Medication or Meditation for insomnia?

[Ysabelle]

Medication or Meditation???

Sometimes, some people who are having trouble sleeping will try to do all possible things to have a better, deeper and peaceful sleep. And the first thing that was on their mind is to take sleeping pills before bedtime which sometimes will help them or sometimes it won't. And it feels so exhausted to take tons of medication just to fall asleep.

Tips: Always try a different solution to solve your health problems. Natural remedies are the best options. 

And according to other people and some research, Meditation while listening to sleep easy guided meditation 30 mins before bedtime is the best solution in insomnia. Try this and it might work for you too. 

Moderators edit: links to sales products removed.

[Anton_Pierre]

@Ysabelle A dog is tired when it runs in the park, humans aren't any different. 

[iTommy]

@Ysabelle

I agree that natural solutions are preferred, such as meditation, diet, excercise etc. I do both (meditation & medication), since meditation alone doesn't do it for me when it comes to sleep. Maybe I can sleep well without those pills some day.

I used to listen to guided sleep meditations besides sitting in silence, those were helpful too. 

[isabel]

5 hours ago, Anton_Pierre said:

@Ysabelle A dog is tired when it runs in the park, humans aren't any different. 

that's so true for me, I used to think exercise didn't work because I was just going on little 30 minute walks but if I go on a long 2 hour walk up and down hills then I sleep

[BMKemp]

problem with that though is that you will end up requiring 6 hour walks to get tired soon.

[Ry4n]

"Say goodnight to insomnia" by Gregg D Jacobs is a reaalllly good book on insomnia centred around Cognitive Behavioural Therapy techniques highly highly highly recommend it

Yoga nidra is also a really nice meditation practice for sleep 

[Karla]

And remove caffeine... I don't known if this is a real person/ question since a product link was removed but my two cents is YES exercise daily, get on a regular sleep schedule and reduce or eliminate caffeine. Also not eating 5-6 hours before bed has been excellent for me in increasing sleep quality. Something to try before you knock it...

[SgtPepper]

If someone is truly having difficulties then there is something up in their body. 

I'd try removing caffeine, adding exercise, increasing peace of mind with meditation, and I would look at the diet. 

Diet wise remove sugar and processed foods. So eat meats, eggs, vegetables, seeds, and nuts pretty much. 

I love coffee and occasionally eat processed foods, consume too much sugar, but when I DO eat clean, I feel clean and I have very good stable energy throughout the day and I am able to relax when I get into bed.

[Chi_]

Have you heard of the Isha Foundation? 

Their Inner Engineering program has had phenomenal results in treating Insomnia with about 90% success rate. It is a 21 minute daily practice which you can learn. The programme is a 4 day retreat available in almost every major country 

Check it out here. Feel free to ask any questions 

https://www.innerengineering.com/ieo-new/total/

Edited June 4, 2019 by Chi_

[Bill W]

1 hour ago, Chi_ said:

Have you heard of the Isha Foundation? 

Their Inner Engineering program has had phenomenal results in treating Insomnia with about 90% success rate. It is a 21 minute daily practice which you can learn. The programme is a 4 day retreat available in almost every major country 

Check it out here. Feel free to ask any questions 

https://www.innerengineering.com/ieo-new/total/

Thanks for this.

[Chi_]

On 6/5/2019 at 0:41 AM, Bill W said:

Thanks for this.

Cheers. Are you planning to try it? 

[kag101]

Natural remedies are overrated, imo.

There are some great medication for insomnia. They are very safe, and have little to no side effect. 

 

Edited June 6, 2019 by kag101

[Michael569]

15 hours ago, kag101 said:

Natural remedies are overrated, imo.

There are some great medication for insomnia. They are very safe, and have little to no side effect. 

Not really true. Sleeping medication are sedatives, they do not induce REM sleep, they sedate your brain same as alcohol does leaving you even more exhausted and making you completely dependant on them. People get addicted to these things and coming off them is hell. There is evidence pointing towards depression and even cancer potentially linked to these things. There is a LOT of side effects and very little benefits. 

[kag101]

4 hours ago, Michael569 said:

Not really true. Sleeping medication are sedatives, they do not induce REM sleep, they sedate your brain same as alcohol does leaving you even more exhausted and making you completely dependant on them. People get addicted to these things and coming off them is hell. There is evidence pointing towards depression and even cancer potentially linked to these things. There is a LOT of side effects and very little benefits. 

