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INSOMNIAWHAT DOES IT MEAN? WHAT'S CAUSING IT? WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Written by John Immel,
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Written by John Immel,
Are you prone to a problem with 'Insomnia'?
Insomnia is generally associated with dry Vata constitution. When fluids are depleted, the heart, which houses the mind in Chinese Medicine, becomes deficient and beats rapidly. It can no longer ground the mind and thus the mind "wanders homeless at night". Among the many reasons people report insomnia include racing thoughts, waking up to go to the bathroom, depleted electrolytes, digestive disturbance, and pain. Are there any physical sensations accompanying night time restlessness? The location and nature of these physical sensations will tell you which organs are disturbing your slumber. Trying to fall asleep makes your nervous system hypersensitive to stimuli. Praying for others can help redirect your mind towards others, which calms the psyche. Repetitive type prayer also helps relax the mind. Avoid empty bowl meditation or other practices which lift your attention to the mind. When you have insomnia, stay in bed. Do not watch TV, use the computer, or do other mentally stimulating or eye straining activities like reading. Keep the lights off. Gentle stretching is okay. After a night of poor sleep, sunbathe for at least ten minutes to restore liver strength. Soothe prana vayu with aromatic herbs like cumin, coriander, and fennel tea. Massage your digestive tract and eat easy to digest foods only. Apple sauce will gently cleanse as well as strengthen your liver. Take a nap in the afternoon during kidney time (3pm-5pm).Avoid activities an hour before sleep, especially those that engage the eyes such as reading or watching TV. Try to go to be before 10pm. After 10pm our energy ramps up for nightly organ cleansing and repair activities. This 'second wind' last until 2am. If we are awake during that time, the brain steals the energy and our organs lose their chance to repair.
You can't control when you fall asleep but you can control when you go to bed. Here are some other tips when you can't fall asleep:
ARE YOU NEW TO AYURVEDA?
Are you wondering what Ayurveda is and how to use it for 'Insomnia' and health in general?
LEARN MORE
DIET REMEDIES FOR 'INSOMNIA'PRODUCT REMEDIES FOR 'INSOMNIA' FIND MORE MIND STRESS SLEEP RELATED PRODUCTS
See our herbs & products in these categories. Or, click here for general Mind Stress Sleep Tips.
MIND, STRESS & SLEEP PRODUCTSENERGY VITALITY STRENGTH PRODUCTS DISCLAIMER: The pathogenesis of each person's condition is unique, and so the diet must be fit to the individual and the unique root causes of the condition in your body. HOW DOES AYURVEDA HEAL 'INSOMNIA'?
AVOID DIETS, LIFESTYLES & HERBS THAT AGGRAVATE THESE EFFECTS
With Insomnia, one or more of the following
doshas
and qualities may be aggravated.
If you have an imbalance of one of these doshas or qualities, Ayurveda recommends avoiding foods and lifestyle habits that aggravate that quality and/or dosha.
These imbalanced doshas and qualities may need to be brought back into balance before this condition can be healed.
Click on the quality to learn what foods and
lifestyle habits should be avoided.
 Symptoms Tell A Story The first step to healing is learning patterns from your symptoms. Symptoms are clues that reveal underlying imbalances, showing you where your body is weak. Specifically, they reveal the doshas & qualities that may have become aggravated. If you notice a quality or dosha appears next to many of your symptoms, it helps you establish a pattern that may be systemic.V = VATA, P = PITTA, K = KAPHA 
To learn more about the symbols above, click on them. Are you prone to a problem with 'Insomnia'?
FAVOR DIETS, LIFESTYLES & HERBS WITH THESE MEDICINAL EFFECTSEverything you eat has an effect on your body, which Ayurveda categorizes in a simple and easy way, using gunas. Gunas are qualities (like cold and hot) that describe the effect a food or herb has on your body. Cooling foods like cucumber, decrease metabolism. Heating foods like chili pepper, stimulate your body and increase metabolism. For 'Insomnia', you should select foods with the following qualities (gunas). Individual results will vary, based on your body type and the root cause of your imbalance.
