Article By Judy Mosley

Many people, at one point or another, find it difficult to fall asleep.  Worries of all sorts tend to be amplified once our heads hit the pillow. A crisis of any kind doesn’t exactly help those who already find sleep a struggle. There is the choice of using medications, but there are also some simple and natural solutions that will help ease your mind into a state of restfulness.  I have used all of these suggestions during different stages in my life and I hope they can help you as well. And, on the plus side, they’re free!

Turn off the News

It’s important for people to be informed about what’s going on in the world.  However, I don’t think it’s healthy that we know everything.  Staying up for the news generally fills our minds with information that is rarely positive and it’s mostly about things that we can do nothing about in that moment.  Then we try to go to sleep!  Recognize that all this information may not be the best to digest right before bed.  And, if you really want to know what’s going on, I can almost guarantee that those same stories will still be airing the next morning. 

Decide What’s Important

Once we’ve hit the sack and settled in, this is normally when our minds kick into overdrive, processing all that we have faced throughout the day.  It’s important to remember that we do have a say in what our own brains think about.  There are many times that I have reminded myself that even though I am thinking about a particular situation, there is nothing that I can do about it right now. This frees me to move onto other things that might be more pleasant.

Write it Down

For me, this has been an extremely helpful technique.  Keep a notebook and pen beside your bed.  If you start thinking about something that needs to be done tomorrow, write it down in your notebook. Write down as many things as possible, even though you know you won’t be able to do them all.  By emptying your brain out in this manner, it frees your mind for other things … like sleep!

Focus on Something Else

It sounds trite, I know, but for as long as I can remember I have used my imagination to help me fall asleep.  I give my mind something to focus on.  Mostly, they have been fictional stories, placing myself as one of the characters.  Eventually, I find myself drifting off.  Use your mind to your advantage.  If making up stories doesn’t appeal to you, try meditation.  Imagine your thoughts floating out of your mind or seeping out of your body.  Try to find something that you can focus on that brings you enjoyment instead of anxiety.  This will help you relax and you might find yourself going to sleep faster than you thought was possible.

Give Your Worries to Someone Else

This is where your spirituality comes in.  No matter where you are in life, it always helps to know that you don’t have to go through life alone.  After a particularly traumatic event in my own life, I would imagine being a little girl and crawling into Jesus’ lap for comfort.  Other times, when disruptive memories would keep me from falling asleep, I would picture giving those memories to God and asking Him to take them away from me.  And, He always works.  Believe in something bigger than yourself and you’ll find an advocate for your life that you didn’t know was there.

Sleep doesn’t have to be impossible.  Sometimes, we need to find out what is keeping us from what we need and how we can help ourselves.  

The point is that sleep is important.  Take care of yourself and if you feel weird about a technique, find something that you are comfortable with.  It will make the morning seem a little brighter.  And, you will be able to face the day with more clarity and that is something else that all of us need, no matter what is going on around us.  

And if tonight my soul may find her peace
in sleep, and sink in good oblivion,
and in the morning wake like a new-opened flower
then I have been dipped again in God, and new-created.
-D. H. Lawrence

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