How To Cure Your Insomnia — Naturally

Sleep like a teenager using wisdom from the yogic sages

Do you ever long for your teenage days when you could fall asleep anywhere, anytime, and not wake up until noon?

I know very few people who can sleep like a teenager anymore. In fact, most people I know say they have a hard time falling asleep or staying asleep. Studies show that a staggering 30 percent of adults have some degree of insomnia.

I used to be one of them. I went through a period, rather inexplicably, where I’d wake up at 3 or 4 am and never fall back to sleep. I’d struggle through my work day and be completely dysfunctional by 2 pm.

I was exhausted. Desperate for a solution. I came to understand why sleep deprivation is used as a form of torture.

As a long-time practitioner and teacher of yoga, I turned to Ayurveda, the holistic Indian system of health, which is the sister science to yoga.

By doing a few simple practices before bedtime, I’ve used Ayurveda to transform the quality of my sleep. Now, most nights, I can sleep soundly for seven or eight hours with only one quick wake-up in the middle of the night.

Here are the five practices I use which you can also try out. Choose one to start with or go all-out and totally revamp your bedtime routine.

1) Drink a glass of warm “golden milk.”

This is the traditional, Indian sleep tonic. The main ingredients are whole, organic milk and turmeric powder. For me, this yummy drink changed the quality of my sleep from the first night onward.

In Ayurveda, whole milk is considered “sweet” and will help calm the fire and air elements in the body, which in excess can keep you awake. Heating the milk makes it more digestible, and turmeric, the main spice in this drink, is thought to balance all the bio-energies (doshas) in the body.

It’s important to use whole milk, preferably organic cow’s milk but goat’s milk will work, too, if you prefer. Some people find goat’s milk easier to digest. You can also use a non-dairy milk if you’re vegan, but personally, I don’t get the same, sleep-inducing effect from it.

To make golden milk, bring one cup of milk and 1/2-1 tsp of turmeric powder to a boil. I also add about 1/4 tsp of ground nutmeg, as nutmeg is known to induce sleep. Then drink 30 minutes before bedtime.

You can also add other spices such as a pinch of ground pepper, ground ginger or ground cinnamon. A little sugar is fine as well, but make sure it’s raw cane sugar. Please don’t add honey to a hot drink because it can turn into toxins in the body, according to Ayurveda.

2) Sit silently outside in the moonlight.

Ayurvedic wisdom teaches us that moon rays have a calming and relaxing effect on the mind, which prepares us for a healing night’s sleep. If you can’t sit outside, you can still gaze at the moon through a window.

I especially love sitting outside at night in my back yard while I sip my golden milk. The darkness of the night sky also helps my eyes relax after a long day of use, and the stillness gives my ears a break, especially if I’ve been around lots of talkative people or I’ve been listening to the news.

3) Practice extended exhalations.

While yoga has tons of breath exercises to relax, my all-time favorite is the one made popular by the Amrit method of yoga nidra, also known as yogic sleep. It goes like this:

Sit up straight in a chair or lay down on the floor or in bed. Take a deep but gentle inhale through the nostrils as you fill your lungs to capacity, and then exhale through your mouth very slowly as if you’re exhaling through a straw, through pursed lips. Repeat 10–20 times.

Recent research supports what the yogis have known for centuries: that longer exhalations have a calming effect on the central nervous system.

4) Put your legs up the wall.

The yoga posture known as Viparita Karani (Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose) is the premier stress-reliever, and it’s perfect right before bedtime to calm the nervous system, release tension in the lower back and hips, and soothe muscle fatigue.

The trick to getting into this pose is to lie on your side, scoot your booty up against the wall, and then swing your legs up. If your backside is not firmly against the wall, you will find it hard to get your legs up and, once up, to get comfortable.

Let your arms relax out away from your body. Close your eyes. Listen to some meditative music or just be in silence. If you practice the relaxation breath I described above, you will move even deeper into relaxation.

5) Apply warm oil to your body.

The traditional Indian practice of self-massage, known as abhyanga, should be a daily self-care routine for everyone.

Acharya Shunya, an internationally acclaimed Ayurvedic practitioner, explains that daily oil massage releases emotional tension, discharges pent-up memories, and leaves you feeling cheerful, optimistic, and deeply relaxed.

While this traditional oil massage is often done in the morning, you can also do it at bedtime — either as a full body massage or in a modified form — to help you relax, fall asleep and stay asleep.

It’s important to warm the oil first to a comfortable temperature (put your oil bottle in a container of hot water for about 5 minutes). Sesame oil is traditionally used, but almond oil and coconut oil can be used as well.

For a full body version:

Turn down your bathroom and bedroom lights, put on some soothing music if you like, and gently massage the warm oil into every inch of your body with long, gentle strokes. This should take at least 10 minutes. Then soak in a warm tub of water or rinse off in the shower. Pat dry and tuck yourself into bed.

Here’s the modified version:

Massage warm oil into the soles of your feet and behind your ears. If you have any muscular or joint pain, you can apply oil there as well. If it’s winter, put cozy socks on your feet and turn out the light. Sweet dreams. 😊

A Final Thought — Change Your Mindset

Finally, don’t stop with these practices. Work on your mindset about sleep as well. Examine your beliefs about nighttime and rest. Many of us have been conditioned to think of sleep as a waste of time, something to get through until we can be productive again in the morning.

If this is you, then make a conscious effort to welcome sleep. When I get into bed, I send a prayer of gratitude out into the universe for my warm, comfortable bed, the roof over my head, and the opportunity to rest deeply after a busy day.

Thank goodness we get to stop the world for a few hours each day. Embrace it!

If you try any of these tips and they work for you, please let me know in the comments below. I’d also love to know about your own natural remedies for insomnia!