Insomnia
Sleep is non negotiable, so we humans seek solutions, many of them very dodgy. Alcohol, sleeping tablets, marijuana, weighted blankets, expensive and useless supplements.
Good, refreshing sleep is one of the most important health measures we have. Poor sleep quality has been proven to result in poor physical health, poor memory and increased risk of mental illness. Insomnia is a real problem in our society, and one that actually reduces productivity, your quality of life and longevity.
To fall asleep you need to become completely relaxed; importantly, your body temperature needs to drop, and your myofascial tension and even low levels of discomfort that you’ve become habituated to need to dissipate. But that can’t happen if there are strain that are keeping your tissues spasmed or tense. You’ll think it’s the pillow, that it’s your mind racing, that you need a new mattress... but maybe your pillow is fine but your upper back and neck are not; that your mind is racing because you’re still awake, and your mattress is just passively doing it’s job.
Our patients (and our selves!) report wonderful sleep following their osteopathic treatment. That’s all we can report because our evidence is entirely anecdotal, but we’ll stick to it.
So just check -
- Can you turn your head in both directions with ease and equally?
- Does your neck hurt?
- Do you have a tender prominent lump at the base of the back of the neck?
- Are you unable to twist your rib cage side to side easily, painlessly and equally?
- Does your low back hurt?
- Do pain killers help you sleep?
- Do you wake unrefreshed each morning?
If yes to any of these questions, we suggest you consider that your poor sleep may have a mechanical cause.
So if you’re having issues with sleep, come and see one of our highly trained Osteopaths to check you over, remove strains, promote mobility and subsequently, improve the quality of your sleep and your life.
