Insomnia

Insomnia is probably the worst symptom for many people with chronic illness, not only do you have to suffer during the day but in the night time when you think you might get a respite from the difficulty of dealing with illness by turning your brain off and going to sleep, your brain just simply won’t shut down.

The reason for this is that toxins, Lyme disease and co-infections can damage what in simple terms is called the sleep center of the brain. This damage can cause insomnia, non-restorative sleep, sleep apnea, vivid dreaming/nightmares, narcolepsy and restless leg syndrome.

As a result of a lack of sleep your most important weapon in the battle against disease, your immune system, is weakened. During sleep we release and create vital disease fighting substances, these proteins, chemicals and hormones make up part of our immune system and without them we are more susceptible to viruses and bacteria.

Not only do we produce infectious fighting substances during our sleep cycles but we also produce one of my favorite neurotransmitter’s serotonin, which as we all know is responsible for us being shiny happy people, without it we become not so shiny happy people and that’s not good for anyone.

Also lack of sleep effects the glymphatic system which is the lymph system for our brain. During sleep the glymphatic system uses fluid from the central nervous system to essentially wash our brain and clean out the debris that our brain needs to get rid of. Without restorative sleep this cleansing of the brain doesn’t happen and so we collect and build up all kinds of toxins that can lead to mental health problems and neurological diseases.

Other things that can also massively impact our sleep are:

Hormonal imbalances.
Emf frequencies coming off devices such as microwaves, mobile phones and WIFI systems.
Neurotransmitters, too much of certain neurotransmitters and too little of others can cause severe mental health problems including insomnia.

Below are a list of tips and products that people use to battle insomnia.

Routine- I can’t state enough the importance of a good routine, getting your body into a rhythm and routine is really important. Going to bed and getting up at around the same time every day is beneficial. You should also avoid devices like tablets and mobile phones before bed as it causes your brain to soak up photons which tells our brains that we need to stay awake and can prevent us from releasing melatonin, our natural sleep hormone.
Detox Bath- These detox baths really were my savior when I first got sick, I was so fatigued and in a lot of pain and the detox baths soothed my pain but also relaxed my body and made me feel sleepy before bed. I recommend soaking for at least 45 minutes. Checkout our detox bath recipe.

Lavender oil- If I was a poet I would write an ode to Lavender because it has been my constant throughout, particularly at night when it comes to bed time. I put it in the bath, I rub it on my wrist and my chest at bed time. I even have a diffuser to pump lavender into the atmosphere in my room whilst I sleep.

doTERRA Lavender Oil
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Diffuser
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Tiger Balm- If you are suffering from body and joint pain then you need a little bit of a distraction from it all. Tiger Balm is fantastic, it’s a natural muscle rub made of herbs and therefore doesn’t impede the detox process. The smell is quite soothing as well. Massage it into your muscles before bed.

Tiger Balm
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Salt Lamp- These lamps purify the air around us, they absorb things like dust particles and pollen, helping with allergies but most importantly they are great negative ion generators. Our homes are full of positive ions which aren’t great for our health, they mostly come from things like electronic devices. Too many positive ions in the atmosphere can reduce blood and oxygen supply to the brain thus impacting our sleep. Once these Salt Lamps heat up they absorb these positive ions and in turn release negative ions into the atmosphere providing us with a cleaner more restful nights sleep.

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Plants-Another fantastic way of purifying the air in your bedroom and giving you a better quality of sleep is by keeping household plants in your bedroom.

EMF Protection- I mentioned before how EMF frequencies can affect your sleep and there are some excellent devices on the market that can protect you and your home from the harmful effects of EMF.

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Supplements

Two supplements I’ve used that I have found to be very beneficial to aid a restful night’s sleep.

Melatonin- The King of all the supplements for aiding sleep. A natural hormone that our bodies produce to induce a sleep cycle. However, some chronically ill patients may not be producing melatonin due to disruption in the brain caused by toxins and infections so they may need to supplement it. Finding the right dose is important as too much can make you feel groggy in the morning. My advice is to start with lower doses and work your way up until you find out the right dose for you.

Blue Vervain

Blue vervain is a herb that not only has been shown in studies to help decrease the amount of time it takes to fall asleep, it also increases the amount of time patients stay asleep. It helps relieve anxiety and has been used as a natural alternative to Prozac. It’s anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and has anti-microbial properties too.

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