Best Sleep Aid(s)
For the best sleep aid of all, create your own combination of natural herbs and relaxation techniques. Herbs such as chamomile, lavender and kava kava will help the chemical make up of your body so it can give in to the resistance of sleep, while relaxation techniques will ease a stressed mind and tense muscles that contribute to sleeplessness.
The best sleep aids are those that serve to induce sleep without the risk of side effects. Depending on your body, the environmental factors in your life, your diet, the amount of exercise you get daily and the stress factors that are causing your insomnia, you will have to find a sleep aid or a combination of sleep aids that address your particular needs.
Herbs
Herbs are gentle and effective sleep aids. Sometimes all it takes is a lavender sachet under your pillow to wash away the worries of your day and free your mind to let go and relax. Chamomile tea will have the same effect, soothing both mind and body as the herb induces a sleepy feeling and the warm liquid eases physical stress. St. John's Wort is another sleep aid that calms the central nervous system and prepares the body for restorative sleep. You may try one or all of these herbs to create the best sleep aid for your mind and body.
Stretching
No matter how much physical exercise you get during the day, a night time routine of gentle stretches will actually allow the tensions of the day to exit your body. Climbing into bed with a day's worth of hectic complications and stress in your body is an open invitation to tossing and turning that will no doubt disrupt your sleep. When you stretch your muscles, you elongate them, releasing knots of tension. As the physical tension leaves your body, it releases the invisible and intangible tension of your mind as well.
It is important to stretch all the muscles in your neck. Drop your head forward and feel the back of your neck lengthen. Let the weight of your head stretch your muscles through several slow, deep breaths. Then roll your head to one side, imagining that your ear is reaching out to rest on your shoulder. Tip your head backwards and jut your chin upward. Finally, roll your head to the other side. Concentrate on the lengthening of your muscles as you take in several breaths at each stage.
Stretching your legs is also important to help prepare your body for sleep. Stretch one leg at a time. Be sure to use the exhalations of your breath to get the most from each stretch.
Relaxation techniques
Relaxation techniques are excellent sleep aids. When you actively participate in conscious relaxation, your brain gets the message, and permission, to ease up on all the demands it has in your waking life. When the brain is allowed to relinquish its responsibilities to you, it actually gets better at working for you when you really need it. Meditation and visualization exercises are some of the best sleep aids around.
In order to find the best sleep aids for you, it is recommended that you experiment with the suggestions listed above. Try one, then add another. You may find that by mixing and matching the suggestions in this article, you have an assortment of the very best sleep aids at your disposal, providing you with variety and a freshness that makes you actually look forward to a good