Dealing with Sleepiness

Becoming sleepy during the day at inopportune times is pretty common. Sometimes, adults experience this problem because they simply aren’t scheduling enough time for sleep, and other times, they are actually waking up frequently at night, sometimes without even realizing it. What, then, is a person to do about the problem of getting sleepy during the day? Here are a few potential solutions.

The first thing to do is to make sure that you’re at least scheduling enough time for sleep. You should plan on getting between seven and nine hours of sleep at night. Get any less than seven, and you’re simply going to feel sleepy.

Another option is to purchase a sound machine for your bedroom. Sleep is a very complex state for the brain, and sometimes you can be drawn out of the deepest sleep by noises without even knowing it. The sound waves that are released by a sleep noise machine will mask noises that are present in your home or bedroom, helping you to stay in deeper sleep for longer.

You can also help this problem by taking very short naps during the day. It is, in fact, rather natural for people to lag a little bit in the afternoon. You can sometimes feel much better if you take just a fifteen to twenty minute nap, which doesn’t even have to involve going into deep sleep to be quite effective at helping you feel better for the rest of the day. A noise machine might also be helpful in this situation, since your home or office is likely to be loud in the middle of the day.

All of these solutions can be helpful, but if you can’t beat daytime sleepiness with more sleep, a white noise machine, and naps during the day, you might want to see your doctor to discuss whether you might have one of a number of different sleep disorders.

Sleep Disorders and Solutions

Practically every adult requires no less than eight hours of sleep per night to be totally rested. However, recent studies have shown that many adults do not get the sleep they need; in fact, forty million people residing in the United States have some form of sleep problem. Sleep problems are costly and dangerous.

What many people do not realize is that you must receive adequate sleep or it can lead to health problems and increased problems with high blood pressure and diabetics.

There are a variety of reasons Americans do not get adequate sleep including stress, traffic noise, other noises around the home, sick children, being too cold at night, being too hot at night, and alcoholic beverages.

On average, the most common sleep problems are insomnia and/or feeling drowsy during the day.

Symptoms of insomnia range from having problems falling to sleep to having problems getting back to sleep with many individuals waking up earlier than they wanted. However, just because a person has trouble going to sleep once in awhile does not necessarily put them in the same category as a person that suffers from insomnia. The big picture of what is going on in a persons life has to be examined. Insomnia is when a person has these problems every night for a few weeks. Insomnia is seen more commonly with females, individuals with depression, and those over the age of sixty.

Once again feeling drowsy during the daytime is quite normal. However, if you being to have problems with slowed thinking, heavy eyelids, and irritability you may need to talk with your physician. On the other hand, for insomnia and feeling drowsy during the day there are a few things you can do yourself that may be your ticket to a great nights sleep.

Many individuals have had success with several of their sleep disorders by setting a bedtime schedule. You should go to bed at the same time every night and awaken at the same time each morning. Avoid large meals 2 hours prior to bedtime, avoid caffeine, beer, nicotine, liquor, and wine 4 to 6 hours prior to bedtime, avoid taking naps after 3pm, and do not exercise 2 hours prior to bedtime. Things you should do involve creating a sleep environment.

A good sleep environment will be dark, quiet, comforting, and void of distractions. Distractions such as a television or even outside noise such as traffic will keep you awake or wake you during the night. Creating a sleep environment using products such as a white noise machine, tabletop water fountains, and Electric Aromatherapy Diffusers is one of the easiest and fastest ways for you to create a calm and peaceful setting that will help with sleep disorders.

A white noise machine in your bedroom will absorb all noises that might awaken you during the night. The white noise machine will absorb sounds such as traffic, strange settling noises of your home, or other noises around the home that enter your quiet time. A tabletop water fountain will give you something to center your mind on so you will be able to unwind and go to sleep will the electric aromatherapy diffuser will help in providing a relaxing and calm mood for sleep all night long.

