Insomnia

Good morning blogosphere! It's been quite a loooong night for me. It seems that I was in a bout of insomnia!

Wikipedia writes that "Insomnia is a sleeping disorder characterized by persistent difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep despite the opportunity. It is typically followed by functional impairment while awake. Insomniacs have been known to complain about being unable to close their eyes or "rest their mind" for more than a few minutes at a time."
Ahhh well, technically it's not insomnia per se but I just had a hard time sleeping last night. i don't experience bouts of sleeplessness often but when I do, it's tossing and turning for me. Not to mention all those thoughts waltzing about my brain...it's enough to drive me nuts, I tell you. NUTS!
So before I lose my mind and do any deranged rantings (hehehe), I'd like to share to you what I do when I experience sleeplessness. Because this is not a disorder, I discourage taking of sleep aid medications. These medications are highly addictive and would cause you to be dependent on them.
Here are a few tips that have worked wonders for me.

1. Read a good book - or a really boring one. Reading before bed makes my eyes tired and is guaranteed to make me feel sleepy after reading a few pages or so. I do have problems with a good book, though. Sometimes I get too wrapped up in the plot that I actually forget to sleep! Which brings me to another tactic that I thought tried: reading a really boring book. Textbooks and such are bound to get you to sleep. Believe me, I know. This tactic really works wonders.
2. Drink a warm glass of milk. Some people swear that they get sleepy drinking milk. I like mine fresh (well, not that fresh) and I just warm it over a stove or a microwave if you have one. One or two glasses should do the trick.
3. Make up a story in your head. This is contrary to what the experts have said. In my readings, they have stated that if you want to sleep, you must clear your mind before doing so. Unfortunately, that doesn't work for me. I like to dream up make believe stories with me being the heroine. It's so childish, I know but it keeps me entertained and I sleep before I even get to think up and ending!
4. Watch a really boring movie. This is stupid but it still works! I was even mildly interested in viewing Schinler's List but fell asleep halfway through the movie just because I was bored. I know, this is a good movie but it really bored me to sleep. Watching the news, errmm the boring parts, that is, works well. Although if you get interested, you watch it and there goes sleep.
5. If all else fails then there must be something wrong. Talk to your doctor ASAP before you go nuts!

Hope this helps...or not. Sure did wonders for me!