The One Who Never Sleeps

Sleep and why do we need it?

Sleep is an essential part of functioning as a human being.  It is a fundamental tool for self healing, recovery, rejuvenation, rest and relaxation.

The amount of sleep each person needs depends on several different variables these include age and stress related factors, health conditions, as well as, emotional and psychological well being.

Insomnia and obstructive sleep apnoea are the two most common sleeping disorders furthermore they frequently remain undiagnosed and untreated.  Then there is also the emotional realm to consider when isolating the cause behind your particular sleep disorder, such as those who suffer from sleep terrors.

What are sleep terrors?

This is another sleep disorder that causes an output of emotion, usually stemming from a past event in the persons life – generally a traumatic event.  These can be repressed memories that surface when someone is sleeping and can cause them to wake during the night, to do strange things such as shut themselves out of the house, eat compulsively although they are not hungry, rearrange pantry cupboards similar to obsessive compulsive disorders, or general sleepwalking issues such as waking and going outside in the middle of the night.

Treatment options

When it comes to treating the emotional realm of sleep disorders hypnotherapy has been evidenced to promote successful treatment.  Self hypnosis is also a positive tool.  A hypnotherapist will work with you to treat the anxiety around sleeping as well as teach you valuable tools you can then transfer into your own practice.  Always seek the advice of professional registered practitioners and trust your own intuition when dealing with specialists.  At the end of the day you are your own best friend and you do no what treatment will support you and your unique needs.

Counselling therapy can often help those with traumatic past events discuss troubling areas or those who simply have unresolved issues in work, personal life or childhood events that they could benefit discussing with a sympathetic, empathetic and non-judgemental person.

Meditation is another great tool for those seeking to regain some sense of peace and to get a better night sleep.  There are many concepts and ideas about meditation, however in essence mediation is based on re training your mind to think thoughts that are conducive to your own wellbeing.  Instead of the everyday default mode of negative thinking westerners are evidenced to live within, meditation teaches you to effortlessly remain in that which is – the at-oneness.  Without expectation or fear we experience each moment as fresh and full of potential.  Thoughts may come and go but we do not follow them.  Fully present and aware, the highest of the human qualities appear naturally.

Yoga is also helpful for the treatment of sleeping problems. It supports the mind by focusing on the body which then supports you to become more present.   In focusing the mind on the present you gain distance from your disturbing emotions which allow you to choose how you will react.

Naturopathy will also support your physical wellbeing by stepping you through a symptom diagnosis checklist you can begin to identify your problem areas and subsequently design a solution plan.  This will focus on the supplements they are giving you as well as a fairly regimental diet and exercise plan.

Overview of Natural Therapies that support sleep deprivation treatment

• Naturopathy,
• Massage,
• Reflexology,
• Aromatherapy,
• Yoga,
• Hypnotherapy,
• Traditional Chinese medicine,
• Acupuncture,
• Counselling,
• Nutrition,
• Osteopathy and meditation.

Some guidelines to increase positive lifestyle patterns – Apply the three R’s

Regularity! Regular exercise encourages the body to release natural hormones which in turn support and maintain healthy sleep patterns.

Routines!  Eating at the same time every day will eliminate late night meals which interfere with the body’s natural sleep pattern.  Instead of late night snacking set up a routine at bed time that will encourage your body to program in and remember a specific time for sleep.

Rituals!  Before going to bed try gentle stretches or yoga.  Or if you’re not inclined towards rituals such as stretching, a hot lavender bath to soothe the muscles and relax the mind is a great option.  Soft meditation music in the background is also a fantastic relaxation tonic.

Let’s see if any of these help, will keep you updated!!!!!!!

Do you ever lay in bed at night and go over and over and over the same thoughts over and over and over again? I do that, sometimes it’s pretty maddening. I spend a lot of time thinking about what other people do and say, and trying to figure it out. Some people say I think too much, and I can see where they’re coming from.

Then this one night, I laid in bed and went over probably every conversation I had that day. I was wide awake, just me and the streetlights… so I started going over conversations and texts from the day. And then when there was one that kind of bothered me, I would remember another really weird one from before, maybe another argument I had had with that same person. And … I actually feel like I am having that argument over again! It’s the craziest thing.

The weirdest thing is, and let me know if you disagree, it seems like the thoughts that come to you are the ones that make you the most upset. I mean, who sits around thinking over and over about something nice someone said to them? I don’t. It seems to me that, we should try and rethink and relive the things that made us feel good, instead of all the ones we wish hadn’t happened.

Here’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to, if I have insomnia again  (and let’s face it — I will) and I am thinking of negative things that have been done or said to me, I will try and think of something nice to think about, or something that makes me feel good. Might as well use this time to feel nice.

-Ramblin’ Midnight Owl

Hey there WordPress, Ramblin’ Night Owl here.

As an experiment, Idecided to find out  whether I sleep better in another bed. I was visiting mates in Brighton, but my mates’ dog was driving me crazy (owls and dogs dont get along. Sorry mutt, I mean mate). Anyways, my tether was shortened because I was running on about 12 hours of sleep total for an entire week (that averages to 1.7 hrs per night, if you didn’t know. I know because I was awake for the other 6.3 hours that most people spend asleep, so I had some time to make a few calculations).

