The Healthy Solution

How to get more effective sleep

There is a saying that the three basic and primary needs of a man are food, clothing and a roof over your head. I would like to add one more to this list and that is a good nights' sleep. Lack of sleep is perhaps the worst thing that can happen to any of us. Not only do we feel lethargic and tired the whole of next day, but it affects our mood, performance efficiency and spoils the day in some way or the other.

When people cannot get sleep for nights on end, it is medically called 'insomnia' which may call for medical intervention, depending on the severity of the problem. Sleep disorders are an increasing reality all over the world. In fact, there are more than 80 sleep disorders recognized by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

But how should one know that one is suffering from a sleeping disorder?

In case you find it tough to fall asleep or remain asleep throughout the night, or wake up feeling tired and go through the day feeling lazy and sleepy you know that you have some kind of sleep disorder or mild insomnia.

One of the redeeming features about treating sleeping disorders is that there are plenty of therapy options available today and you really do not have to resort to taking sleeping pills as a means to get out of the problem. Other than prescription drugs, there are several natural and alternatives remedies to the problem over and above the various simple alterations you could do to improve your lifestyle, bedroom ambience and daily habits. Any of these therapy options can remarkably improve your sleep pattern and help you attain effective sleep during the night.

To arrive at an informed decision on how to have effective sleep and get rid of daylong tiredness, you have to educate yourself about the various methods and options available. Remember, however popular one option may be, it may not work for you optimally, primarily because our bodies are different and so are the causes behind the sleeplessness.

For instance, the End Tiredness program developed by Tina Hagen and Peter Novak is a popular guide for people suffering from continuous feeling of lethargy who wish to increase their levels of energy and generally feel better. However, this program has its due quota of pros and cons. While the advantages of the program is that it is easily comprehensible by the average person, does not involve any ingestion of pills, drugs, etc., has been used successfully by many people, carries a money-back guarantee and also packed with lots of value-added bonus offers, the downside of this program are that it would never work with people whose constant tiredness is caused by some chronic illness.

This program is effective for only those who have made poor lifestyle choices or have ill-defined sleeping habits. The other deterrent to this program is that it might prove to be cost-prohibitive to many patients of poor sleep and many feel that there is an overload of information contained in the program, most of which may not be needed. Though they have an efficient e mail-based customer support system, there are many patients who need telephonic help line to cope with their problems who find this program lacking in this vital area.

There are some efficient natural options to get more effective sleep - aromatherapy being one of the more popular ones. Then there are herbal remedies, which promote the use of chamomile to improve the quality of sleep. If the cause of sleeplessness is stress, depression or anxiety, various stress-relieving steps like yoga and meditation can offer great relief to improve sleeping patterns and help the patient to get more effective sleep.

Taking care of the bedroom ambience, turning on soft music, soothing lighting, having light diet for dinner, avoiding alcohol or other strong beverage can also help you to get effective sleep. Restricting your television watching, avoiding doing any physical exercise also help. But then a leisurely walk after dinner can also go a long way in improving your quality of sleep. It is wise never to carry your worries and tensions to bed - as the saying goes, there is always tomorrow when I can look at the problem with fresh perspectives.