What are some effective natural sleep aids?

7 comments

1. YA Junkie on September 2, 2010 at 4:30 pm

   Depending on the season, a warm bath is a great way to relax. If you can’t take a bath, you can give yourself a foot massage with slightly warm massage oil, sesame oil, or castor oil from a health food store.

   What was very helpful to me, especially when my mind was racing, was to lie in bed and listen to relaxation CDs, especially those that contain someone speaking with relaxing music in the background. Many of these CDs are available on eBay for very low prices.

   A helpful technique is to relax your body one part at a time. So you could relax your feet, your lower legs, upper legs, moving up from your lower belly up to your chest, etc., etc.

   Of course, guided relaxation methods can help, imagining yourself in the country, the beach, or whatever is most soothing to you.

   If you have annoying thoughts or personal issues that run thru your mind when you are trying to sleep, you might have to deal with those issues first. You might want to talk to a counselor or therapist about that. I suggest avoiding prescription sleeping pills unless nothing else helps.

   There are herbs that are helpful for sleep, eg, valerian root, kava kava, chamomile, hops, passion flower, skullcap. If you get the real herbs, you can make teas out of them. Otherwise get the herbs in capsule form. You can try a single herb or herbal combinations. Probably, valerian root and kava kava are the best.

   You can also try trytophan, 5-HTP and melatonin (1-2 mg). I would not take melatonin for over a month. It is a hormone produced by the pineal gland. If you take too much, your pineal gland might get "lazy" and produce less melatonin naturally. Life Extension and TwinLabs are probably the best brands, in that order.

2. like waves of sweet fire on September 2, 2010 at 4:30 pm

   apparently lavender works.
   My old GP said to use it, it made every one else in my house go to sleep but it made me hallucinate. either way you get a kick out of it lol

3. Karin U on September 2, 2010 at 4:30 pm

   Valerian, homoeopathic remedy Ignatia, Bachs Remedy all available in health food stores

4. Tomi Li on September 2, 2010 at 4:30 pm

   Getting exhausted before you go to bed, watch tv, workout, read a book. This is what I do. I can’t sleep if its 11:30 PM only if it is midnite or later.

5. ror.obsn on September 2, 2010 at 4:30 pm

   Exercising is the best and most natural way to go to sleep at night. Exercise in the afternoon or morning and you will feel more fatigue at night making it easier to go to sleep. A nice run or jog will help. Top it off with a class of milk and a book before you go to sleep. The natural recipe for falling asleep!

6. palomita on September 2, 2010 at 4:30 pm

   Melatonin: Melatonin is a human hormone that you can take in a supplement. It should help you get a good sleep. I found that it worked for me after three months. You can buy it in any local grocery store.

   St. John’s Wort, Chamomile tea, Hops, A glass of milk sweetened with honey, lavender

   A tea made from aniseed. (boil about 375 ml of water, add one teaspoon of aniseed. Cover with lid and let sit for 15mins. Strain water and drink hot.Take before bed or just after you eat.)

7. naturalhealthgirl on September 2, 2010 at 4:30 pm

   Hi,

   Here are 4 natural sleep aid ideas.

   1. Establish a consistent daily routine and habits
   2. Don’t use your bedroom for eating, reading, working or watching television.
   3. Exercise regularly, but never before bed.
   4. Take a hot bath an hour or two before bedtime for relaxation. Essential oils in your bath, such as chamomile, myrrh, ylang ylang and frankincense are soothing and calming to your body.

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