Today's lifestyle requires getting enough sleep to be healthy. Below are two simple tips, whether you have trouble falling asleep or waking up at night. Also remember that the bedroom should be the most protected place: no TV, computer, mobile phone or electric alarm clock.
Howard Tseng, Collective Evolution
Translated by Helios
Two years ago, I attended a banquet organized to give the opportunity to young professionals to meet and create links.
After sitting down, I said hello to my neighbor and we introduced ourselves. She told me that she worked in a bank and that apparently we would have friends in common. I told him that my business was to help people improve their sleep through a breathing technique.
She then asked me if I could give her some advice to improve her sleep. I answered of course, assuming she was asking the question for an elderly member of her family.
To my surprise, she told me that she was the one having trouble getting her sleep count. For two years, not only did she need two to three hours to fall asleep, but she was also unable to sleep for more than 3 hours afterwards.
She got up every night at least two or three times to drink a glass of water or to go to the bathroom. She had tried many remedies and advice, but nothing had really worked.
She was a young woman like all healthy young women in her twenties: cheerful appearance, good physical shape, regular working hours and physical activity.
We arranged an appointment for me to show him some breathing exercises that had worked well for me and my clients.
Breathing and relaxation – diaphragmatic breathing
When we next met, the first thing I asked her was how she breathed. I was not surprised to hear her tell me that she did not know what diaphragmatic breathing was.
Many people don't realize the importance of diaphragmatic breathing; yet it is essential for good respiratory hygiene, a factor of long-term and overall health. It is easy to check if you are breathing with your diaphragm. Place one hand on your chest and the other on your stomach. Inhale and exhale as usual. You will feel your hands moving as you breathe.
(For info, diagram of the diaphragm)
In diaphragmatic breathing, the hand on the chest should move only minimally or not at all while the hand on the stomach rises on inspiration and descends on exhalation.
You can perform this test lying down, standing or sitting. Of the three positions, lying down is the most practical for this type of breathing. The seated position is the least convenient, because there is little pressure exerted on the stomach.
If you want to practice diaphragmatic breathing, start it lying on your back. [even easier with bent knees, note from Helios]. Feel your belly expand and relax as you breathe. As soon as you know how to do it lying down, do it again standing up. Standing with your back against the wall will help. The seated position is the most difficult for diaphragmatic breathing, but with practice you will get there. Just remember to sit up straight.
So I spent the first 30 minutes showing him how to breathe properly with his diaphragm.
As soon as you switch from chest breathing to diaphragmatic breathing, you will immediately feel your body relax. Many people have tension in the shoulders [the famous trapezes] and they will also feel them relax, because there is no more constraint in their chest and shoulders when they breathe. You'll also feel your heart beating more slowly, which will also help you relax and calm down, which is essential for making it easier to fall asleep.
What I taught him for the next 30 minutes was to change his mindset by focusing on his breathing.
Technique to change your state of mind
Often when we try to fall asleep, we realize that tons of unexpected thoughts are jostling in the head. We try to tell ourselves not to think about it and just fall asleep. But the more we despair of sleeping, the more anxious and awake we become. You may also start to hear your heart beating, as it drums harder and faster with stress.
So I told him to do the opposite.
I told her when she went to bed at night to check that she was doing diaphragmatic breathing and not to try to convince herself that she was going to fall asleep as she usually does.
Forcing yourself to fall asleep when you can't will only make you more stressed and on edge, and stress won't do you any good falling asleep. We fall asleep when we are relaxed, not when we are stressed. Stress increases worry.
And no, don't count the sheep.
I said, "When you find yourself lying on your bed tonight, I want you to tell yourself that it's okay if you don't fall asleep. It's okay to just lay on your bed and relax until the next day. Place one hand on your belly and just focus on your diaphragmatic breathing. Also try to relax, slow down and reduce your breathing. Feel the movement of your hand and the movement of your belly which reduces their amplitude. Stay focused on your breathing and nothing else. Tell yourself that you will still be fresh and ready the next morning after a full night of relaxation."
Focus on your breathing to help you change your state of mind and chase away all the parasitic thoughts that only make it harder to fall asleep and desperately seek sleep.
Concentrating on calming and slowing the breath will further help to slow the heartbeat and thus allow the body to relax. Once the body is truly relaxed, falling asleep is no longer something to worry about, it happens on its own.
The result
I told him to practice this method for a week first and then let me know how it goes.
Two days later, she told me she slept 5 hours straight the first night and 6 hours the next night.
These two unique tips have helped many of my clients get a full night's sleep after stressful days. Give it a try! It can only improve your sleep anyway.
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