Insomnia affects a growing portion of the population. From declining health due to advancing years or increased financial pressures and stress, if you already battle insomnia, you’re likely to see more of it in the future. Use the ideas in this article to prepare yourself instead for a future of sound sleep.

Keep to a strict sleep schedule. Your body contains an internal clock, this causes you to feel sleepy at the same hour every day. If you continue to go to sleep at these regular times, your insomnia will go away.

Have a bedtime ritual. Let your body know that sleeping is coming by doing the same things every night. For example, you might try having a hot bath, hot tea and reading in bed for about half an hour. This practice will be more effective if you are consistent, so keep it up.

If sleep absolutely eludes you, do not just lie there worrying about sleeping. Try getting out of bed, and doing some light activity, such as a warm bath, or a little reading. This may be just enough activity to make you forget about your sleep problems, and help you to fall asleep.

Keep a sleep diary, if insomnia has become a major problem in your life. Record what time you go to bed and get up, as well as how long (approximately) it took you to fall asleep. Log meals, beverages, exercise and any major events that may impede sleep. Use the information to narrow down causes for insomnia and to find a workaround.

Your body needs to wake at a consistent time each day. Most people sleep in whenever they can to catch up on the missed sleep during the week. If you constantly suffer from insomnia, train your body to wake up at a certain time each day and stick to it!

Get enough exercise. Exercise can help you cut stress by releasing endorphins into your system. That can help you sleep more deeply at night. However, avoid exercise within 3 or 4 hours before bed, because endorphins can keep you awake if you exercise too close to your bedtime. Give it time.

Particularly if you work in an office and do not engage in much physical activity during the day, establish a workout schedule for yourself. Just 15 minutes a day of activity can help, as long as you do so a good 30 minutes or more before bed. Exercise enables you to get the oxygen you need to rest and sleep well.

You’re probably not going to solve all of your problems while you’re in bed. If you find yourself worrying about everything that could go wrong or problems that you need to solve, redirect your thoughts. Breath deeply and think about something relaxing or pleasant. If necessary, get up and write down the things that are keeping you from sleeping well.

Tryptophan deficiencies can contribute to insomnia. A light pre-bed snack that contains this important nutrient (try turkey, tuna, or cottage cheese) may be very helpful. If you don’t have any luck, try a 5-HTP supplement. Serotonin is made of tryptophan; a chemical that will help you sleep.

If you face depression, insomnia is likely a side effect of your disease. In people who have depression-based insomnia, adding a 5-HTP supplement to their daily regimen helped them not only fall asleep faster, but also sleep through the night and to feel more rested when they woke in the morning.

Don’t drink alcohol to help you sleep. While alcohol is a depressant, and can make you sleepy, after the alcohol has metabolized your body feels awake again. If you drink moderately in the evenings, make sure you leave about two hours for the alcohol to metabolize fully. Then try warm milk.

Studies have proven that as an adult, you can actually rock yourself into a drowsy state, just like your mom or grandparents did when you were a child. Try using a rocker in the bedroom, rocking gently for a few minutes just before bed. Play some soothing tunes in the background as well.

Incorporate some carbohydrates in your dinner or nightly snack. Carbohydrates increase your blood sugar when eaten. However, when your body begins to produce insulin in response, this will elicit drowsiness. Do not over indulge with snacks though. Too much snack at night can have the opposite effect. Keep it light and at a time that will give your body time to process it.

Insomnia can be caused by many things. Do you have trouble getting to sleep because your mind is wandering to things that you need to do tomorrow or to things that are causing you stress? If so, keep a notebook beside your bed. By putting your thoughts or concerns on paper, you can help clear your mind and probably get a more restful night of sleep.

Insomnia is something that happens more and more, not just to more people, but more often to those that experience it. As you age or face more money stress, you can expect to see more chance of suffering insomnia. Use the ideas in this article now, either to eliminate insomnia or prevent it.

Insomnia: We Provide You With The Real Truth was originally published on Spring