Can’t sleep at night? Here are five ways you can tackle insomnia

General inability to fall asleep or get enough of it might herald serious physical and emotional problems that can immensely take a toll on anyone affected — whether old or young.

More debilitating is a form of the disorder that leaves its sufferers feeling exhausted and groggy with bloodshot eyes after a seemingly strenuous and forcibly initiated night sleep.

While moderate-to-severe stress has mostly been linked to the disorder, a plethora of other risk factors including dietary and medical issues can also play significant roles — demanding that the appropriate curative approach is adopted.

Here are five things you can do to tackle insomnia.

Rethink your sleep schedule

Irregular sleep schedules — some barely adequate; others insufficient — could relatively unsettle the body’s circadian rhythm, a physiological cycle that marks the distinction between wakefulness and drowsiness on a 24-hour continuum.

Inculcating a sleep schedule allows your body’s internal clock to regulate itself by waking at a fixed time and stimulating sleep in the same manner at dusk without much effort on your part.

Seek therapy

While many readily think sleep deprivation is a manageable disorder that rarely demands the advisory services of therapists or other medical professionals, it is counterintuitive to let such cases worsen without consulting experts.

A trip to the doctor could avail you ample doses of prescription drugs to consume especially for those who have suffered repeated episodes of anxiety and depression-related sleeplessness.

Dietary adjustments

Episodes of insomnia, whether short-lived or otherwise, could be followed by serious headaches, restlessness, and general inability to focus on tasks. Tackling it might, hence, demand that you discover your own risk factors.

Poor dietary habits don’t help. So you might want to put off caffeine and alcohol consumption seven hours before bedtime and indulge in a balanced diet low in saturated fats and added sugars.

Spatial modifications

Ridding yourself of what has repeatedly caused you insomnia might demand no more than spatial adjustments to your sleep environment. Where you sleep has a big impact on how well you sleep.

Perhaps you have a reading table or computer close to your bed where they’re handy. You might want to make changes, whether related to lighting; temperature; or arrangement, to allow for an actual room — not an extension of your office or study.

Other lifestyle adjustments 

If your own insomnia is spun from anxiety or stress-related triggers, then you might want to try addressing this by ensuring you devise proper planning strategies that help manage and prioritize tasks to be executed before their due date.

Regular physical exercise may also help you sleep better and tackle insomnia as many years of research have shown that daily physical activities decrease stress and lessen anxiety — precisely the psychophysiological state needed for sound sleep.