When You're Desperate Enough To Try Sleeping Aids
by
site editor Marlene S. Hodge, last update: 5/11/2012 1:24:37 PM.
sleep, sleep aid
Suffering from insomnia for more than two nights in a row, or regularly having difficulty sleeping a few times a month is enough to motivate anybody to start looking into sleeping aids. But where are you getting the information from is an important thing to consider, as most people do not know all of the options available for sleep medicine or what effects each sleeping aid will have.
So where is the first place most of us will go to for advice about sleeping aids? To our doctors of course. There are two problems with this; the first is that your GP is not necessarily an expert in chronic insomnia and the other is the fact that doctors receive incentives to prescribe a certain sleeping aid. This does not provide for an expert and biased free source of information. There are some doctors who have an open mind towards natural sleep remedies, and I'm certainly not suggesting you completely ignore your doctor's advice; but there are other things you can try before using prescription sleeping aids.
Why should you try natural alternatives before pharmaceutical sleeping aid? Simply because the pharmaceutical drugs are undoubtedly going to come with a lot of unpleasant side effects. Sleeping pills like Diazepam, Alprazolam and Zolpidem come with a lot of negative effects; like rash, kidney and liver damage, blurred vision, hallucination and many more. There is the risk of dependency, addiction and even overdose. Prescription sleeping aids are generally very expensive, even in countries with national health care plans. Because of the risks of addiction and dependency even the manufacturers of these sleeping aids will tell you they were only designed for short term use (despite the fact that it is prescribed for years at a time in some cases).
Natural sleeping aids may not be as commonly used, but they are quickly gaining popularity not just among insomniacs like ourselves but among doctors as well. A natural sleep aid is not based on pseudo-alchemy, or karma, or anything so ridiculous; as many people unfortunately believe. Natural remedies have real science behind them and in many cases clinical trials have shown its effectiveness. They are rarely ever one herb or substance, but many herbal extracts combined together to make a powerful, yet side effect free sleeping aid. It can be taken for as long as needed because there are no dependency issues, and addiction and overdose are not possible with the ingredients used. Pharmaceutical sleep medicines were made to correct chemical imbalances; because you are having trouble sleeping does not mean you are unbalanced. There are some people who do require pharmaceutical drugs, but they are not the majority of people being prescribed sleeping aids.