I mean, I am not talking about ALL sleeping medication. Sure, some of them are very dangerous. 

I used to be very critic about taking medication to help me fall asleep. I thought they were all too potent, would cause me to be dependent on them, and would cause many side effects. 

As a rule of thumb, bad sleep = bad mental health.

About a month ago, my psychiatrist prescribed me a new medication. And, boy oh boy, I have been getting an amazing night of sleep! To be honest, it's mind-blowing. For the first time in ages, I wake up feeling well-rested and refreshed. Never had I thought I had poor sleep quality.

The best part is that it is a very safe medication. Its main side effect is sleepiness, which is actually a good thing in my case. Hehe... 

Ever since I started taking it, I go into deep sleep every night. This is something that hadn't happened ever since my early teens. So it's as if I die every night, and I am reborn in the morning. 

Oh, and I have been having lots of vivid and meaningful dreams. There are other cognitive benefits, but it's off-topic. 

[Michael569]

@kag101

2 hours ago, kag101 said:

About a month ago, my psychiatrist prescribed me a new medication. And, boy oh boy, I have been getting an amazing night of sleep! To be honest, it's mind-blowing. For the first time in ages, I wake up feeling well-rested and refreshed. Never had I thought I had poor sleep quality.

The best part is that it is a very safe medication. Its main side effect is sleepiness, which is actually a good thing in my case. Hehe... 

There is at least 3 red flags in what you wrote but I am not going to argue any further. I do wish you all the best and hope you will find what you seek. 

 

[SgtPepper]

yeah... 

I will also echo that, it's not natural remedies that are overrated, it's Pharma prescribed medication that is overrated.

Sleeping is a natural process, if you need drugs to get to sleep, there is something deeper going on and it should be paid attention to.

[kag101]

9 hours ago, Michael569 said:

There is at least 3 red flags in what you wrote but I am not going to argue any further.

Can you specify the 3 red flags, please?  

9 hours ago, Michael569 said:

I do wish you all the best and hope you will find what you seek. 

I already found  

I have come to the terms that, at least for now, I need psychiatric medication. And there's nothing to be ashamed of.

8 hours ago, SgtPepper said:

it's not natural remedies that are overrated

A lot of natural remedies do not work, and many of them cause bad side effects as well. 

8 hours ago, SgtPepper said:

Pharma prescribed medication that is overrated.

Can you offer any evidence whatsoever to your claim? Stop being so close-minded! There is a huge variety of medication. 

8 hours ago, SgtPepper said:

Sleeping is a natural process, if you need drugs to get to sleep, there is something deeper going on and it should be paid attention to.

 

A lot of spiritual people automatically demonize the whole pharmaceutical industry. Sure, it does have a dark side, but it is a necessary evil. For instance, four years ago, I was a hardcore spiritual seeker, and I had gone way too deep into the rabbit hole. If it weren't for psychiatric medication, I would have gone insane.

But anyway, I think some of you folks are too closed-minded. Why don't you guys accept that I am using an antidepressant "drug" that is making me have a good night of sleep? I had terrible sleep for about 8 or 9 years due to depression, and now I am finally able to rest. This is not something to be criticized! It is something to be celebrated!

Edited June 8, 2019 by kag101

[bobbyward]

@kag101 what medication is it that is helping you to sleep?

[daniel695]

i heard in conversation with god that you can know someones consciousness by how much sleep they need. what do you guys think of this!?

[XYZ]

I've been megadosing on liquid melatonin, along with a hemp CBD oil capsule and ashwagandha supplement. As a chronic undersleeper this seems to work pretty well. If ever I don't sleep enough and have time for a nap, I take it again and get some more deep sleep.

Also found clever ways of manipulating my sleep environment, like positioning a large fan to blow cool air over my face and upper body, using blackout curtains, blocking out any gaps by the windows, turning on static to mask noises that would wake me up, and foam ear plugs to muffle the static and fan noise to ambient level for sleeping.

7 hours ago, daniel695 said:

i heard in conversation with god that you can know someones consciousness by how much sleep they need. what do you guys think of this!?

You mean the more conscious someone is, they need less or more sleep?