What is insomnia?
Insomnia is a sleep disorder in which the individual is unable to fall asleep or stay asleep for long. It leads to daytime drowsiness and fatigue along with poor concentration and performance at work or studies. It can be caused due to a number of factors like depression, anxiety or even due to certain medications. Ayurveda has some herbal medications like calamus root and brahmi that can help individuals with this condition sleep better.
Ayurvedic treatment for insomnia
The Ayurveda system believes that insomnia is caused by the aggravation of the Fire element in Pitta Dosha in the body. To treat this, it is believed that the body should be heated up using hot spices and herbs in order that the body mechanisms warm up and start functioning to begin the cooling down process of the body.
Calamus root and its products are supposed to be one of the most effective Ayurvedic herbs to treat this condition. You can take a small spoon of the powder and consume it about three times a day with warm milk or even water. Alternatively, you can take this powder mixed with Brahmi (Hydrocotyl asiatica or Gotu kola) and Amla (Emblica officinalis). This is the shirodhara technique and is equally effective.
Along with this, you can also follow some tips that can help you get a better quantity and quality of sleep and treat insomnia.
- Have a routine where you sleep and get up at approximately the same time everyday as this helps the body clock to adjust to sleep and wake patterns. Also, try and sleep and wake up early as this confirms to the natural body clock.
- Try to have an exercise routine early in the morning as this help refresh you for the whole day.
- You can have hand and foot massage with a light oil like sweet almond mixed with a few drops of an essential oil like lavender oil just before going to bed. This improves sleep.
- Try and have a light dinner that is not very hot or spicy as this can disrupt sleep and you may keep waking up time and again through the night.
These tips, if followed regularly, along with taking the herbal medications, can help in sleeping better and cure insomnia.
