Girls, please steer clear of sleep inducing otc drugs. Don’t pour these chemicals in your body. Most of the synthetic chemicals that are manufactured in plants and factories have never been tested for long-term use on humans. All of them have side effects that are more troublesome than the actual problem. Plus, they are habit forming, i.e. you’ll have to take more and more of it to have the same effect.
First and foremost are the lifestyle changes, there is no magic pill to resolve health issues. Morning exercise helps sleep better at night. Avoid eating too close to your bedtime. Shut-off or remove all stimulants ( I have switched from cordless fone to the one with the wire and from wireless router to wired router, believe me it does smake a huge difference. I dont know why other people dont feel it, I just have a hardtime focusing with all those wireless devices spitting radiations all around and through me). Keep your room spacious and uncluttered. Open windows once in a while to bring in fresh air. Few drops of lavender and/or rose pure essential oil (stress on pure) on pillows and bedcovers also has a soothing and calming effect. You can also add few drops of lavender essential oil in clay burner, to infuse the air of your room with aromatic constituents of lavender. I said few drops because less is more when it comes to essential oils. Drinking warm milk before bed also helps in better sleep. Milk has a an amino acid tryptophan, which is a precursor for hormone serotonin. The job of serotonin is to keep us calm, happy, it plays a part in bringing on natural deep sleep. More often than not, depressed and sleep less people have found to be serotonin deficient.
One natural alternative treatment for insomnia is Valeria root. Each herb has several features that make them useful for many different ailments. However, this herb has been dedicated for only one use- Insomnia. You can take it as glycerite (extracted with glycerin), or tincture (extracted with alcohol or vinegar) or capsule form (minus the unnecessary chemicals) or hot infusion (tea). My favorite way to take any herb is the hot infusion. Glycerites, tinctures, capsules are also very easy and fun to make, but tea is the simplest of all. I like simple.
This is how you make valerian root tea. Bring water up to boiling point, but don’t boil it. Take it off the stove and add 1 tsp of dried valerian root herb and immediately cover the lid. The essential oils of all herbs are highly volatile, all they want to do is escape into the air given a slightest chance, hence the lid. Steep for 10-15 minutes. You can add sweetener after steeping, because sometimes the sweetener blocks the herb from infusing into the hot water. Raw honey is the best of all sweeteners; it also has mild sedative properties.
On a related note, always use best quality, organic herbs, don’t settle for anything less. There are many stores online that sell in bulk organic, non GMO, hand – harvested and pure herbs, spices, carrier oils, essential oils, bees wax, aloevera gel, glycerites, herbal salves, oil infusions, cocoa butter, etc. I will tell you two of my favorite stores, I have never been disappointed with any products I have ordered so far. They are also very reasonably priced. And don’t get me wrong, I have no affiliation with the companies, just a satisfied customer
http://www.mountainroseherbs.com
http://www.dandelionbotanical.com/
One last thing, don’t mix herbs with any otc or prescribed drugs. They can interact and can result in unpleasant sideeffects. If you feel any type of allergic reaction after use of any herb or herbal product, discontinue the use. Don’t exceed more than two cups of this particular tea in 24 hours. Lastly, dont experiment with herbs or herbal products if you are pregnant or nursing. There are only 4 or 5 herbs that are deemed safe and efficient for pregnant women.