Terms Related to insomnia:
Can't Sleep; Difficulty Sleeping; Lack of Sleep; Loss of Sleep; Problems Sleeping; Sleep Deprivation; Sleep Difficulty; Sleep Disorder; Sleep Loss; Sleeplessness.

Symptoms & Signs
Insomnia is the perception of inadequate or poor-quality sleep. It can be due to problems falling asleep, early wakening, waking frequently during the night,

unrefreshing sleep, or a combination of these. Contrary to some popular  beliefs, insomnia is not defined by the total amount of sleep one gets or how long it takes  a person to fall asleep. Individuals can vary in their need for sleep, and in the time  required to fall asleep.

What is a refreshing night's sleep for one person might be insomnia for another person.Insomnia may be classified by how long the symptoms are present. Temporary insomnia (transient insomnia) usually is due to situational changes, such as travel and stressful events. It lasts for less than a week or until the stressful event is resolved. Short-term insomnia lasts for 1-3 weeks, and long-term insomnia (chronic insomnia) continues for more than 3 weeks. Insomnia may also be classified as primary or secondary. Primary insomnia occurs in the absence of other medical problems, while secondary insomnia occurs as a result of a medical condition such as heart disease, arthritis, cancer, or heartburn causing wakefulness.

Insomnia is more likely to occur in females, persons over 60 years of age, and persons who have a history of depression, however, anyone can be affected by insomnia. Short-term insomnia may also occur as a side effect of certain medications. Chronic insomnia is more serious and may be caused or worsened by a variety of mental and physical problems.

Although sedative medications may be prescribed by a doctor for severe cases of insomnia, their use is controversial in management of long-term insomnia. Many treatments for insomnia are behavioral in nature; for example, identifying and reducing behaviors that worsen the insomnia or learning and practicing relaxation techniques. Insomnia can be particularly devastating because it often leads to a "vicious cycle" of daytime behaviors that worsen the condition. Persons without adequate sleep can experience tiredness, lack of energy, and concentration problems; which they may attempt to overcome by excessive caffeine intake or nicotine use. Insomniacs may be "too tired" to exercise and take afternoon naps, both of which reduce the ability to fall asleep the following night.

Insomnia Natural Herbal Cure | Ayurvedic Treatment of Insomnia
Nearly everybody suffers from insomnia at some point in their lives and though for most this amounts to just the occasional sleepless night or a short more prolonged bout, for an unfortunate few it is a lifelong affliction which shows very little sign of lifting.

Why sleep is important
You may feel yourself to be invincible and whilst you quite possibly are you still need to get a good nights sleep!!!

Sleep refreshes your whole body and you can not function without a regular sleeping pattern. The average nights rest is said to be between 7 ½ and 8 hours per night. Though some people can get away with 4 others need 10 or even 11, it depends on only one factor, YOU!! And more importantly how your metabolism and inner system works and how much refreshing it needs.

Once you have worked out how long you need stick to it and make sure you stick to a regular sleeping pattern, as disruption to this is one of the main factors of insomnia.

Other causes of insomnia

• Anxiety

• Depression

• A general feeling of ennui and boredom

These need to be tackled head-on. The Ayurvedic method particularly recommends yoga, meditation and other relaxing exercises to chases away the stresses and anxieties of everyday life. You can not hope to get a good night’s sleep if your mind is switched on, so do your best to take yourself away from this by soothing yourself before you go to bed.

• Frequent ingestion of stimulants, particularly illegal drugs and prescription medicines

• Eating heavy food before bed

• Behavioral insomnia

Behavioral insomnia is when you are already suffering from sleep deprivation and you become over anxious to fall asleep. If this occurs then it is a vicious circle which needs breaking.

Ayurvedic Causes of Insomnia
In the Ayurvedic teachings insomnia is a fire disorder and its health restoring strategies encompass cooling off the burning in vata (nerve humour) and pitta (fire). The treatment concentrates on cooling off this bad junction by re-balancing pitta.

Ayurvedic Herbal Remedies for Insomnia
There would seem to be quite a contradiction with the herbs required to treat insomnia. Because ironically though the idea is to “cool-off” the afflicted doshas, you do so by using hot spices!! This is because the heat generated warms the internal system back into a state where it can begin the process of cooling off!!

Basically this apparently strange combination works because all the herbs and the body condition compliment each other perfectly which allows the re-balancing and healing.

The most effective herb for this remedy is calamus root and the by-products of.
The best way to ingest the root is to take it in powder form on a teaspoon added to warm water or milk three times a day.

Calamus root can also be taken with brahmi and alma as part of shirodhara technique.
To carry this out, you add the herbal combination to warm water and leave until almost all of the water has evaporated. You then add sesame oil and drain away the rest of the water. You then apply the mixture as a soothing head massage, which will relax the senses sufficiently to ensure a good nights sleep.

We all suffer from insomnia from time-to-time, but by applying the soothing Ayurvedic therapies we can prevent it becoming a nightly torture.