Help for Restless Legs Syndrome

You have more than likely seen commercials on television for medications that will help with Restless Legs Syndrome and if you suffer with this condition, you may be considering talking with your physician. On the other hand, like many people today, the thought of taking drugs is a bit scary when you know what is going on in the drug-manufacturing world such as the case with Merck and Vioxx. Then there are also all the side effects that are a given when it comes to taking pharmaceutical drugs. Due to these facts, you may be a bit leery about talking with your doctor and seeking alternatives to drugs.

There is good news. In many cases, you can receive some relieve from Restless Legs Syndrome by taking a few self-care precautions and changing your lifestyle a bit. However, if these changes do not help then you will need to talk with your doctor. These steps will help even if you do need a little extra help with some type of medication.

In several cases of restless leg syndrome, the root of the problem is an iron deficiency, which of course can be helped by adding an iron supplement to your diet. Before adding this supplement, you should discuss it with your doctor. If there is no medical reason for your restless legs syndrome symptoms, then a few lifestyle changes may be in order.

A few things you can do to change your lifestyle and find relieve include:
• Take pain relievers such as Motrin or Advil
• Take a warm bath
• Massage your legs
• Have your low back massaged before retiring
• Try using warm or cool packs
• Eat properly
• Exercise
• Avoid caffeinated drinks a few hours before bedtime
• Create a sleep environment and bedtime routine

The number one thing that aids many people with restless legs syndrome is creating a sleep environment and a bedtime routine. For this, you will need to choose a specific time to retire. Yes, every night 7 days a week. This will help your body realize it is time to sleep. Along with setting your bedtime, you can include a warm bath, quiet time for reading or relaxing.

Next, you will need to look at your bedroom. Here you will have to create a sleep environment. A sleep environment is dark, quiet, and is void of any distractions. This means if you have a television or computer in your bedroom take it out. This will only keep you awake or give you a reason to stay up past your normal bedtime.

To ensure you can relax you will need to rid your sleep environment of noises that wake you up during sleep or hinder you from falling to sleep. This can be resolved with a white noise machine. Along with a white noise machine, you can also use tabletop water fountains that will aid in relaxation prior to falling to sleep. Not only will you be able to sleep but also with the white noise machine, you will not hear the traffic or other noises that might awaken you during the night.

Quiet Time

Many parents of young children are wondering when they will be able to have a few moments of quiet time again. The best way to ensure that you can rest and have a few moments of peace and quiet is by teaching your children about quiet time. Even small children need a few minutes of quiet time before going to bed.

Children that do not want to go to bed at night, are rowdy a few minutes prior to bedtime, or eat sugary treats before sleeping are bound to have trouble drifting off to sleep. Relaxation is the key to a good nights sleep even for young children.

To instill “Quiet Time” in your young children, begin by starting a bedtime routine. You should go into a room that is not brightly lit, use items such as tabletop fountains to help create a calm environment, and then read a book to your little ones. Start this routine about 30 minutes prior to their bedtime.

Your new Quiet Time may, in the beginning, be a hard task; however, even with infants this is a good way to start. They will learn that during quiet time, mommy or daddy will cuddle and read them a story before saying good night. It is also very important that both parents participate as much as possible. Take turns if possible. If this is not possible through the week due to work schedules, the other parent can have quiet time on the weekends.

Along with tabletop fountains such as the Alpine Pouring Serenity Table Top Fountain or the Riverbed Fountain, you can also give your little one a Lavender Lab to cuddle up with while listening to the story. The Lavender Lab produces an aroma that will help lull your little one of to dreamland.

Help for Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome

Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome is often seen in teenagers but can and does affect many adults. Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome is when a person has trouble falling asleep at night and difficulty waking up in the morning. In most cases, people with Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome do not fall asleep until the early morning hours, thus the reason for difficulty waking up. Everyone more than likely has changed their internal clock at some time in their life and has had a time getting it back on schedule. Individuals with this syndrome have problems sleeping during the times that are considered traditional.

What causes Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome?

The main cause of Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome is an abnormality in body rhythms, which affects the internal clock or knocks it out of sync with regular sleep-wake cycles.