So, I decided to check into a local hotel. For this experiment to work, it must be noted, the hotel must meet a certain standard. It can’t be some cheap motel where you’re afraid of getting ill from the food or catching something inflammatory from the sheets. I had to treat myself to something truly interesting and different in order to get some sleep this time. Somewhere where I felt comfortable and relaxed.

After mulling on several different options,  I settled on  Hotel du Vin (good website, helpful info, and I figured that if I couldnt sleep, I could always pass the time sipping some good wine).  Nice looking place, quite posh, kind of pricey though.  A 20-something insomniac like me wouldnt have been able to afford it otherwise Hotel du Vin had a deal where you could stay on Friday and Sunday for half price if you’d previously booked a Saturday. I checked in, and checked out. I tell you, I put my bags down, hung the DO NOT DISTURB sign, closed the door, climbed into bed, and fell right to sleep.

I have determined the experiment a success. Maybe theres something to it after all.

Ramblin’ No More [for tonight, anyway]

[image: hotelduvin.com]

Ah, the age old question that so many have tried and failed to answer. Now I know this may sound strange, but I actually had a serious conversation with someone about this, so I thought it was about time for some real midnight ramblings, and I’ll attempt to answer the question myself.

What we have to really think about here is what actually is a woodchuck? Is it a beaver? A gopher? Is it even necessarily a type of rodent? If it is in fact a rodent, then at least we know what we’re dealing with and we know it’s a creature with gnawing, nibbling and chewing or “chucking” wood in its nature. If it isn’t, then our views of woodchucks have been wrong for decades!

One Google check later and we have our definition of a woodchuck. Thanks, Wikipedia!

So our sources say that a woodchuck is a groundhog (made famous by the film Groundhog Day). Now we’re onto something. A groundhog is not the same as a beaver and is not typically a wood chucking/nibbling/gnawing creature. Think of them as bigger and furrier squirrels but with less climbing abilities. They’ll go about their lives, hibernate in the winter and generally not chuck wood. That seems to be the end of the question then. However it is the IF that makes this more of a query then it needs to be. If they could perform this act of woodchucking, then it is an open ended question because we have to consider:

• The size of the groundhog
• The size of its teeth
• Its personality (lazy, active, etc)
• How long the groundhog has to chuck the wood
• The chucking wood’s source
• The type of chucking wood
• Etc.

There are endless factors that can come into the equation when trying to figure this out, so why even bother (unless someone can give me the formula). If we leave the question as “How much wood would a woodchuck chuck?” then the answer will be simple: None. They can’t.

I apologise for my ramblings, but I often think of odd and random things and I like to think this helps aid in creativity. I’ll be less random next week…maybe.

Ramblin’ Night Owl

I’ve been thinking about some cool things to say about insomnia, which has inspired me to provide a list of my favourite quotes on the matter:

“The best cure for insomnia is to get a lot of sleep”- W.C. Fields.

-No nonsense, logical solution here. If only it were as simple as that.

“Insomnia is my greatest inspiration”-Jon Stewart.

-Many are often inspired by late night procrastinating, and it’s good to see that funny people can get their material in the late hours.

“Sleeping is no mean art: for its sake one must stay awake all day”-Friedrich Nietzsche.

-As always, Nietzsche makes me think, but surely he’s saying here that sleep is almost a reward for staying up all day. If that’s the case, then what about the tortured souls that cannot sleep? They will never get their reward so, sleeping is a mean art.

“Dawn:When men of reason go to bed”- Ambrose Bierce.

-Good to hear that insomniacs are reasonable people.

“If a man had as many ideas during the day as he does when he has insomnia, he’d make a fortune”-Griff Niblack.

-If only this were true.

“The worst thing in the world is to try to sleep and not to”- F. Scott Fitzgerald.

-If only this WEREN’T true. Lying in bed willing yourself to sleep, wasting your time is one of the worst experiences ever!!

A few quotes there to make you think, but here’s one that brightened up my day:

Q: “What do you get when you cross an insomniac, an agnostic and a dyslexic?”

A: “Someone who stays up all night wondering if there is a Dog.”-Groucho Marx

Rambin’ Night Owl

[image:1100101.cc]

I seem to have been out of the loop when it comes to music over the last few months. I’ve spent a lot of my time watching films or reading books. However, lack of sleep combined with straining of the eyes has just given me migraines and not let me appreciate what I’ve been reading/watching. Which is why I journeyed back into the world of music again!!

I’ve spent the week lying in bed, resting my eyes and just listening to some tunes. They’ve helped me gain some sense of calm when I’m lying there, the nearest I can get to sleep. Just the other day I was watching a top 40 countdown of the songs around today and I was completely surprised by some of the artists in there. I mean Katy Petty and Timbaland sure, but JEDWARD?! And they were number two in the charts! If they were number two (and face it they are really) then I wondered what had claimed the top spot.

