Somnologist Naboka: advised not to force yourself to fall asleep if you have insomnia
If you have insomnia, you shouldn’t force yourself to fall asleep, says consultant somnologist, expert on chronotypes and healthy sleep Alena Naboka. In a conversation with Lenta.ru, she named effective ways to combat the problem.
The degree of insomnia depends on the duration of the sleep problems
According to the specialist, there are several types of insomnia, which need to be dealt with in different ways.
“If your insomnia lasts less than three months, then it is acute insomnia. Usually it goes away on its own as soon as the stress factor that provoked insomnia is eliminated. It is believed that no matter how much stress a person experiences, more than three months cannot pass without the body still reacting to this stress. Acute insomnia must be dealt with quickly and immediately so that it does not become chronic. To do this, you need to deal with stress and turn to specialists, use psychotherapy, contact a somnologist who can prescribe medications to combat acute insomnia,” she explained.
If your insomnia lasts more than three months, then it is chronic insomnia.
To prevent chronic insomnia, it is necessary to follow the rules of sleep hygiene, the specialist noted. To do this, you need to sleep enough to feel rested the next day, get up at the same time, do regular exercise no later than three hours before bed, and protect the bedroom from excess light and sound.
“Eat regularly and don’t go to bed hungry. Avoid excess liquids in the evening. Avoid products containing caffeine completely. Avoid alcohol, especially in the evening. Smoking can disrupt sleep. Don’t go to bed with your difficulties. Take some time in the evening to resolve your worries or plan your activities for the next day. Don’t try to sleep. This will only make it worse. Instead, leave the bedroom and do something else, like reading a book. Return to bed only when you feel sleepy. Place the clock under the bed or turn it so you can’t see what time it shows. Try not to sleep during the day. Staying awake during the day helps you fall asleep at night,” she advised.
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Waking up at night for up to 30 minutes should not be considered a problem
According to the specialist, frequent waking up at night is not dangerous if the total duration of such awakenings per night does not exceed 30 minutes.
“It is physiological for us to wake up in the middle of sleep, since our sleep consists of cycles, of which there are usually four to six per night. But if after waking up in the middle of sleep you have difficulty falling asleep, then this is insomnia. And it needs to be dealt with in the ways described above,” she noted.
To fall asleep quickly you need to be moderately tired
The somnologist noted that in order to fall asleep quickly, it is necessary to accumulate a sufficient need for this during the day.
“By the time you fall asleep, there should be sufficient sleep pressure. A person does not know how to fall asleep by willpower. You need to think about falling asleep in five minutes at night in the morning. Because you can force yourself to wake up. For example, using an alarm clock. But falling asleep – no. Falling asleep in five minutes is the norm,” she added.
If you cannot fall asleep for a long time, if falling asleep lasts more than 30 minutes, and there is dissatisfaction with the quality of sleep, and such cases occur more than three times a week, then this is insomnia. Insomnia must be treated using the methods described above
Earlier, the doctor spoke about the best sleeping position.
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