The average time a person with Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome falls asleep is around 2am and will be the same exact time each and every night. The hardest part of all is for individuals suffering from this syndrome to receive 7 to 8 hours of sleep due to falling asleep so late and needing to wake up for the next days activities.

The symptoms of Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome are most often seen in teenage boys and usually disappear in adulthood. Symptoms include daytime sleepiness, insomnia, depression, restlessness during the night, and irritability. In the majority of cases, the symptoms due affect the person’s performance during the day.

Treating Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome

•One of the best ways in which to get the internal clock back in sync is by creating a sleep environment.

•Create a schedule for going to bed and waking up. Stay on this schedule every day of the week. Your body needs to be on a routine.

•Create a bedtime routine – soak in a warm bath, read, or listen to a tabletop water fountain such as the Stone Water Fountain

•Create a bedroom for sleeping – the bedroom should be dark, quiet, comfortable, and cool. Invest in a white noise machine and aromatherapy products. A white noise machine or sound conditioner will ensure that all noises that might be waking you up at night are absorbed and you will be able to sleep all night long without any interruptions. A few of the most popular white noise machines include the New Marpac Marsona 1288A Sound Conditioner, Marsona TSC-330, and the Sound Oasis Deluxe Sound Conditioner.

•Light therapy often helps individuals with Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome. In essence, all this does is simulate the sunset and sunrise using light to help the internal clock realize the time of day. This can be done easily with Sunrise Alarm Clock at half the fraction of the cost of what you will hear from doctors. This will allow you to set the time for sunset and for sunrise. The clock will begin to simulate the sun coming up 30 minutes before time to rise to allow the body to wake up naturally.

•Only use the bedroom for sleeping – Take the television out of the bedroom, the computer, and any other distractions including video games.

• Eat at least two to three hours before your bedtime.



For more information on white noise machines, check out http://www.sleepwellbaby.com where you can purchase sound conditioners and other products for sleep, rest and relaxation.

Creating a Sleep Environment for Children

Most parents want their child’s room to be bright, cheery, and fun; however, this does not promote the best environment for children to achieve a quiet and peaceful night’s sleep. A sleep environment needs to be dark, cool, and quiet. It has been proven through research that the body receives better quality sleep in an environment such as the one above.

How can you achieve creating a sleep environment for your children while still giving them their own room in which to play?

Walk into your child’s room. Look around. If you are using blinds on the windows or light colored drapes light could be coming into the room from the outside. Using thick drapes for nighttime and naptime will help with this.

Do you have a toy box in the room? If you have a toy box in the room that your little one can get into without any trouble, you will be giving him or her a distraction. The toy box needs to be put in the closet or if at all possible have a separate playroom.

Look for any type of distractions in the room. You can remove these by putting them out of the sight of your little one, in the closet, or in another room.

Now, that you have the room ready, you are ready to add a few things that will ensure your child receives the best night’s sleep you can provide. A few of the most popular items for aiding in creating a sleep environment include white noise machines, tabletop water fountains, aromatherapy items, and even cuddly sleep machines.

White noise machines come in many shapes and size and can include sounds that are especially designed for children such as heartbeat or the womb. Both of these will give your child security while helping them fall to sleep. The white noise machines absorb all disruptive sounds inside and outside the home such as traffic or their parents, talking in the next room and then emits the sounds that are soothing. Your little one will be able to sleep all night long without any disruptions.

Tabletop water fountains can aid your little one is receiving a calm and quiet environment with the soothing sounds of a gentle waterfall. Be sure to place these out of the reach on a high shelf or on top of their dresser. The calming effect will aid in helping them fall to sleep and sleep throughout the night.

Cuddly animals that have aromatherapy technology or white noise machine benefits include the Lavender Lab, the Sleep Sheep, and the Sound Oasis Sleep Bear. All three of these items are great for children and will ensure a wonderful sleep environment.

A night light is fine as long as it promotes sleep such as the Twilight Turtle that transforms the room into a starry night sky.

Remember, your little one needs sleep in order to grow and be alert during the day. Creating a sleep environment is the best way in which to achieve this goal.