Natural Sleep With A Herbal Sleep Aid
by
site editor Marlene S. Hodge, last update: 5/11/2012 1:15:38 PM.
sleep, sleep aid
The herbal sleep remedies that our ancestors relied on are going widely neglected nowadays in favour of pharmaceuticals, but there are many benefits to using a herbal sleep aid of some type rather than a prescription drug. Of course many of the herbal sleep remedies have stopped being used for obvious reasons; things like henbane and lettuce juice are no longer used to treat insomnia because they are ineffective. Why the use of chamomile, valerian root and St. John's Wort are not wide spread is a different matter.
Sleep disorders do not necessarily require a prescription drug to treat. For instance, Ambien was designed to correct a chemical imbalance which causes insomnia; being prescribed Ambien assumes that you have a chemical imbalance. Most insomnia is caused by stress, and being stressed out is not necessarily indicative of a disorder or imbalance. For this reason herbal sleep remedies to calm the mind and body should always be tried first. Before you spend money on a herbal sleep aid there are even simpler things you can do to try to deal with insomnia.
I should clarify, that when I talk about insomnia I refer mainly to onset insomnia which is a difficulty falling asleep. There are forms of insomnia where one wakes multiple times during the night or awakens early and is unable to go back to sleep. These forms of insomnia usually have separate causes and therefore separate treatments. As I alluded to, the vast majority of the time onset insomnia is caused by stress and anxiety. Herbal sleep aids can help this and so can medications, but dealing with the causes of stress is probably the best treatment of all. Commonly the cause of stress and anxiety is not immediately apparent, or is something that you cannot control. In these situations it is healthy to find ways to better respond to these stressors, and find ways of relieving anxiety. Exercise, whether solitary or in a team sport can give you a chance to "blow off steam" in a safe and controlled environment. There are relaxation techniques you can do alone as well, like breathing exercises and picturing calm relaxing places. This is actually a lot more effective than you might think; taking five minutes out of the day to close your eyes, breathe deeply and slowly and picture yourself in a field or a pond can completely change your outlook for the rest of the day. Therapy may also be a route you wish to consider if you feel that stress and anxiety are becoming uncontrollable.
As I said earlier, the other option to consider before taking a prescription drug is a herbal sleep supplement. Most of the effective herbal sleep aids contain the ingredients I have listed above; chamomile, valerian root and St. John's Wort. These herbs have all been clinically proven to have a positive effect on anxiety, depression and insomnia. Most importantly they are much easier on your system than a pharmaceutical and do not have negative side effects or come with dependency issues. If this fails you may want to look into the possibility that your sleeping problems come from a physical source, taking part in a sleep clinic may help you get a better picture of where the problem lies. Hormonal changes and/or deficiencies as well as a magnesium deficiency are sometimes the cause of insomnia, and if lifestyle changes and herbal sleep remedies are ineffective the possibility that either of these is causing your insomnia should be explored.