. Another option is to chant ‘OM’ during exhalation. Repeat this for about six times.
After that tell yourself that you’re ready to sleep and go to bed.
6Recall your day
You can relax your mind and clear it of worries by reminiscing the minor details of the entire day in reverse. Remember what you saw and what you heard throughout the day and your mind would be peaceful and better prepared for the sleep.
Can’t #sleep? Here are Top 8 tips to make yourself sleep | #Zigverve http://t.co/O0isjimfOi #Sleepless
— Zigverve.com (@zigverve) September 20, 2015
7Upward rolling of eyeballs
The trick is to close the eyes and roll your eyeballs upwards at least three times. The process is similar to the natural movements of eyes during the sleep (REM-Random Eye Movement) and it might help trigger the release of melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep and wake cycle.
8Trigger your body into sleep
You ought to begin preparing for this trick while you can sleep alright. Associate your pre-sleep period with an unusual act that your body can remember. For example, tap your cheeks as you fall into slumber. Focus on how the act feels like. When your body is associated with the act, you can do the same at nights without sleep to trick yourself into sleep.
