Better Sleep with Herbal Medicine

Nothing beats a good night’s sleep.  To wake up refreshed, having been resting fully for hours, is hugely restorative for the mind and body.  We pass through a number of stages during the sleep cycle, all of them letting us descend deeper into unconsciousness, but in a good way.

The brain waves pass through alpha, delta and theta cycles, allowing complete relaxation.  But whilst we think we are just resting, so many other processes are taking place during sleep.

Processing our experiences and memories of the day, laying down memory, filtering events and of course the dreaming stage which is part of making sense of our feelings and the sub-conscious desires and fears that may have been triggered throughout our day.  A night of broken sleep leaves us tired and sometimes irritable the next day.  If poor sleep becomes a chronic state (insomnia), then our memory and decision making faculties are less than optimal.  We know that chronic sleep deprivation also affects mood and increases the risk of developing mental health problems such as depression and even dementia.

It has been estimated that chronic insomnia affects over a third of the adult Western population.  That’s a pretty astounding figure!  Time to act.  There are many ways of addressing insomnia, ranging from how you manage your day, your diet, to evening time activities.  Timing is important – knowing the best times of day for active or vigorous exercise for example (early part of the day).  Knowing what foods may be useful to help us wind down in the evening and whether certain supplements may be of benefit.

Certain herbs has always been used to help the nervous system wind down in order to induce good sleep.  Some are relaxants and help in releasing tension, whilst others are more sedative.  Getting to know what can work for you can involve some trial and error, but I have no doubt that you can find some effective remedies from the herbal stores to ensure a better night’s sleep.

Check our this short course on Herbal and other natural approaches to Insomnia.

Now available in SHOP