How to Deal with Insomnia?

Eating when it’s time to eat and sleeping when it’s time to sleep is an attitude of practice, as well as an attitude towards life. Life is practice. When mentioning “meditation,” many people consider it mystical, or similar to Indian yoga, involving sitting cross-legged, practicing breath control, and calming the mind and body. In fact, meditation is not confined to specific forms; it exists in everyday life, so both “eating” and “sleeping” are part of the practice.

Causes of Insomnia

However, in the busy modern world, many people don’t eat when they should. They are busy with meetings, chatting, or reading reports. Even if they eat while doing other things, they are not mindful of the food. When it’s time to sleep, they are plagued by wandering thoughts, unable to let go of the events of the day, worrying about tomorrow. Their brains can’t stop working, and even if they fall asleep, it’s not restful; they wake up feeling extremely tired.

In this way, not eating properly when it’s time to eat and not sleeping properly when it’s time to sleep is not practicing. Even if the stomach is filled, they don’t appreciate the taste of the food; even when lying in bed, they are full of worries and thoughts, completely unable to relax. This kind of sleep is in vain.

The inability to sleep well is a common problem among modern white-collar workers who engage in mental work. There are too many things to worry about, care about, and be anxious about. Some people suffer from insomnia, while others have depression. Therefore, in order to sleep well when it’s time to sleep, it’s necessary to first identify the reasons, find the root of one’s worries, address them, seek medical help if necessary, and take medication as prescribed.

Methods to Improve Sleep

For practitioners, before going to bed, it’s important to clear and relax the mind. Taking a warm bath beforehand and then meditating helps to loosen the muscles, slow down the pace of the mind, and strive to think about nothing. When getting into bed, practice experiencing your own breath, feeling each exhalation and inhalation. If the mind is still restless, you can count breaths, from one to ten, with each inhalation and exhalation counting as one cycle, continuing until ten. Most people fall asleep before reaching ten. Some people count sheep when they have insomnia, but I suggest counting your own breath; if the sheep run away, return to focusing on your breath and relax your body.

Changing sleeping positions can also help improve insomnia. If it’s a short rest, such as a nap in the afternoon, then lie on your back. If it’s nighttime sleep, then sleep on your right side, which won’t put pressure on the heart and can improve the quality of sleep.

“Eating when it’s time to eat and sleeping when it’s time to sleep” is an attitude of practice, as well as an attitude towards life.