Your Guide To A Natural Insomnia Cure

At the bottom of the page you will find a link to our extensive guide to finding a natural insomnia cure, but first it would be wise to a look at just what insomnia is:
At the bottom of the page you will find a link to our extensive guide to finding a natural insomnia cure, but first it would be wise to a look at just what insomnia is:
What is insomnia?

The cause of insomnia
What are the different types of insomnia?
Who suffers from insomnia?
What are the symptoms of insomnia?
What are the side effects of insomnia?
Is there as insomnia treatment?
What is insomnia?
Insomnia is a sleep disorder (often referred to as "insomnia sleep disorder") and, most importantly, it is a symptom and not a disease. When we talk about an insomnia cure therefore we are not talking about curing insomnia directly, but are looking at treating the underlying cause of insomnia.
In its simplest form insomnia disorder can be defined as difficulty in falling asleep, staying asleep or waking after too short a period of sleep.
The cause of insomnia
The causes of insomnia are many and varied but they can be divided into two groups:
Primary Insomnia. Primary insomnia is a sleep disorder for which there is no specific underlying condition and is the most common form of insomnia. Stress, environmental changes (such as noise and temperature), disruptions to your normal sleep pattern (caused perhaps through shift work or long-haul travel), and the side-effects of many medications can all give rise to primary insomnia. Other contributory factors include the excessive use of drugs, alcohol or caffeine and taking naps during the day.
Secondary Insomnia. Secondary insomnia can be attributed to a specific underlying physical or psychological condition. These include other sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, narcolepsy, restless legs syndrome and circadian rhythm disorder. Other physical and psychological conditions that often give rise to insomnia include depression, respiratory problems (including asthma), heart problems (such as congestive heart failure), arthritis, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer’s disease and hyperthyroidism.
What are the different types of insomnia?
There are two different ways of answering this question. The first considers the problem from the standpoint of time and divides insomnia into three types:
Transient (or short-term) insomnia. Transient (or short-term) insomnia lasts for just one or two nights or, at most, may affect your sleep for up to a month. An important upcoming meeting, the excitement of a child's birthday or a minor illness might all give rise to transient insomnia and, as the underlying cause passes, your sleep pattern returns to normal. We all suffer from short-term insomnia from time to time and this is a normal part of life.
Intermittent insomnia. If transient insomnia starts to occur frequently, so that your insomnia could be termed as "on and off", then you are said to be suffering from intermittent insomnia. Over time you may find that the periods of insomnia are coming closer together and lasting for slightly longer each time. This is usually a warning sign that should not be ignored and now is the time to start considering taking action to prevent matters from getting worse.
Chronic insomnia. Once you reach the stage at which your sleep is being affected on most nights then you are suffering from chronic or severe insomnia. At this point your insomnia will undoubtedly start to impact upon the quality of your life generally and you should certainly begin looking for an insomnia remedy.
The second answer to this question considers the specific difficulties you encounter in sleeping and again divides insomnia into three types:
Initial insomnia. If you find difficulty in falling asleep, typically taking 30 minutes or more to get to sleep, then you are said to be suffering from initial insomnia.
Middle insomnia. In the case of middle insomnia you experience problems in staying asleep. Here, it is not uncommon to wake several times during the night and then have difficulty in getting back to sleep, or find that you are only able to drift in and out of light restless sleep.
Late or Terminal insomnia. In late or terminal insomnia you fall asleep with relative ease and sleep through the first part of the night but then wake early in the morning, usually have enjoyed less than 6 hours of sleep.
Who suffers from insomnia?
Anybody can suffer from insomnia and, at some point in our lives, just about all of us will experience some form of insomnia. However, some people are more prone to suffer this sleep disorder than others.
Women suffer more than men. Apart from the clear difference of problems experienced by women during pregnancy, the monthly hormonal cycle often gives rise to problems of insomnia. Additionally, hormonal changes following the menopause can also result in sleeping difficulties.
Older people tend to experience more difficulty sleeping and this is particularly true beyond the age of 60.
Insomnia is also common amongst people who are divorced, widowed or separated and amongst shift workers and frequent long distant travelers, who are prone to jet lag.
Many people with other medical conditions also experience differing degrees of insomnia. Such conditions are too numerous to list here but would include post-traumatic stress syndrome, brain injury and chronic conditions ranging from tinnitus to respiratory problems and heart disease.
What are the symptoms of insomnia?
Although a commonly asked question, this one is difficult to answer because, as already outlined above, insomnia is itself a symptom and not a disease. The symptoms of this particular sleep disorder are therefore its characteristics. Namely:
Difficulty falling asleep.
Difficulty staying asleep.
Waking too early in the morning.
In addition, a further characteristic, not so far mentioned, is the fact that sufferers start their day by feeling tired and un-refreshed and often perform poorly during the day.
What are the side-effects of insomnia?
There are many side-effects accompanying insomnia but perhaps the most significant are:
Increased accident rate. Accidents at home, at work and particularly on the road can often be traced back to insomnia. Recent statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration attribute fatigue to some 100,000 vehicle accidents and 1,500 deaths in the United States alone during 2004.
Premature death. There is no evidence to suggest that insomnia itself contributes to premature death, except in the rare case of a genetic disorder known as fatal familial insomnia. There is, however, good evidence to show that people who regularly take sleeping pills do have lower survival rates than the general population. These deaths therefore, while not directly resulting from insomnia, must certainly be attributed to it.
Stress and depression. Insomnia can have a significant effect upon mood and increased hormonal activity resulting from insomnia can lead to anxiety, stress and depression.
Heart disease. There is some evidence to suggest that severe insomnia can produce activity within the heart and nervous system that, in turn, may lead to heart disease.
Headaches. Insomnia can often lead to headaches during the night and early in the morning.
Is there as insomnia treatment?
If you suffer from secondary insomnia (insomnia resulting from an underlying physical or psychological condition) then the starting point in any insomnia treatment is clearly to treat the underlying condition. This will often solve the problem, although it may take some time and it is often wise to treat your insomnia symptoms at the same time.
In cases of transient (short-term) insomnia, medication (either prescribed or purchased 'over the counter') can sometimes be the answer, although more often than not the problem will simply disappear after a few days.
For more persistent insomnia a range of insomnia treatments are available. These should not, however, include the use of sleeping pills which are designed for short-term use. The longer-term use of sleeping pills can lead to various problems, including addiction, and can often result in prolonging your recovery, rather than assisting with it.
Insomnia treatment for both primary and secondary insomnia might include cognitive behavioral therapy (helping you to set your environment, routine and frame of mind for sleep), dietary changes, exercise, relaxation and meditation, chromatherapy (color therapy), acupuncture, bright light therapy, dietary supplements and a range of herbal remedies.
In this modern age where we want everything easily and quickly (usually yesterday) the use of these treatment techniques may seem 'old fashioned'. However, insomnia has been around since the dawn of time and many of these insomnia remedies have been developed, tried and tested over the centuries. More importantly - they work!
It would be nice to simply take a pill and banish our sleeping problems overnight, but the truth is that a natural cure for insomnia is the answer for today's insomniac.

