Ah, Blessed Sleep: 7 Tips for Overcoming Insomnia

Sleep has always been tricky for me. Even as a child I can remember lying awake for hours in the silence of night contemplating the size of the universe, the existence of God, and the presents I might get for my birthday. It didn’t happen every night and my energy levels during the day were largely unaffected, so this occasional insomnia was not a crisis in my life. A crisis it became though, once my post-baby sleep deprivation dragged me into the depths of depression and sleep was my only lifeline.


A bout of insomnia during those anxious weeks meant that even when my baby slept for 10 hours at night, I would sleep 2. My mental state deteriorated to the point that I would soon face two choices: use natural methods to get more sleep or stop breastfeeding and go on heavy medication to force the issue. In my fierce determination to avoid medication, here are the techniques that I developed that helped me (and still help me today) calm my anxious mind and drift off into the land of nod.

Tip #1: Relax the muscles behind the eyes. This was an instruction I received from a yoga teacher once during the end-of-class meditation, and I never forgot it. It is a small meditation that I use every single night when trying to get to sleep, and within seconds of doing it my breathing automatically relaxes, slows and deepens. You can also try relaxing the temples or the entire brain.

Tip #2: Meditate on clearing the mind. During this meditation take deep breaths and feel the brain and head filling with and expanding with the breath. When your attention deviates, bring it back to focus on clearing the mind.

Tip #3: Purchase an inexpensive sleep mask (like the ones they give you on Qantas flights) and soft foam earplugs. These are perfect for those middle-of-the-night awakenings when you can’t get back to sleep, because slight pressure on the eyelids is meant to calm the activity in the brain. Using only one earplug (for the ear that is not on the pillow) allows you to hear important sounds like a child needing attention but enables you to sleep through sounds such as the light snoring of your partner or a ticking clock.

Tip #4: Identify and name the issues keeping you awake, roll them into an imaginary bundle and place it outside the door. Your issues will all be there for you to deal with when you walk through the door in the morning.

Tip #5: Get up and turn a light on. Stretch your arms above your head and take a deep breath. Bend over and touch your toes and take a deep breath. Read something really boring for a few minutes, then go back to bed.

Tip #6: Create a visual image that matches the feelings of your insomnia. For me it is the image of my brain bound in tight rubber bands which constricts my ability to let go of my thoughts and release my anxiety. Identify where this visual interpretation of your insomnia sits within your body – your head, your heart, your stomach –then accept your insomnia as being present, make room for it where it is and create some breathing space around it. This gives you a mental break from constantly fighting your insomnia and allows you to relax and just accept it for the moment.

Tip #7: Obtain some mild sleeping pills from your doctor and place them on your bedside table. You may find that simply having them there will allow you to sleep (the bottle sat next to my bed for two weeks before I ever needed to try one) because you know they are there if you become desperate for sleep. If you do eventually need to take one, try taking a half tablet instead. For me it works more effectively than taking a whole one.

I use one or more of these techniques most nights, and as a result I have largely conquered my insomnia. Certainly there are still those times when nothing works and I have to just ride it out, but within a couple of hours at most sleep will have found me again. I hope some of these techniques work for you! Sweet dreams. :)