To learn more about the symbols above, click on them. Heart & Circulation: Alterative ALTERATIVELiterally, an herb that restores the proper function of the body. In practice, alteratives are usually blood cleansers and blood chemistry balancers. They were traditionally used to revitalize and detoxify after a long winter.Liver & Gall Bladder: Livotonic LIVOTONICAn herb that strengthens the liver. It is helpful for people with a history of substance abuse, chronic liver issues from hepatitis and hemolytic anemias.Mind, Stress & Sleep: Anxiolytic , ANXIOLYTICHerbs that help people suffering from anxiety or panic. They promote a state of calm and often improve sleep. Most anxiolytic herbs are also nervines.Nervine , NERVINEHerbs that specifically go to the nervous system and brain. They can help with stress, memory, early alzheimer?s, even chronic pain.Sedative SEDATIVESedative herbs create a sense of calm in the mind and body by specifically calming or quieting the nervous system. Excellent for anxiety, stress and chronic pain.Muscle-Health: Muscle relaxant MUSCLE-RELAXANTHerbs that relax muscles. Helpful for chronic pain or tension as well as healing from physical trauma.ADDRESS ISSUES IN STAGE OF DISEASE 2INSOMNIA IS IN STAGE OF DISEASE 2 - AFFECTING BLOOD & EMOTIONSAffecting Blood: Initially, imbalances are localized, often in the digestive tract. As an imbalance grows, it starts to affect your body systemically, via the blood. If you have symptoms in this category it means that your imbalances are starting to spread, have entered the bloodstream, and are now systemic. Pay particular attention to the gunas, tastes, and doshas out of balance systemically, so you know how to strengthen your body as a whole, and reduce physical stress on your organs. At this stage of imbalance you will begin to experience generalized discomfort, imbalanced emotions, and may develop sensitivities to temperature. It may take several weeks of strict adherence to a specific remedial diet to clear blood level imbalances. Blood cleansing herbs may reduce symptoms. A several day cleanse may shorten the recovery time. REDUCE THESE RELATED SYMPTOMS & HABITSThe following symptoms & habits may be related to 'Insomnia'. See your quiz results for a computerized assessment of your body type. Please click on the symptoms below to learn more about them.WHAT'S NEXT? 
DO YOU WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR UNIQUE BODY?
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HOW AYURVEDA WORKS
ARE YOU WONDERING HOW AYURVEDA CAN HELP YOU?
WHY IS AYURVEDA THE RIGHT SOLUTION?Ayurveda strengthens the body, in addition to addressing the disorder. It take a holistic, systemic approach, instead of myopically focusing on the disorder in question. Ayurveda shows a person how to interpret signs and symptoms of imbalance, and how to address them using materials from home, so they can optimize their health on a continual basis. You can't take the doctor home with you, but you can take Ayurveda home with you. Ayurveda is the most advanced and easy to use home system for self healing with an exceptional focus on digestion.HOW DOES AYURVEDA WORK?Ayurveda starts by identifying your body type, which identifies certain tendencies in your body to get sick (as well as identifying your strengths). It uses body type to determine the likely root causes of your disorders. Next, Ayurveda analyzes the nature of your disorder. It fits all your signs and symptoms into a pattern, expressed as a combination of gunas / qualities. For example, you may have a heat disorder, a cold disorder, or an oily disorder, etc. This simple categorical approach shows you how to correct systemic imbalances and strengthen your body as a whole.On Joyful Belly, we've created an extensive categorization of food so you can easily match food to your imbalances (gunas). By eating an optimal diet that balances your gunas, your whole body is strengthened and the conditions that created the disorder are removed. Once the root causes of the disease are removed, the disease lessens in strength or disappears altogether. Additional remedies - such as herbs and lifestyle practices - focused on the specific disorder, can greatly enhance your healing. Want to learn more about Ayurveda and its step-by-step approach to healing? Click below.LEARN MOREGET STARTEDTo get started on your Ayurvedic journey, we first recommend that your find your body type by taking our free quiz. In Ayurveda, every solution is based on your unique body type, so by taking this quiz, you’ll get the best results.5 WAYS TO HEAL YOUR BODY
WITH AYURVEDA - FREE REPORT!
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About the Author John Immel, the founder of Joyful Belly, teaches people how to have a healthy diet and lifestyle with Ayurveda. His approach to Ayurveda exudes a certain ease, which many find enjoyable and insightful. His online course Balance Your Ayurvedic Diet in a Week provides tools for gracefully healing with Ayurveda to thousands. John also directs Joyful Belly's School of Ayurveda , which specializes in digestive tract pathology & Ayurvedic nutrition. John and his wife Natalie recently published Explore Your Hunger: A Guide to Hunger, Appetite & Food.John's interest in Ayurveda and digestive tract pathology was inspired by a complex digestive disorder acquired from years of international travel, including his public service work in South Asia. John's commitment to the detailed study of digestive disorders reflects his zeal to get down to the roots of the problem. His hope and belief in the capacity of each & every client to improve their quality of life is nothing short of a personal passion. John's creativity in the kitchen and delight in cooking for others comes from his family oriented upbringing. In addition to his certification in Ayurveda, John holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Harvard University. John enjoys sharing Ayurveda within the context of his Catholic roots, and finds Ayurveda gives him an opportunity to participate in the healing mission of the Church. Jesus expressed God's love by feeding and healing the sick. That kindness is the fundamental ministry of Ayurveda as well. Comments & Personal ExperiencesHow does 'insomnia' affect your quality of life? What aggravates it? What has helped you? Is there something you'd like to know about 'insomnia'?40 likes |
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