I had to do something to reclaim my life!

I had to find an insomnia cure and the first thought that came to mind was simply to drop by the doctor's office and pick up some sleeping pills. However, I already had one member of my family living on sleeping pills and, quite frankly, they seemed to be doing her more harm than good. So, what next?

Insomnia was clearly not a new problem and countless numbers of people had faced it, and dealt with it, over hundreds of years. So, there had to be a natural remedy for insomnia and a way to get back into a sound sleeping pattern and to regain the vigor and vitality that I once enjoyed without a second thought.

Well, to cut a long story short, after spending a great deal of time and effort on research and on experimenting with an enormous variety of 'cures' I finally found a natural cure for insomnia and now, with just a few unbelievably simple changes to my lifestyle, I sleep like a baby and, if anything, have even more energy now that I did 10 years ago.

You'll remember too that I mentioned earlier that I had one member of my family firmly hooked on sleeping pills. Well, as a result of my own research, I was able to help her to give up the pills and she too is now back to her old self. In fact, you have her to thank for the fact that I'm writing this now.

She was so impressed by the help that I was able to give her that she suggested that I should gather together all of my research and put it into a practical guide that could help anyone who finds themselves with insomnia. And today, here it is.

But, although Help Me To Sleep was originally set up to tackle the problem of finding a natural cure for insomnia, it has since been expanded as we have broadened our research to cover a range of sleep disorders.

indeed, while insomnia is often thought of as a condition in itself, it is in fact just one of a number of sleep disorders and is frequently seen in conjunction with other disorders. For this reason, Help Me To Sleep not only looks at an insomnia cure but also looks at such areas as sleep apnea, narcolepsy, restless leg syndrome and jet lag.

Natural Remedy For Insomnia - Finding A Natural Insomnia Cure

Insomnia affects millions of people around the world and the vast majority of them would love to find a natural insomnia cure, say good night to insomnia and get back to those days of night after night of natural sleep.

Not long ago I knew only too well the misery of insomnia. For a long time I simply couldn't get to sleep at night and would lie in bed wide-awake wishing in vain for sleep to come. More often than not I'd get up again after an hour or more and potter around the house for a while before returning to bed. Eventually of course I would manage to sleep, but what little sleep I did get didn't seem to be doing me much good.

My general health started to suffer and I was permanently tired during the day, often finding that I simply couldn't concentrate on things for any length of time. I also lost all of my energy and didn't want to do many of the things that I used to enjoy so much.

Friends and family noticed of course and, at first, expressed concern and offered advice. Soon, however, this was replaced with less helpful comments referring to such things as how 'boring' I was becoming. Eventually, I found my circle of friends was diminishing rapidly.