Another Sleepless Night? Here’s What the Doctor Ordered

I've been doing overnights for a few years now and love talking to all the night owls out there.  One thing I've learned from talking to all of you is that some of you are not awake by choice (and you're not alone) Roughly 60 million Americans are affected by the sleep disorder each year.

So what do you do to try & get some shut eye?  You could play Insomnia Jeopardy ...

You could listen to WOKQ all night or you could stare at the clock and calculate how much sleep you could get if you fell asleep right now.

While doctors disagree on what treatment works best, here's a list of some of the best methods that seem to work for a lot of people (huffingtonpost.com)

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1) Put down your electronic devices - The blue wavelengths produced by your smartphone and other gadgets significantly suppress the production of melatonin.

2) Listen to White Noise - white noise will basically take all of the sound frequencies and blend them together in a soft fuzzy noise that easily fades to the background of your mind. 

3) Avoid big meals close to bedtime - A large meal or spicy snack too close to bedtime can leave your digestive system working overtime while the rest of your body lies awake.

4) Avoid caffeine after 3pm - if your last cup was at 3pm, you still have a quarter of the caffeine left in your system at 3 AM.

and my favorite ..

5) Be intimate with your significant other - Apparently this works better for men than woman. Whatever your gender, sex decreases stress and improves your sense of overall well being which helps stop your mind from racing all night.

And if these don't help, you can always check out the blog (http://sleepstarved.org) It's written by Gayle Greene, author of Insomniac.  It's a website for and by insomniacs that looks at many different methods, some unconventional but effective.

-Harry-