Do you want to get to your bed at night and just fall into the embrace of a refreshing sleep?

Is it a pounding headache trying keep your noeyes short or are you a night guard in your room waiting for sleep to pay you a visit?

There are different types of sleep disorder but we will be looking at Insomnia.

Insomnia is when you are finding it difficult to fall asleep, stay asleep, or when your sleep is not adequate or not refreshing.A lot of people depends on drugs to even be able to keep their eyes close.

Individual requirements for sleep varies widely and this can be from 4 – 10 hours.

How long you sleep and how rested you feel after waking up depends on

1. Emotional state of mind like excitement       or depression

2. Age

3. Diet

4. Drugs

5. Some food components like caffeine, Monosodium glutamate (MSG), strong spices.

Difficulty falling and staying asleep and waking up earlier than desired are common among young and old. About 10% of adults have long-standing (chronic) insomnia, and about 30 to 50% sometimes have insomnia.

Types of Sleeping disorder

Acute insomnia

A shor period of difficulty sleeping. This is usually caused by a life event, such as a stressful change in a person’s job, receiving bad news, or travel. Often it resolves without any treatment.

Chronic insomnia

A long-term pattern of difficulty sleeping. Insomnia is usually considered chronic if a person has trouble falling asleep or staying asleep at least three nights per week for three months or longer. Some people with chronic insomnia have a long-standing history of difficulty sleeping and it has many causes.

Comorbid insomnia

Insomnia that occurs with another condition. Psychiatric symptoms — such as anxiety and depression — are known to be associated with changes in sleep. Certain medical conditions can either cause insomnia or make a person uncomfortable at night (as in the case of arthritis or back pain, which may make it hard to sleep.

Onset insomnia

Difficulty falling asleep at the beginning of the night. It often occurs when people cannot let their mind relax and they continue to think and worry. Sometimes the body is not ready for sleep at what is considered a usual time for sleep.

That is, the body’s internal clock is out of sync with the earth’s cycle of light and dark—as can occur with many types of circadian rhythm sleep disorders, such as delayed sleep phase disorder, shift work disorder, and jet lag.

Maintenance insomnia

The inability to stay asleep. People with maintenance insomnia wake up during the night and have difficulty returning to sleep. People with this type of insomnia fall asleep normally but wake up several hours later and cannot fall asleep again easily. Sometimes they drift in and out of a restless, unsatisfactory sleep.

Sleep maintenance insomnia is more common among older people, who are more likely to have difficulty staying asleep than are younger people. It may occur in people who use certain substances (such as caffeine, alcohol, or tobacco) or who take certain drugs and in people who have certain sleep disorders (such as sleep apnea or periodic limb movement disorder). This type of insomnia may be a sign of depression in people of any age.

Symptoms

Not having a good night sleep regularly can really give you some challenges such as

1. Hypertension
2. Lack of concentration
3. Become easily irritated
4. Fatigue during the day

Causes

1. Anxiety
2. Nervousness
3. Use or withdrawal of drugs
4. Depression
5. Large quantity of alcohol
6. Fear
7. Hypertension
8. Change of environment
9. Worry
10. Poor sleeping habit
11. lack of exercise 

Home Remedies for Insomnia.

Your health care provider will most likely recommend medications if you complain of difficulty in having sound sleep.

There are some herbs that will do the same job with the benefit of no horrible side effects or the danger of you becoming a drug addict.

There are some herbs that can give you the refreshing sleep you really desire.

1. Bitter leaves

Bitter leaves (Vernonia amydalina) Onugbu (Igbo), Ewuro (Yoruba), Shivaka (Hausa).
According to its name, it is a very bitter plant, every part of the plant is bitter. It is best taken fresh as boiling or cooking reduces its potency.

Squeeze or blend the leaves, extract the water and take at night. You will sleep soundly.

2. Kola leaves

Kola Cola acuminata, Oji (Igbo), Obi (Yoruba), Goro ( Hausa)
Squeeze or blend the leaves in water, take a glass every night.

3. Lemon leaves

Lemon leaves

Citrus limon
Soak 5 to 7 leaves in a cup of hot water for 15 minutes. Take 1 cup two times daily

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4.  Onions.

Onions

Onions Allium cepa, Yabase (Igbo), Alubosa (Yoruba),

Chew 1 bulb every night.

5. Swizzle stick

Rauwolfia vomitoria, Akanta (Igbo), Asofeyeje (Yoruba), Ukheta (Esan).

Boil the root bark in water and drink a glass at night

6. Umbrella tree leaves

Terminalia catappa, Indian almond.

Boil the leaves in water, filter and take a glass at night.

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Reference.

1. Adodo, A. (2004). Nature power. 6th ed. Lagos, Nigeria: Generation Press.

2. MSD Manual Consumer Version. (2020). Insomnia: Difficulty Falling Asleep: Sleep Disorders: Manual Home Edition – Brain, Spinal Cord, and Nerve Disorders – MSD Manual Consumer Version. [online] Available at: https://www.merckmanuals.com/home/brain,-spinal-cord,-and-nerve-disorders/sleep-disorders/insomnia-and-excessive-daytime-sleepiness-eds [Accessed 14 Jan. 2020].

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