Health and Mindfulness
Here’s How a Female Body Builder Cured Insomnia.
“Why Can’t Doctors Prescribe Meditation for Insomnia?” asked Heather, a female bodybuilder and a genetic engineer
The first conversation I had with Heather was, “Not knowing about your age and background, assuming you are older than me, your body is in pretty good shape. How do you keep your form?” I replied humorously, “Perhaps genetics?”
Then, she commented affably, “Don’t get me started in this subject. I am a genetic engineer by profession”.
Through this conversation, I understood that Heather’s vital issue was sleep deprivation, particularly insomnia. Heather tried many techniques such as herbal supplements, herbal teas, 5-HTP, GABA, Tryptophan, Phenibut (β-Phenyl-γ-aminobutyric Acid), Pilates, dancing, sleeping pills, and even hypnosis.
However, she confirmed that nothing worked for her. Some of the supplements and sleeping pills caused addiction and withdrawal symptoms. In addition, her insomnia persisted despite all her efforts, including bodybuilding workouts.
Her situation resonated with me as I suffered from insomnia and sleep deprivation during my younger years. It was an awful experience for me. Therefore, I had empathy and compassion for her.
In my opinion, her brain and body were overactive, keeping her sympathetic nervous system too active without giving a chance for her parasympathetic system to rest and recover. She was unaware of hormonal and neurotransmitter effects on belly fat, particularly cortisol.
I met Heather in an unusual situation in my community gym several years ago. Once, she accidentally entered the male shower. She saw me semi-naked in my gym shorts. A few male friends screamed and annoyed her, but I did not. It was normal for me to shower in shorts in public.
However, her eyes got stuck on my belly for a few seconds. It was my fiftieth birthday when for the first time my abs got defined. My ripped belly and silver head confused her.
Then she screamed back to the crowd, saying, “what the hell is wrong with you guys? It was just an accident. There was no sign of a male shower, and I saw a little girl leaving the shower, so I thought it was a female one. FYI, I am not into your bloody flesh. I have a gorgeous boyfriend”.
Then people started giggling and even apologizing. She showed a forgiving smile and left. People understood that she was an assertive and nice friend. I never witnessed any impoliteness in her conversations or behavior, even though some members thought she was stalking me.
One day I was meditating for five minutes after a heavy workout. She approached me and put her hands gently on my shoulder, and empathically asked, “Are you okay, mate?” I opened my eyes and replied politely, “I am fine, thank you for asking. How are you?” She thought I was lightheaded and wanted to offer her help. When I told her I was having a quick meditation session, she got curious.
Let me get back to the first conversation I had with Heather. “Oh, you are the man I saw in the male shower a few weeks ago. You looked older than other guys, but your body really impressed me. What is the secret?” After the humorous point about genetics, I said there was no secret. I have a balanced lifestyle.
She pointed out that she was working hard, doing everything possible, but couldn’t get rid of her belly fat. It worried her a lot. It even caused her to lose sleep. Her mental health seemed to be affected by her perceptions. As soon as I heard the term sleep, I asked do you have sleep problems. She replied, “yes, for many years, I have been suffering from insomnia. I tried everything, but nothing worked”.
I said perhaps that was the problem for your obstinate belly fat. Until I fixed my sleep and reduced my elevated cortisol, I had significant belly fat, which disturbed me for many years despite my hard workouts and strict diets. I suggested she obtain blood, urine, and saliva tests for cortisol. She understood that unless we beat the elevated cortisol monster, our body fat would persist.
She wanted to know more. So, I briefly explained a few facts about fat metabolism. Since she was a genetic engineer, everything I said resonated with her. Of course, she already knew about those, even more than I knew. But the missing link was the impact of cortisol on sleep deprivation.
Heather heard a lot about meditation but never believed it might work for her, so she didn’t pursue it. She tried a few times, and she hated it as her brain was wandering like crazy. However, she was careful about maintaining her mental health via other practices such as dancing, swimming, and yoga.
I shared a simple meditation technique that I used. I only introduced herself to watch her breaths and accept every thought coming to her mind and use the term “next” when each thought came to her awareness without judging them. She loved the simplicity of this approach and decided to give it a go. She kindly complimented me that this was the best crash course she had on meditation.
A few weeks later, she saw me again during my workouts and started a conversation. Our previous chat helped us become friends. Then, we exchanged emails as she wanted me to share more info about meditation.
Each day, she kept me informed about her progress with meditation. I shared stories of other friends who melted their belly fat. I kept encouraging her with friendly suggestions such as if Alberto as a mature man, can do this, you can do it too.
Heather appreciated these pleasant conversations. She loved Eliza’s success story and she wanted to model Maggie from health and business perspectives. After a while, she became a master in meditation.
There were not many female bodybuilders in our community gym. Interestingly, members found her background and desire unusual, so not many conversed with her initially. However, she enjoyed conversations with me.
We built a friendly bond as I also picked her brain about developments in genetic engineering which always fascinated me. Her knowledge was inspiring. She articulated convoluted topics in a way I could digest. But she always found a way to change the subject to meditation and wanted to learn more about it.
