Visions of Sugarplums Danced in Their Heads

The hustle and bustle of the holiday season can try even those with nerves of steel and disrupt a good night's sleep. It is not uncommon for most people to experience the occasional sleepless night. Roughly one third of Americans report suffering from sleep disorders that range from trouble getting to sleep, staying asleep (waking frequently during the night), or awakening too early. Sleep is vital to our health and emotional well- being. Chronic sleep deprivation can do more than just make you tired, it is linked to a number of health problems including depression, heart disease, and difficulty in concentrating. Daytime drowsiness has been linked to 100,000 car crashes each year. If that's not enough, recent studies have shown that people who sleep only 6 hours nightly are 23% more like to be obese. Sleep deprivation affects the hormones that stimulate hunger. (There's my answer to that ten-pound weight gain since last summer!)

How much sleep is enough? It varies with each individual, anywhere from 4-10 hours. Most experts think 8 is about the average most people need. To find out how much is right for you, go to bed when you are sleepy, and allow yourself to wake up naturally. Time the amount you slept, and if you feel rested, that's the amount for you.

If you occasionally experience difficulty with sleep, and are looking for some natural alternatives to conventional medicine, look to your herb garden. Herbs have a time-honored history of helping to calm and promote a restful sleep. Include herbs in your nighttime ritual of reading a book, listening to soothing music, and going to bed and getting up at the same time. The use of herbs include:

• Herbal Teas: German Chamomile: (matricarea recutita) taken a couple of hours before bedtime helps promote sleep. Steep a heaping tablespoon of dried chamomile flowers in a cup of water.
• Lemon Balm: (Melissa officinalis) 2 teaspoons of the ground leaves added to a cup of steaming hot water should be used after your evening meal and again before bedtime.
• Passion Flower: Calming and sleep promoting. Passion flower is generally used in a tincture 45 minutes or an hour before going to bed. Consult an herbalist on the amount of tincture to use.
• Valerian (valeriana officinalis): Relaxing and sleep inducing. (Caution also lowers blood pressure) Valerian acts as a central nervous system depressant and should not be used every night, and does not act the same on all people, causing excitability in some. Valerian tea can be prepared in the morning and left to stand until the evening. Add 2 tsp. of valerian root to 2 cups of warm water.
• Herbal Baths are a great way to alleviate sleeping difficulties. The use of herbs in a tub of warm water can enhance the sedative benefits of the herb. Herbs can be steeped in water, then poured directly into the bath, tied up in a muslin bag and hung on the faucet while the water runs or mixed in bath salts and tub teas. 4-5 drops of essential oils (not fragrance oils), added directly to the bath, are a great way to enjoy the therapeutic qualities of oils. Lavender and Ylang Ylang are great oils to use in this way. The benefits of herbs in the bath water are two fold. You get the benefit of the oils being absorbed through your skin and into your bloodstream, while the inhaled scents go straight from the olfactory system to the brain.
• Dream pillows have been crafted since the 1700's using herbs and flowers to affect people's dreams, provide a restful sleep, and to ease nightmares. Small pillows filled with a mixture of sleep promoting herbs; chamomile, hops and lavender for example, can help promote sleep and enhance dreams. A recent study in the Journal of Sleep Research indicated "dreams may offer solutions to difficulties within one week after the trouble starts." Also, the study suggested that people who get enough sleep are likely to have good dreams.

I hope this Holiday season brings you the peace and the joy it was meant to represent. If the inevitable tension and stress occur, sit down, grab a cup of herbal tea, and the Essential Herbal magazine. Sweet Dreams and Happy Holidays.

Karen Creel
www.GardenChick.com
Dream pillows, Dream Weaver Bath Salts and Tub Teas available.

** Caution: Anytime you choose to use herbs for any condition, show the same caution you would with prescribed drugs. Use only for a short time, use dosage as indicated, (more is NOT better), do not use on children, or if you are pregnant or lactating. Consult a certified herbalist if you have any questions regarding the herb. As a general rule essential oils should NEVER be used directly on the skin (a few exceptions are lavender and tea tree oil), never allow them around children, or get into your eyes.

Sources available on request.