We don’t normally put much thought to our sleeping, at least until it starts to trouble us. We simply lie in our bed and fall asleep. However, when insomnia knocks on the door, sleeping suddenly becomes an art, and the more we try, the worse the results.
Psychologists agree that in most cases the primary cause of insomnia eventually disassociates from those causes that prevent us from fall asleep. Consequently, techniques used in treating insomnia are usually focused to eliminate the causes that make us stay awake.
We can improve the quality and length of our sleep, as the sole ability to fall asleep, using simple non-hypnotic techniques, which are based on improving our sleep routine. Spending time in bed should be reserved only for sleeping and we should avoid eating or exercising at least 2–4 hours prior to sleeping. It is recommendable to unplug ourselves from digital devices at least two hours prior to sleeping. Our ability to sleep can be also improved by healthy eating habits, reducing consumption of stimulants and mostly, by avoiding excessive stress.
And how can hypnosis help with insomnia? Hypnosis is connected to sleeping by its very name, which has its origins in the Greek word “hypno” and means sleeping. However, the state of hypnosis is not sleeping. As a natural state, which we enter spontaneously daily, right before we become awake and just before we fall asleep, hypnosis can serve as a jumping point to nice, sound sleep. By practicing self-hypnosis before we go to sleep at night, we can actively calm and condition our minds to a smooth transition into sleep. The individual hypnosis tapes we make during our sessions are also very effective in deepening suggestions as well helping you fall asleep. However, the greatest effect of hypnosis comes by changing a known stimulus (going to bed) into desired consequences (falling asleep), which eventually conditions one’s mind to automatically fall asleep. Suggestions that are given during hypnosis also influence an individual’s stress response, which makes one more resilient to daily stress and consequently influences the ability to better sleep.
Paradoxically, good sleep comes by not trying. It happens automatically, such as with a state of hypnosis, when we are able to relax and turn off our minds.
