The difficulty falling asleep or awakening in the middle of sleep and being unable to fall back to sleep, is known as insomnia.

Types of Insomnia

• Transient Insomnia
• Acute Insomnia
• Chronic Insomnia

It is very common. Excessive fatigue, anxiety, pain or discomfort anywhere in the body, fever, indigestion, is the common causes of sleeplessness. Persistent insomnia may lead to the development of a psychosis.

Types of Insomnia

Three different types of insomnia exist: transient, acute, and chronic

• Transient Insomnia lasts from one night to a few weeks but it seems longer. Most people occasionally suffer from transient insomnia due to such causes as jet lag or short-term anxiety. If this form of insomnia continues to occur from time to time, the insomnia is classified as intermittent.
• Acute Insomnia is the inability to consistently sleep well for a period of between three weeks to six months.
• Chronic Insomnia is regarded as the most serious; persists almost nightly for at least a month.

Symptoms of insomnia

Symptoms of insomnia can be different for each individual, and people with insomnia might experience a variety of symptoms, such as:

* Difficulty falling asleep, which can mean lying in bed for up to an hour or more, perhaps tossing and turning, wishing for sleep to begin.

* Awakening during sleep and having trouble getting back to sleep.

* Awakening too early in the morning.

* Feeling unrefreshed upon awakening.

* Daytime irritability, drowsiness, anxiety, and/or nonproductiveness.

Causes for Insomnia

• In encephalitis lethargic a (brain disease), sleeplessness continues for several.
• In uremia and high blood pressure, sleeplessness occurs.
• Overeating, hunger, coffee, tea and other cerebral stimulants.
• Weather change.
• Worry, anxiety, fear, mental depression.

Treatment for Insomnia

In many cases, insomnia is caused by another disease or psychological problem. In this case, medical or psychological help may be useful. All sedative drugs have the potential of causing psychological dependence where the individual can’t psychologically accept that they can sleep without drugs. Certain classes of sedatives such as benzodiazepines and newer non-benzodiazepine drugs can also cause physical dependence which manifests in withdrawal symptoms if the drug is not carefully titrated down.

Alternative approach to Insomnia

There are a number of alternative cures for this disorder that are currently marketed. Often, a combination of dietary and lifestyle changes is claimed to be the most helpful approach.

Traditional Chinese medicine has included treatment for insomnia throughout its history. A typical approach may utilize acupuncture, dietary and lifestyle analysis, herbology and other techniques, with the goal of resolving the problem at a subtle level. Although these methods have not been scientifically proven, some insomniacs report that these remedies are sufficient to break the insomnia cycle without the need for sedatives and sleeping tablets.

In the Buddhist tradition, people suffering from insomnia or nightmares may be advised to meditate on “loving-kindness”, or metta. This practice of generating a feeling of love and goodwill is claimed to have a soothing and calming effect on the mind and body. This is claimed to stem partly from the creation of relaxing positive thoughts and feelings, and partly from the pacification of negative ones. In the Mettā Sutta, Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, tells the gathered monks that easeful sleep is one benefit of this form of meditation.

Treatment without Medication

• The following methods can help alleviate sleeplessness:
• Develop a regular sleeping schedule. Avoid daytime naps and stimulating activities just before bedtime.
• Avoid stimulating drugs, such as caffeine and nicotine, particularly before going to bed.
• Exercise during the day (but not in the late evening).
• Avoid alcohol- it is a leading cause of poor sleep.
• Drink a cup of warm milk.
• Mask background noise in the bedroom throughout the night.
• Try using a sleep mask and ear plugs at night.
• Take medications that may be stimulating long before bedtime.

Yoga (cure) Treatment for Insomnia

Yoga benefit your sleep in various ways. Asanas, pranayama, yognidra are the helpful tools in your efforts to re-establish a restful night’s sleep.

Yoga Benefits for Insomnia

Yoga has beneficial effects on nervous system, and the brain. Certain yoga asanas increases the blood supply to the steep center in the brain, it normalizes the steep cycle.

Yoga will make you fall asleep sooner and improve the quality of your sleep so that you need less. You will have a more restful sleep because of the relaxing aspect of yoga and the subsequent relieving of stress, tension and fatigue. The practice of breathing allows for more oxygen in the body providing clarity in the mind.

Therapeutics Yoganidra

YogaNidra is a state of conscious Deep Sleep. YogaNidra brings an incredible calmness, quietness and clarity. Yoga nidra is of great help to insomniacs it relaxes the tensions that accumulate in the muscles, the emotions and the mind, allowing the practitioner to rest deeply. Daily practice leads to a deeper and more restful night’s sleep. It has great Therapeutics values.

• Guided Inner Body Meditation_Eng.mp3
• Guided Yoganidra Meditation English.mp3
• Guided Yoganidra Meditation Hindi.mp3

Research yoga and Insomnia

Kindly find following research papers in category Research

Yoga as therapy in psychosomatic medicine.

Psychophysiological correlates of the practice of Tantric Yoga meditation.

An introduction to Kundalini yoga meditation techniques that are specific for the treatment of psychiatric disorders.

The integrated approach of yoga: a therapeutic tool for mentally retarded children: a one-year controlled study.