Living & Coping with Insomnia

Just as sleep disorders themselves will vary from person to person, so too will coping mechanisms of insomnia. Some people may find it easier to find time during the day to take longer naps, if their lifestyle allows this. Others may find that quiet activities during the night, such as reading, will help them relax again ready to try sleeping. As with discovering the sleep disorder itself, living and coping with insomnia will be very trial and error. However, with the support of family, friends and doctors, there is no reason why insomnia should affect your life and stop you living it to the full.

The first step is to diagnose your sleep disorder to see if it is insomnia.  This is essential, as a wrong diagnosis or presumption could lead to you trying the wrong methods and furthering the problem through stressful failures to cure it. It is important that you try to alter certain aspects of your sleeping pattern to see if any of these aid your sleep (read Factors Affecting Sleeping Patterns) If, having tried these methods, the problem still persists, it may be time to start making a sleep diary to analyse how much sleep you are getting on a nightly basis and assess what degree your sleeping disorder is at.


Once you have your diagnosis and feel happy with it, you may then find the right treatment for you. Again, everyone will differ in their preferences; some may want to try more natural approaches such as meditation, herbal medicines, aromatherapy and so on.

Many people will find that the ‘not knowing’ part of their sleep disorder, e.g. the not knowing which sleep disorder they are suffering from or not knowing how to cure it, is the most agitating part and causes a lot of the stress and anxiety associated with sleep disorders. Once you have received a diagnosis and a list of possibilities to try, you may find that time in itself is a healer, and the right treatment will be discovered. Remember – patience is needed to beat sleep disorders as most will not have one simple solution. It is a matter of finding the right solution for you and obtaining the right support from various people.

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