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Do you sometimes have trouble falling asleep, or do you wake up in the middle of the night without being able to fall back asleep?
One in three French people suffers from sleep disorders, including 10% of severe insomnia. Often, when you come to meet us at organic and wellness fairs, this question comes up: which mandala to choose to solve sleep problems?
We will try to give you some ideas and solutions to improve your sleep.
Why is the question of sleep essential?
Good sleep is essential for a healthy and balanced life. A disturbance in its cycle can disrupt the rhythm of a life and quickly become unmanageable with consequences on health and social relationships.
And in this matter I am really well placed to tell you about it! My daughter has had sleeping problems for more than two and a half years. For almost a year she was waking up every hour
Yes, you read that right.... it had become unbearable.
I understand better why the military uses this technique as a torture weapon!
I can also tell you how much I understand that sleep problems can ruin your life!
You're in a funk all day, you're irritable with your loved ones, you can't concentrate on your tasks, etc. You can't think of anything else. All you can think about is getting back to sleep to recover a little.
Thanks to a few kinesiology sessions, my daughter's problems have disappeared. On the other hand, as far as I'm concerned, getting back to sleep after such a long period of chaotic nights was a bit complicated
I'm going to share with you some solutions that I've tried myself to get back to good sleep.
Did you say "night wakings"?
To begin with, it's true that not everyone has the same sleep needs.
According to studies, on average, you need between 6 and 8 hours of sleep to be rested; some people even need 10 hours to be perfectly fit.
As I have experienced myself, we now know that repeated lack of sleep can have harmful consequences: weight gain, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, gastrointestinal disorders, viral infections, but also depression, headaches, reduced motivation, learning difficulties, dropping out of school, professional worries. Not to mention drowsiness at the wheel, the leading cause of accidents on the motorways.
Night-time awakenings are characterized by waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to go back to sleep, as thoughts are swirling.
Sleep usually occurs in 90-minute cycles. To fall asleep, we take the beginning of a cycle that announces itself by yawning, and the eyelids that become heavy.
Disturbed cycles create difficulties in falling asleep, agitation, night wakings, and/or early wakings. They result in a disorder of daytime vigilance, fatigue, bad mood, etc. Young children (2 to 3 years old) who have frequent night wakings have an increased risk of developing emotional symptoms and inattention and/or hyperactivity by the age of 5-6 years.
Night wakings can be temporary or permanent. They are very often related to the stresses of the day. They can also occur at the time of a bereavement, a separation, a shock, an illness or jet lag.
Light pollution is also responsible for many sleep disorders. Globally, it is estimated that 83% of the population never has a completely dark night, and the number of artificial light points continues to increase by 2% each year (due to the massive use of LED lighting). At the same time, sleep disorders have never been so widespread in our country: 73% of French people say they wake up at least once a night, and 36% say they suffer from at least one sleep disorder.
What are the solutions to improve your sleep?
Practice the 4-7-8 breathing technique
This simple method was developed by Harvard Professor Andrew Weill. Keep your tongue glued to the puck and inhale deeply through your nose for 4 seconds. Hold your breath for 7 seconds, then exhale through your mouth for 8 seconds. Repeat this exercise for 30 seconds and let yourself go!
Clear the air to make it really work
For the method to work, it is important to clear your head. Indeed, you have to imagine that with each exhalation, you also release all the negative thoughts that parasitize your brain and prevent you from sinking into sleep. "Counting time is a bit like counting sheep, it's a way of letting go," says the specialist.
But how can this technique work so well?
The university professor behind this technique explains that: "The 4-7-8 is a powerful method of falling asleep because it provides more oxygen than normal breathing to the parasympathetic nervous system, which is overburdened in times of stress According to him, a state of physiological relaxation is therefore more easily achieved.
This technique is very similar to those practiced in sophrology as Sylvie Nard explains: "Abdominal breathing is the basis of sophrology. To listen and to become aware of its breathing, it is to come back to oneself, to settle down for better calming. It is especially to enter in a rhythm."
If you find it difficult to apply this method at first, do not hesitate to persevere and try again. To help you, the specialist advises to practice in parallel of this breathing, an exercise of visualization at the time of the bedtime: "It is necessary to learn how to let itself carry and to release itself from the mental one. For that, we can use images that relax us like the rolling of the waves on a beach or a soothing color."
Take a melatonin pill
Melatonin is often referred to as the sleep hormone. It is best known as the central hormone for regulating chrono-biological rhythms, being synthesized mainly at night. It regulates many hormonal secretions in humans and other mammals. It will help you fall asleep and have a better quality of sleep (but does not extend the duration of sleep). You can ask your pharmacist for advice on dosage.
In my case, my homeopath had prescribed a complex of vitamins, minerals etc to help me synthesise melatonin. This was very effective in getting me back to a normal sleep pattern.
