Sleepless in Seattle? Or Austin, perhaps?
Life in Austin, Texas, is hectic. In a city where an “early” show starts at nine o’clock at night but work still starts bright and early, it’s easy for Austinites to find that insomnia and trouble falling asleep are as prevalent as aspiring musicians on 6th Street. So here are three big tips for sleeping better in Austin, Texas:
1. Control your Environment to Remedy Sleeplessness
Your brain wants to sleep when it’s dark, so make sure that you block out the glow of street lights in your bedroom. If you can’t do it with curtains, get a sleep mask. Also, sound can be distracting when you sleep, so consider ear plugs or a white noise generator. Finally, your brain is aware of odors while you sleep, so consider putting a little lavendar (or some other scent you like) on your pillow.
2. Stop Trying to Fall Asleep When You’re Having Trouble Sleeping
Stephen Wright, one of my favorite comedians, said that the way to get to sleep is to go all the way to tired and take a left.
The problem is that when we want to go to sleep, a lot of times other thoughts are swarming our minds like bats flying out from under the Congress Street Bridge. Then to add to the stress of thinking about things we can’t change at the moment, we start worrying about how much we need to fall asleep, thinking, “I need to sleep, but I can’t fall asleep.” As long as you keep on like that, insomnia is your bedmate.
So the trick is to make your brain take a left turn, just like Stephen Wright said. And how do you do that? Distract it with a boring, monotonous thought. It’s like white noise for your mind.
Here are a few ways to do that:
- Progressive Muscle Relaxation: Start with one end of your body. Tense it up, then relax it. Move to the next part of your body. Keep going; if you get to the end, go back the other direction. Focus all your attention on the bodily sensations.
- Autogenic Training: Similar to PMR, pick a body part and tell yourself it is warm and heavy: “My hands are warm and heavy. My hands are warm and heavy.” Do it 5-10 times and then switch to a different body part. Keep going. Before you know it, you’ll be feeling the warmth and heat, but even better you’ll notice yourself waking up the next morning, wondering how far you got.
- Deep Breathing: Breathe deeply into your abdomen, expanding your belly like a balloon. (Don’t worry; no one is watching you.) Count to five as you do it. Hold your breath for five counts. Then breathe out for five. Count to five before you breathe in again.
The trick to all these methods is to let go of all other thoughts, and to let go of the goal of falling asleep.
3. Remember that Hypnosis is Named after the God of Sleep
Hypnosis isn’t actually a form of sleep, but it turns out that a hypnosis session with a professional hypnotist in Austin, Texas, can be a natural remedy for sleeplessness.
There’s no need to bug your doctor with claims of insomnia, or to take ambien, lunesta, rozerem, sonata, silenor, or any other prescription sleeping pill.
One to three hypnosis sessions with a good hypnotist can reset your sleep habits and have you sleeping through the night, without any nasty side effects.
Stop tossing and turning, and book your session at Harmony Hypnosis now.