So, it was a win-win as I enjoyed sharing my cognitive science knowledge while learning about her vast experience and insights into the human genome.
Her body improved substantially after solving her insomnia problem and reducing her cortisol, thanks to meditation. As I suspected, her cortisol level was very high. Elevated cortisol caused by insomnia was the main culprit for keeping her obstinate belly fat for so long despite doing many things correctly.
After learning and practicing meditation for a while, she interestingly turned her hobby into a small business. She advertised her services as a meditation teacher for female athletes and gained numerous clients. Her niche business grew rapidly. She continued bodybuilding even though some younger bodybuilders thought she was getting older for this activity.
After a while, she got used to the behavior in the community gym, and others got used to her too, especially after I introduced her to a few friends. She started conversing with several other members.
Then, one day when we were having a small break discussing meditation again, she made a surprising comment. When she asked loudly, “why the hell doctors can’t prescribe meditation for sleep deprivation and insomnia?”
Several members laughingly said, “we have no clue!” I informed them that some integrative medicine doctors in my circles were already prescribing meditation as a supplementary treatment method for stress and sleep issues.
Apart from numerous anecdotal testimonies, there is also significant scientific evidence on the effectiveness of meditation on sleep quality. I won’t go into details of my research on the efficacy of meditation on insomnia as they are comprehensive. However, I would like to provide three studies to give you an idea.
This study found “moderate strength of evidence that mindfulness meditation interventions significantly improved sleep quality compared with nonspecific active controls at post-intervention”.
This meta-analysis of several clinical trials suggested that mindfulness meditation may mildly improve some sleep parameters in patients with insomnia. As a result, researchers recommended meditation to serve as an auxiliary treatment to medication for sleep complaints.
Another metanalysis found the effectiveness of mind-body therapies (MBTs) such as meditation on insomnia. Researchers concluded that MBTs could effectively treat insomnia and improve sleep quality for healthy individuals and clinical patients.
Heather learned a lot about how the brain worked during our conversations, especially for creating unwanted thoughts and disturbing emotions affecting sleep patterns. She embraced my points about cognitive flexibility and emotional maturity. She said there was no better medication than meditation for healthy people like me.
The critical point in this story is that Heather found ways to slow down her overactive brain and give her body a chance to heal via meditative practices. Moving her body from a sympathetic response mode to a parasympathetic one via meditation solved her insomnia problem and made a dramatic shift in her desired transformation.
If you enjoyed this story, you might check two other stories reflecting insights from two different bodybuilders.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
Related Health and Mental Health Articles
Meditation Not Just for Healing, But Also for Creating Grit & Resilience
Here’s How I Got Healthier and Smoother Skin via 5 Lifestyle and Holistic Health Methods.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
As a new reader, please check my holistic health and well-being stories reflecting my reviews, observations, and decades of experiments optimizing my hormones and neurotransmitters. I write about health as it matters. I believe health is all about homeostasis.
Petechiae, ALS, Metabolic Syndrome, Type II Diabetes, Fatty Liver Disease, Heart Disease, Strokes, Obesity, Liver Cancer, Autoimmune Disorders, Homocysteine, Lungs Health, Pancreas Health, Kidneys Health, NCDs, Infectious Diseases, Brain Health, Dementia, Depression, Brain Atrophy, Neonatal Disorders, Skin Health, Dental Health, Bone Health, Leaky Gut, Leaky Brain, Brain Fog, Chronic Inflammation, Insulin Resistance, Elevated Cortisol, Leptin Resistance, Anabolic Resistance, Cholesterol, High Triglycerides, Metabolic Disorders, Gastrointestinal Disorders, Thyroid Disorders, Anemia, Dysautonomia, cardiac output, and urinary track disorders.
I also wrote about valuable nutrients. Here are the links for easy access:
Lutein/Zeaxanthin, Phosphatidylserine, Boron, Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, PQQ, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, zinc, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine, and other nutrients.
Disclaimer: My posts do not include professional or health advice. I only document my reviews, observations, experiences, and perspectives to provide information and create awareness.
As part of my creative non-fiction writing goals, I’d like to share a few stories that might warm our hearts with a bit of humor into weighty topics.
Sample Humorous Stories
Finally, After Burning Her House, Georgia Found Enlightenment
Hilarious Tips to Prevent Brain Atrophy and Keep the Gray Matter Giggling
8 Psychological Points I Had to Unlearn and Relearn the Opposite
Based on my writing experience and observations, I documented findings and strategies that might help you amplify your voice, engage your audience, and achieve your desired outcomes in your writing journey.
I publish my lifestyle, health, and well-being stories on EUPHORIA. My focus is on cellular, mitochondrial, metabolic, and mental health. Here is my collection of Insightful Life Lessons from Personal Stories.
You might join my six publications on Medium as a writer by sending a request via this link. 23K writers contribute to my publications. You might find more information about my professional background.
As a writer, blogger, content developer, and reader, you might join Medium, Vocal Media, NewsBreak, Medium Writing Superstars, Writing Paychecks, WordPress, Cliqly, and Thinkers360 with my referral links. These affiliate links will not cost you extra to join the services.