Even if the solution lies within yourself, do not hesitate to consult a doctor to help you.
Focus on a mandala
"Mandala" means center and circle. They are symbols of sacred geometry in various shapes organized around a center.
These symbols symbolically represent the relationship of the human being to the cosmos and the entire universe. In reality, we can find the shape of the mandala everywhere around us: our brain or the solar system are mandalas. A cell? A flower? Mandalas, too!
The mandala can be used as a meditation tool. But it can also be used for well-being. Particularly psychic.
Carl Gustav Jung, a Swiss doctor, psychiatrist and psychologist, was the first to notice that when people were going through difficult phases, they spontaneously drew what looked like rosettes. After a lot of research, he came to the conclusion that in psychological terms, the mandala represents the whole person. And that this drawing structured around a center allows to reach a balance, a harmony.
So if we are going through a phase of chaos in our lives - psychically or physically - being able to work with a mandala will allow us to reconnect with our deep structure. With all our potential, our self. For in the end, to go to the centre of the mandala and return to our own inner centre. The shape of the mandala and the center automatically lead us to a state of unity. They allow us to center ourselves. But there are also the colours which, associated with the shapes, will visually create volumes from which very different sensations and energies will emerge.
The mandala is above all a tool for concentration. The fact of focusing all our attention on a symbol linked to the living brings us back to the present moment. This naturally leads to a state of relaxation, calm and peace: we no longer think about our worries. It is particularly useful to fight against stress, and thus improve our sleep.
It is clear that the larger the mandala is printed, as on a canvas, the more it radiates and emits powerful vibrations. If you have had the opportunity to meet us at organic and wellness fairs, you have experienced this! Moreover, many of you feel an inner warmth when you approach our stand. It is normal, you are in front of a condensed energy, of life. We are not used to it anymore.
You can also use smaller supports like the harmonizing disc to concentrate. It is a useful and practical object to carry with you everywhere. So, when you have a little stress or slackness, take the disc out of your bag and put your eyes for a few moments. It will help you relax, calm you down, refocus you, concentrate on the essential: life.
So, which mandala or symbol to choose to fight against sleep problems?
No, I haven't forgotten your question!
My first impulse will be to invite you to choose your mandala by feeling it, because you are the one who is best able to select with your heart the one that suits you best. We will naturally be attracted to the one we need.
When you have trouble making up your mind, I often direct you to the Letting Go mandala because I consider that it is a virtue, an energy that we all basically need
Then we can turn to the mandala of Calm, Serenity, Digestion, Healing, mandala to remain serene despite the whirlwind of life, etc..
It's up to you to look at what imbalance is at the origin of your sleep problems.
You will certainly find the one you need in our catalogue of over 400 mandalas!
The hidden side of coloring
There are many models of mandalas or coloring mandala. Some are simple, others will require real artistic talent. The most daring will build their own creation by inventing their patterns and deciding on their colors.
This activity has a resolutely artistic side that implies a creative approach that can remain at the stage of a gift to oneself or be externalized by offering it to others.
This artistic approach helps to develop self-confidence, in one's ability to face emptiness, difficulty or failure. This is already an important contribution, but the mandala goes even further.
In Sanskrit, mandalas mean circle, and by extension, sphere, environment, community. As Carl Jung implies in his notes, this circular drawing becomes a projection of our states of mind. It allows us to project our emotions outside of ourselves through the patterns and colors we choose. It can become a mirror of the soul.
But making mandalas or coloring requires a certain attention. It forces us to focus, to refocus only on our work. Focusing only on the present moment allows us to let go, to settle down and to take a step back from external events.
This practice not only allows us to pacify our thoughts and to find inner calm, hence its use as a meditation support, but also acts on the breath. With the attention given to the gesture, the breath calms down as the brain "disconnects" from the surrounding stress.
Mandalas facilitate the return to calm after a major stress.
Drawing is also a great transitional tool for those who need to learn to let go of their phone, email or social networks. During this time devoted to mandalas, the disconnection is both physical and psychological. Nothing else is of interest.
Other natural treatments
Try to clear your mind, letting go of memories, strong emotions, insistent images. There are many other methods such as :
- yoga nidra or sleep yoga, chanting the sound "ooom";
- acupuncture, do in, shiatsu, Qi gong;
- sophrology, relaxation, meditation;
- hypnosis, self-hypnosis...
- Take a hot bath;
- Put a drop of lavender essential oil under your pillow
- Enjoy a chamomile tea
- Use lithotherapy: some stones are known to help to be more peaceful and sleep better.
Amethyst, for example, is a powerful stone that calms nervousness and provides a deep sense of calm. It facilitates sleep and is particularly recommended to people prone to nightmares and insomnia.
- Etc.
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Sources :
The 4-7-8 technique: The miracle cure to fall asleep in less than a minute
The "sleep diaries" of the National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance
Carl Gustave Jung
