Have you had this problem too?
- Ugh, yet another horrid lockdown side effect
- Do you get this insomnia problem too?
- Two nutritional tips for relaxing your body so that you sleep more deeply every night
I woke up and looked at my bedside clock.
It was 4.30am.
“Ah,” I thought, “plenty of time to get some more sleep before the dog wakes us all up for his breakfast.”
I was absolutely exhausted because I’d been working all the previous day on a project at my computer.
In fact, I was in my office right up until about 10pm.
So I assumed I’d have no trouble getting back to sleep.
But then the thoughts began to flow…
A jibber-jabber of ideas, worries and recollections…
First about the project I’d been working on, then everything I’d need to do that day…
Then about a dozen other things…
From the fact that we were running out of coffee to the horrific gas and electricity bill we’d been sent that week.
Those thoughts kept coming and coming…
“Blah blah blah blah” they said inside my brain.
The more I tried to bury my head in the pillow and lull myself back into sleep, the more the voices in my head chattered away.
It got to 5am… 5.30am… 6.30am… 7am.
I eventually got up, fed the dog and decided that I may as well start back on my project early, while the house was quiet.
But by the time I got back to my room, I was exhausted.
So I lay down and promptly fell asleep for half an hour until the alarm started screaming at me, and I started screaming back at it, too.
“Aaaaargh!”
This isn’t the first time this has happened.
Whenever I have something big on my mind, like a book project or financial issue, my brain kicks into gear at any moment I wake up in the night.,
It’s like it’s waiting for any chance to reactivate.
However this problem has been worse these past three months of lockdown.
It’s not like I haven’t had more TIME to sleep, what with all my social engagements cancelled and little to do other than work, potter in the garden and walk the dog.
Or maybe that’s the issue…
A shift down in my social and physical activity… a lack of variation in life… a reduction in purpose… maybe these are not making me more sleepy, but less sleepy.
How about you?
Do you get this insomnia problem too?
Sleep issues seem to be affecting more people than usual or getting worse for those who suffer from insomnia.
This is according to a new survey by researchers at King’s College London, who estimate that more than HALF the population has struggled with sleep during the lockdown period.
Professor Bobby Duffy said: “As with so much about covid-19, the crisis is affecting people very differently depending on their circumstances, and that includes the most fundamental aspects of life, such as sleep.”
The main cause, he says, is stress.
Not necessarily the stress of having too much to do, but that underlying uncertainty about work, income, the economy, vulnerable relatives and health.
There isn’t much I can do to switch off the cause of your stress, but I can give you some nutritional ideas that will help you.
A nutrient that helps you sleep more deeply at night
One important measure you can take right away is to make sure you have enough magnesium in your system.
Because of the pandemic and all its stressful effects – the horrific news stories, the job losses and economic doom – your levels may be lower than usual.
You see, stress causes more hormones like adrenaline and cortisol to sluice through your system, depleting your magnesium stocks.
On top of that, the magnesium content in vegetables has dropped 80% since 1950, which means we don’t get topped-up so quickly through our diet.
You might also be one of the many who has drunk more coffee or alcohol (or both!) during the pandemic. Well, unfortunately, both these flush magnesium out of your kidneys.
Too many sugary treats, too, can lower your levels even further.
As a result of this deficiency you can get muscle pain, nausea, fatigue, anxiety, and high blood pressure.
But one of the big symptoms is disrupted sleep patterns.
However, a regular magnesium top-up can help.
Some people who take magnesium more than 3 times a week report that they get such a deep night’s sleep that they wake up with a ‘magnesium hangover’.
For a few seconds after they wake, they feel groggy and like they can’t get up.
That sounds bad, but it’s not – it’s a sign that you’ve been sleeping soundly. And as soon as they are up and about, they feel much better having rested properly that night.
To order a really good magnesium supplement, click here: Magnesium
Or you could try this herbal solution…
Five herbs that relax you
Get hold of one, or more, of these and try and make an infusion from them:
- LIME TREE – also known as Linden, the leaves and flowers are renowned for their relaxing quality. It is commonly taken to cure insomnia, relieve tension and reduce anxiety.
- MELISSA – also known as Lemon Balm, an herb widely used in traditional medicine to calm the mind and body ready for sleep, to treat anxiety, migraines, hypertension and diabetes.
- CHAMOMIILE – this natural anti-inflammatory is known to lower stress levels, help regulate sleep, and soothe menstrual cramps.
- LEMON VERBENA – it can reduce inflammation, calm the stomach, soothe nerves and boost the immune system.
- HIBISCUS – this helps to reduce the feeling of heaviness in your limbs, inducing sleep, as well as helping to lower blood pressure, cholesterol and inflammation.
Or for an easier solution, if you don’t want to go out and source all these, they’re all packed into a brilliant product called Calmophytum, which you can order on a month’s risk-free trial basis from here.
Calmophytum should soothe and relax you, giving you a better night’s sleep, but if it doesn’t work brilliantly for you, then you can get a refund.
Worth a try!
