Homeopathic Remedies for Insomnia

We all need different amounts of sleep to feel refreshed. At different times in our lives we may need more or less sleep. Ask anyone about their sleep and you will learn we all experience sleep problems at some point in our lives. It is one of the first things which may be impacted by changes in our health and environment. The effects of lack of sleep can be felt very quickly. Thankfully, homeopathic remedies can help you re-establish a good sleep pattern, naturally and gently.

How we feel on waking and our sleep pattern is an indicator of general health and well-being. If you have had homeopathic treatment you will know a homeopath is always interested in sleep patterns and how well (or not) you sleep.

Stress and our Sleep Patterns
During times of particularly intense stress and anxiety your sleep patterns can change. A cycle of worry, stress and anxiety can lead to sleep issues as our minds are so full of thoughts and worries. This can impact on our ability to think clearly creating further anxiety and exacerbating our ability to get a good night’s sleep. The times when we need regular, deep rejuvenating sleep the most is often when it is most difficult to achieve.

When we are living with high anxiety levels our circadian rhythm (our wake/sleep cycle) can be disturbed due to changes in our stress responses. When we are stressed our body produces stress hormones (adrenaline and cortisol) at higher levels for longer periods of time. This signals to the body we are living in “alert” mode – we are primed and ready for action (whatever that maybe). We are not able to relax as easily.

Help is Out There
Homeopathic remedies can help you re-establish a regular sleep pattern with no side effects.

What Are Your Sleep Symptoms?
You may experience difficulty falling asleep, frequent waking, early waking or at the other end of the spectrum of extreme tiredness, never feeling like you have had enough sleep and needing frequent naps.
There could be many reasons for changes in your sleep pattern and it’s always worth exploring what else might be going on for these changes to have come about.

Lack of sleep over a long period of time can lead to more complex health issues. Sleep is a time when our body – and mind – rejuvenates, repairs and re-sets. This is sleep during the night, when it’s dark.

Poor sleep can lead to:
• Mood swings
• Difficulty concentrating
• Inability to make decisions
• Poor digestion
• Recovery from long term illness may take longer

Possible Triggers
• Sleep patterns can be disturbed by many things such as external influences, pre-existing health conditions, and our state of mind. Others include:
• Stress and anxiety
• Intense emotions – excitement, grief
• Excessive drinking or eating particular foods
• Eating too late at night
• Medications
• Issues with bladder control
• Hormonal changes – PMT, perimenopause and menopause
• Health issues such as thyroid problems, eczema, asthma
• Changes in digestive function

Homeopathy Can Help You Re-establish Healthy Sleep Patterns
It is important to get to the bottom of why you are having sleep problems. Symptoms don’t just happen in isolation. Exploring when the poor sleep patterns started can help to identify what might be going on. If you start to have difficulty sleeping during a time of particular stress and worry addressing the reason for the worry is getting to the route of the problem. You are addressing the reason for the sleep problems rather than just removing the symptoms.

Here Are Some of the More Common Remedies for Sleep Disturbances
If you are experiencing sleep problems these remedies are a great starting point. If these remedies don’t match your symptoms that doesn’t mean homeopathy isn’t going to help you. There are hundreds of remedies which can help with sleep problems.

Arsenicum
Night waking with anxiety. Worrying about all that has not been completed and jobs that need to be done. Lots of physical and emotional restlessness, will get out of bed, pace about worrying, make tea. Typical time waking 12 – 1am. May feel drowsy by day and wakeful during the night.

Avena Sativa
Insomnia with irritability due to overwhelming feelings of restlessness. Nervous exhaustion. Lack of focus, worry about upcoming tasks. Soothes the nervous system. Inability to fall asleep as a result of too much alcohol.

Coffea
Insomnia from excitability and overactive thoughts. Hypersensitivity to noise especially at night when trying to get to sleep – this becomes particularly distressing. Maybe twitchy and shake.
Lots of yawning and stretching during the day. Swings between totally wired/hyper and exhaustion. If you have ever drunk too much coffee you will know what the Coffee remedy picture feels like!

Cocculus
Insomnia and restless sleep. Particularly useful for those working shift patterns, night working and awake at night caring for those who are sick. General exhaustion, restlessness, confusion and dizziness. Exhaustion yet unable to sleep.

Nux Vomica
Insomnia. Difficulty switching off mentally and physically at bedtime. There may be a growing reliance on alcohol or sleeping pills in order to sleep. Sleep will be light, restless and easily broken throughout the entire night. Deep sleep may finally come in the early hours of the morning. A noted need for day time naps which are reviving. Start with 1 dose of 30c potency when you start to notice symptoms coming on. Repeat the dose if your symptoms start to return.

For Further Reading:
• Lybrate.com's article, "10 Best Homeopathic Medicines for Insomnia (Sleeplessness) Problem" can be read at: https://www.lybrate.com/topic/insomnia-10-homeopathic-remedies-that-will-help-you/4a3fe6bc7a47519b11eaf765d7b9be54
• "Homeopathic Treatment of Insomnia", an article published by the Naturopathic Doctor News and Review (NDNR), is available at: https://ndnr.com/mindbody/homeopathic-treatment-of-insomnia/
• Kaiser Permanente's article, "Sleeplessness (Homeopathy)- Remedy Options" is at: https://wa.kaiserpermanente.org/kbase/topic.jhtml?docId=hn-2258008