Linda Flanigan Hypnotherapy

Many are finding they’re having trouble sleeping when it’s never been an issue before, others are finding that it’s exacerbating existing problems.  It’s different for each person.     Perhaps you are experiencing some of the following:

• Having trouble getting to sleep
• Staying awake longer than usual
• Waking up several times during the night
• Not being able to get back to sleep once awakened
• Having more vivid or emotional dreams
• Feeling exhausted in the morning
• Having trouble performing or focusing
• Feeling frustrated or short-tempered

If you use good sleep hygiene methods you will get a better night’s sleep.   Here are some hints and tips:

Introduce helpful habits

We are not designed to sit indoors in front of a computer all day or be inactive or be bombarded with artificial light.    We are designed to get plenty of natural light and exercise, eat healthily and slowly let our minds rest and our bodies tire as we move towards sundown.

Build some good habits into your day– get more daylight and fresh air, try to work near natural light, get your body moving, eat earlier and avoid sugar in the evenings, cut down on alcohol, and then sleep at around the same time each night.  Train your body to recognise when it is time to sleep.

Let your body know you’re ready for bed.

Wind down by watching, listening to or reading  something fun or uplifting before you think about going to bed.    Avoid caffeine, mobile phones, computers and late night exercise before you even begin to prepare for bed – your brain wants to calm down not be fully alert and active.  Get a wind down routine going at least an hour before bedtime.

Learn to switch off

It’s important to calm our bodies physically and mentally before getting ready for bed.     Do it in a way you enjoy.   Have a long hot bath (that also works to aid sleep as it reduces core body temperature when you get out – beneficial for sleeping); do some meditation;  focus on your breathing and breathe deeply;  listen to some calming music; write down anything that you need to do the next day so that you can then let go of it before you sleep.

Make your bedroom comfortable

Keep your bedroom as clear of clutter and work as you can.   Keep it as a haven of comfort.   Have a look around and see what you can clean or unclutter.   Sometimes just changing things around can make a big difference.    And pay attention to the temperature in your room – research shows that we fall asleep a lot quicker if we’re in a cool room.

Learn not to battle to get to sleep

Don’t watch the clock all night – turn it away from you.   Instead of putting your focus on not being able to sleep, focus on how good it is to be simply resting:  enjoy the feel of the comfy covers, your head resting on the pillow;  take yourself off in your mind to a nice, relaxing time, a time when it felt good to be relaxing;  or think back to a time when you were supposed to be awake and focusing on something but you couldn’t help closing your eyes and dozing off.    Put the focus on the positive: tell yourself  “I choose to sleep” or “I’m enjoying resting peacefully”

If you can’t sleep after a while get up and do something (not too mentally taxing or stimulating).

Many sleep issues can be helped with Hypnosis.

If you are having problems with sleep and other treatments are not working, then hypnosis may be able to help you sleep well again.    Hypnotherapy uses different methods to help with relaxation such as symptom control, focused attention and guided imagery.

It is a perfectly natural treatment without any side effects unlike sleep medication so can be very useful for those who prefer not to take sleeping pills.

Hypnosis can bring relief to the endless tossing and turning in bed – lessening the worry, stress and anxiety that sleeplessness brings – and return the deep, soothing and healthy sleep that we all require .

Get in touch and let me know how you got on with the audio recording.   You can email me by clicking here.