“And another week at number 1 is…Owl City with Fireflies.”

Who was another week at number 1? Owl City? I really was out of the loop. I watched the music video and listened to the song to see what all the hype was about. To be honest , at first I didn’t find the song that special, just a typical synthpop song. However it was the video and the lyrics that made me think. A magical nocturnal world of toys and bedroom items coming to life made me imagine what it would be like if this was real. I thought of all the endless activities that could happen if the world did work like this? Thinking of this I laid back down in bed; letting my imagination run wild worked a lot better then counting sleep.

Ramblin’ Night Owl

No, not dancing zombies, I’m thinking about ghosts.

They’re something that you think aren’t real but at the back of your mind you’re wondering if they do exist. Let me tell you about what I experienced earlier in the week. It was about Two O’ Clock in the morning and I was lying in bed watching a DVD. I’m used to all the creaks and groans of the house so that kind of noise doesn’t bother me. However, on this particular night, I heard a long creak that I’d never heard before (and I’ve heard them all.) I got out of bed and slowly and quietly walked to the door. I gently opened it and peeked through. Looking at the floor, I saw a pair of pale feet walking to the bathroom.

I just had time to scan upwards and see the rest of the legs until they disappeared. Holding my breath, I made my way to the bathroom and opened it. Empty! I ran back into my room, locked the door and spent the rest of the night with the duvet over my head.

Am I crazy? Did I actually see a ghost or is my mind just playing tricks on me? I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who’s had something like this happen to them. Let me know if you’ve ever had it happen to you!

Ramblin’ Night Owl

[image:ghoststoriesandpictures.com]

Shhh! I'm trying to sleep

Have you ever been in that situation where you’re lying in bed trying to sleep but it is just impossible to drift off? Well I suffer from that frequently but here are 10 things that I noticed this week:

1)The wind-never really paid attention to the sound of the wind before but when you’re lying in bed and it’s blowing against the house, giving an almost “deranged vacuum hoover” sound, you start to notice it a lot more.

2)My bed’s not as comfortable as I thought.

3)How difficult it actually is to fall asleep-thinking about soothing thoughts or counting sheep DOES NOT WORK. It just stimulates my mind more, putting me further away from sleep (as if it wasn’t difficult enough anyway!).

4)The creaks and groans of the house-they give the impression that you’re in a horror film if you’re not used to the noise.

5)Time either slows down or speeds up.

6)Foxes in the back garden keeping me up at night. The less said about this, the better.

7)There’s NOTHING good on TV.

8)The internet seems slower.

9)Your eyes adjust to the dark.

10)It’s a good time to start writing blogs!

Well those are just a few of the things I notice during my nocturnal hours. Be interesting to see what other people think about or notice when they can’t sleep. Let me know.

Ramblin’ Night Owl

[image: pbs.org]



Often people hark on about energy drinks and well…I’m going to do the same. I’ve found a drink called Liftoff , from Herbalife which has worked better on me than any energy drink I’ve tried before. And believe me, I’ve tried. This new stuff though has proven to have more of a positive effect than the others.

Rather then a typical carbonated drink, Liftoff comes in powdered form in small packets. As it is an effervescent drink, all you have to do is pour it into a glass of water and wait a few seconds for it to fizzle into drinkable form. It comes in two flavours, orange or lemon-lime and both are fairly tasty. Another good thing about them is that they’re low in calories, contain vitamins and they come in small packets which are easy to carry around, compared to lugging big cans around. Which is great because it means you can get an energy boost whenever you want! The best thing about it is that it does actually make me feel more refreshed and less fatigued. I took one into work the other day and it made me feel really refreshed, but in a natural kind of way. I didn’t have that heavy sensation I have with the other drinks. Whilst Red Bull may give you wings, this drink certainly will give you a lift off at the start of your day.

Ramblin’ Night Owl

[image: herbalife.co.uk]

[image:imdb.com]

After recently having dinner with my friends, it didn’t take long before the topic of insomnia came up again. It seems that anyone with an odd illness such as mine provide much to talk about. It was no different on that occasion except one of my friends mentioned something which made me think. “Have you seen Insomnia?” he asked.

“You can’t see insomnia” was my reply.

“No. The film” he said. “You should give it a try, you remind me of Al Pacino.”

Now I’m not short, throaty voiced or a Mafia boss so I was intrigued by that comment. So naturally, I got the DVD and watched it.

Al Pacino plays an insomniac detective, sent to Alaska during an Alaskan summer (constant daylight) to investigate the murder of a 17 year old girl. As tiredness and the constant sun take their toll on our hero, he mistakenly shoots his partner. He then has to fool the police investigating the shooting at the same time as working with them to hunt down an evil Robin Williams!

Whilst this film is an addictive crime thriller, it was seeing Pacino’s portrayal of an insomniac that I found alluring. It was nice to see an insomniac shown as someone who is tired and fatigued and affected by the bright constant sun. Now I know what my friend meant when he said I was like Al Pacino. I’m tired and restless and probably a bad shot. Maybe THAT’s why he refuses to go paint balling with me.