Fighting Insomnia and Fatigue
You probably know that insomnia is a catch-all word for not being able to sleep. But it also includes the inability to fall asleep easily, waking up during the night, sleeping restlessly, waking up too early and having your sleep disturbed by dreams.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the body and mind (also known as Shen) are intertwined, and the quality of sleep depends on your state of mind, which is said to be “rooted in the heart.”
Think of the mind as a balloon filled with helium. If the balloon is tied down well, it will stay in one place—it’s rooted. But if the balloon isn’t tied down, it will float away and isn’t rooted. Just like that balloon, if your mind isn’t properly rooted to the heart, you end up waking up in the middle of the night. Sometimes you’ll be able to just quietly lie there; other times you’re full of thoughts. That’s because stress, negative emotions and disharmonies of your internal organs all affect the mind, which in turn affects sleep.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, every organ is said to have a “spirit” or “soul,” as well. This isn’t a religious belief, but addresses the emotions associated with each organ and their susceptibility to injury from an excess of emotions.
Let’s use the liver as an example: It’s often implicated in sleep disorders, such as sleepwalking, sleep talking and restless sleep. The “spirit” of the liver is called the Hun, which controls dreaming. Sleep-disturbed sleep is often due to a disharmony of the Hun—when the Hun is well-rooted in the liver (think of the balloon again), you have peaceful, dreamless sleep. When the Hun “wanders,” you have restless sleep with tiring dreams. Normal dreams don’t cause restless sleep (nightmares), disturb the mind in the morning or leave you feeling tired. Worrying, overexertion and excessive thinking affect the liver and other organs, resulting in poor sleep.
Happily, insomnia responds well to acupuncture! Here are a few other things you can do at home if you’re having trouble sleeping for more than a couple of nights.
Get out of bed if you can’t fall asleep within an hour. Bed should be associated with sleep.
Avoid electronic devices, TVs and other screens, which wake up your brain.
Find a cozy, dimly lit area, choose a good book and read for half an hour to an hour.
Drink chamomile tea or warm milk, or take a bath.
Finally, it’s important to lower your body temperature when you’re ready to try to sleep again. So turn down the thermostat a few degrees before climbing back into bed. If you find you still can’t sleep, it is time to give me a call.