Are you struggling to get a good night sleep? Massage therapy could be the key to help you get your forty winks

Sleep is as important to your health as a healthy diet and regular exercise. Whatever your reason for sleep loss, insomnia can affect you both mentally and physically. Not only does it make you feel less energetic it also reduces your cognitive functions while increasing depression, anxiety and problems with memory.

So how can massage help you? Massage directly influences the body’s production of serotonin, which is essential for the production of melatonin and this is  essential for a good night sleep. Melatonin influences the sleep stage of an individual’s circadian rhythm which basically means it tells your body its night time and it’s time to go to sleep. Massage is a smart healthy drug free option to help you overcome your insomnia. But obviously if you drinking a litre of coffee before bed you are not going to reap the benefits so here are some of our guidelines for you to follow:

1. Wake up at the same time each day. It may be tempting to sleep late on weekends especially if you’ve not been sleeping during the week but if you suffer from insomnia you should get up at the same time every day in order to train your body to wake at a consistent time.
2. Eliminate alcohol and stimulants like nicotine and caffeine. The effects of caffeine can last for several hours even up to 24 hours, so the chances of it affecting sleep are significant. Caffeine may not only cause difficulty initiating sleep, but may also cause frequent awakenings.  I know your thinking alcohol helps me sleep but it actually can then lead to frequent arousals and a non-restful night’s sleep.
3. Limit naps. While napping seems like a proper way to catch up on missed sleep, it is not always so. It is important to establish and maintain a regular sleep pattern and train oneself to associate sleep with cues like darkness and a consistent bedtime. Napping can affect the quality of night-time sleep.
4. Exercise regularly. Regular exercise can improve sleep quality and duration. However, exercising immediately before bedtime can have a stimulant effect on the body and should be avoided. Try to finish exercising at least three hours before you plan to retire for the night.
5. Keep the bed for sleeping.  Do not study, or make phone calls, for example, while in bed or even in the bedroom, and avoid watching television or listening to the radio. All these activities can increase alertness and make it difficult to fall asleep. You need to create a relaxing zone.
6. Do not eat or drink right before going to bed. Eating a late dinner or snacking before going to bed can activate the digestive system and keep you up.
7. Make your sleeping environment comfortable. Temperature, lighting, and noise should be controlled to make the bedroom conducive to falling (and staying) asleep.
8. Get all your worrying over with before you go to bed. If you find you lay in bed thinking about tomorrow and what you need to do or should have done today writing it all down to get it out of head can help immensely.
9. Reduce stress.  Easier said than done but massage can also help you with this.
10. Book yourself a massage.  As soon as you inform one of our therapists at Body Connection that you are having trouble sleeping they will set about tailoring your massage to you by blending a special oil of geranium and lavender to further increase the effects of the massage as it is known for promoting a restful sleep.