Insomnia is a BEEP — but You Can Get Through it
We all know how it goes.
11 pm. Time to get to bed.
You roll around on your right. Then you try on your left. 2 hours later, you’re still looking at the ceiling. You can’t sleep and it’s f*cking 2 am!
You google “How to sleep faster”. You read the first 10 pieces of advice on WikiHow. Then you go to Psychology Today. One hour later, you’re watching “We Got Botched” on Youtube. You have no idea how you got there. You open TikTok and spend a good amount of time watching stupid videos hashtag “#My jawline is perfect, Check”.
You lay down again. You reopen your eyes after 5 seconds.
You swear a lot.
F*ck is your new favorite word.
You google “insomnia help”. Now you’re seeing articles about neurotic syndromes with unpronounceable names. You throw your phone on the bed convinced something is wrong with you.
It’s 6:30 am. You’re too exhausted to be angry. You get up, paranoid.
Your bed is your enemy.
You go to the kitchen. You pour milk in a bowl full of cereals. You spill the milk. You spill the cereal. You don’t give a sh*t. Your boyfriend comes into the kitchen, still asleep. He tells you to get ready, the bus is coming in less than 1 hour.
You throw your spoon in the bowl. F*CK.
How many nights have you had like this? Seriously, we relate. Some of us even became master insomniacs to the point where we sing in bed “Hello darkness, my old friend”.
But there is a way out.
For as long as I can remember, sleep was never easy.
Several people in my entourage like to call it light sleepers.
But insomniacs know very well it’s not a minor problem.
It’s a tragedy.
You don’t have the energy to do anything.
The word patience doesn’t exist in your dictionary anymore.
Paranoia is the new normal and you’re in a bad mood all the time.
You lose yourself (Eminem, anyone?).
Today, I want to give some tips for my fellow insomniacs.
It’s not medications because they are not efficient in the longterm.
Once you get used to them, not only does your body become resistant over time but you’re set for life taking these pills.
These quick tips require only your dedication and commitment.
They worked marvelously for several people around the world, including myself.
To be honest, I used to have insomnias once or twice a week easily.
After committing to these habits below and also researching, it’s been 4 months since I had a single night where I couldn’t sleep.
It took dedication and a lot of energy to put these habits in place. I would say about 5/6 weeks total.
But most importantly, it’s doable. You can improve your quality of sleep.
1 — Discover your Chronotype
There is something in your body that acts as a timer.
It’s your biological clock and in scientific terms, it’s called a chronotype.
According to Dr. Michael Breus, author of 3 best-selling books on sleep, there are 4 universal chronotypes: Dolphins (light sleepers/insomniac), Lions (Early risers), Bears (Aligned with sun cycles) and Wolves (Late risers).
According to the research results of his 30 years on patients, each type has an ideal hour for sleep and an ideal time to wake-up.
Understanding your chronological body type matters because it sheds light on your energy peak levels as well as when your metabolism will be more inclined to do certain activities.
Build the habit of waking and sleeping at the same hour and you will see major improvements in the quality of your sleep.
You can do the quiz to discover your chronotype and adjust your morning/evening routines accordingly.
2 — Practice Mindfulness
Be more present at the moment. This can be done by going out in nature, meditation, and other martial arts practices such as Qigong and/or Tai-Chi. Yoga is also a great way to learn mindfulness.
Let’s be honest: when you put your head on the pillow, you get all those thoughts about what you should have said in embarrassing situations.
Or you start making plans for the next morning and getting lost in those dreamy scenarios.
Practicing being fully aware and present in whatever activity you are engaging in — including SLEEP — will help quiet down that mind chatter and increase your level of well-being.
3 — Get your diet in check
Eat your green vegetables.
Preferably, at every meal. If you can’t, at least one serving of cabbages, kale, spinach and/or broccoli per day.
Vegetables are a great source of vitamins and are not heavy food. If you’re an insomniac, sleeping during the day is bad for you because you will just disrupt your biological clock even more.
Greens are not heavy food so, in contrast with cheesy macaronis, they will not make you sleepy during the day, especially after lunch.
Sometimes, the very reason you don’t sleep is you nourished your body with the wrong nutrition.
Eating chocolate before bed, for example, is a big no-no.
Chocolate is rich caffeine and theobromine, stimulants that increase your heart rate and can spike your energy.
Drinking a cup of coffee at 10 pm is also not a good idea. The same goes for tea as both have caffeine.
If you’re trying to get some sleep, avoid food and beverages that energizes you instead of helping you relax.
4 — Close all screens 1 hour before bed
Seriously, that Tik Tok video can wait until tomorrow.
The blue screen signals to your mind to stay alert so close your phone, TV, and laptop at least one hour before bed. You want your mind to be relaxed and ready to rest.
Do yourself a favor and set an alarm as a reminder.
Since you have one hour before you go to sleep, do activities that are not mentally or physically too engaging.
If you’re that planner type — For efficiency — you can write down your plan for the next day.
You can also start journaling. This is great for those who worry about events that already passed, reliving moments where they wish they could have said something better. It’s a great therapeutic method to get rid of all that noise chatter that creeps up in your head during the night.
You can also stretch your body and do some yoga. Relaxing your muscles signals to the brain you are ready to rest.
5 — Exercise
I cannot stress this enough.
If you want to sleep faster, get your body moving.
Let your muscles tire until there is only one option at night: recover and shut down.
Exercising also clears the mind and helps you focus better during the day.
Higher levels of productivity coupled with a better quality of sleep are key to emotional balance and high levels of happiness.
“The greatest wealth is health.” -Virgil
When you commit to these tips, the quality of your sleep, even as a light sleeper will improve and insomnia will start becoming a distant memory.
Your levels of energy, as well as your mood, will compound to several good nights of sleep and regulate your biological clock.
Apply yourself, research about your chronotype, and the best diet for your metabolism.
Exercise and have control over social media time.
Most importantly, control your thoughts.
Stop worrying about the future or thinking about the past, be more present in everything you do. Even when you wash the dishes.
Get your true self — vibrant with energy — back. A healthy rested fully functioning mind is all you need. So get your sleep in check.
You owe yourself a great life!
