Sleep disorders - Part 1
Causes of sleep disorders
| Psyche |
Worry Grief Anger Anxiety |
| Stress factors | Overwork |
| Biorhythms |
Shift and alternating work Going to bed too late (Pitta phase of the night) |
| Stimulants |
Caffeine Nicotine Alcohol Drugs |
| Diet |
Dinner too late and too difficult to digest, Vata-stimulating foods in the evening Fasting |
| Medication | |
| Interfering fields at the sleeping place | Geopathy, electrosmog, mobile phones |
| Diseases | Hyperthyroidism, menopausal symptoms, apnoea syndrome, high blood pressure |
Nutrition
Nutritional errors as a cause of sleep disorders are often completely disregarded in modern medicine, but they are among the most common causes. The evening meal should be easily digestible, without animal protein and should be eaten relatively early in the evening. Vata-soothing foods are particularly suitable:
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Rice
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Pasta dishes
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Milk porridge
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Rice pudding
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Steamed vegetables
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warm nutritious soups. .
Unfavourable effects
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Meat
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Sausage
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Cheese
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Fish
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Eggs
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Yoghurt, curd cheese
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only raw vegetables
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flatulent foods and sumptuous meals.
In order to nourish body and mind in a balanced way, it is therefore necessary to have the main meal at noon, so that a small but tasty evening meal is sufficient to nourish body and mind. Of course, stimulants such as coffee, black tea, even green tea in large quantities, Coca-Cola or even alcohol should not be consumed.
Biorhythms
Ayurvedic medicine has a simple explanation for this: While many people are sleepy in the early evening and a certain tiredness sets in, after 10 pm new energy is released, alertness increases again and it becomes difficult to fall asleep.
The reason is the pitta dosha, which goes through an active phase between ten and two o'clock at night and releases energy. This is meant for regeneration, especially of the pitta organs (liver, gall bladder, hormonal system, processing in the nervous system). During the Pitta time of night, Agni also works so that food, especially the first nutrient juice Rasa, is formed of good quality and can then be transported into the cells. The pitta of the night also forms the heat of the body during sleep. So if this energy is used up elsewhere, for example by being mentally or physically active, one does not find rest during this time.
Also in the later Vata phase of the night (2-6 a.m.), sleep is then often only superficial, permeated by many thoughts, also worries and fears. Only towards morning, with the beginning of the Kapha time of the day (6-10 a.m.) does a pleasant and sweet, heavy sleep usually return.
Behaviour
Those who suffer from sleep disorders should end the evening with relaxing activities and avoid all exciting behaviours. A restful evening walk, light sporting activity, yoga asanas or relaxing conversations.
Ayurvedic preparations
Maharishi Ayurveda distinguishes between several types of sleep disorders: Vata-, Pitta- and Kapha-related sleep disorders.
Over-stimulated Vata is mainly calmed by Rasayanas, nerve tonics containing Withania somnifera, Asparagus or Nardostachys jatamansi, the Indian valerian. Such remedies are for example MA1401, MA1402, MA1778.
If too much Kapha is the cause, because the excess of heaviness in the body puts such a strain on the metabolism that the organism cannot find restful rest, then medicinal plant mixtures that have a cleansing and digestive supportive effect, such as MA1682 tablets, will help.
Pitta disturbances as a cause of insomnia manifest themselves in heat, sweating, dreams of fighting or aggressive feelings. MA1684 tablets have cooling, pitta-balancing properties. They are particularly indicated in cases of sleep disturbance, for example waking between two and four o'clock in the morning.
Relatively many patients sleep better just by taking Triphala MA505 at night, apparently because it improves metabolism and thus makes sleeping easier.
This text is an excerpt from the book "Ayurveda Basics and Applications" (Dr. Schachinger and Dr. Schrott) page 173ff.
You can find more detailed information in the above-mentioned literature.
If you have sleep problems and would like to discuss them during a consultation with Dr. Schachinger, you can contact us at any time by email at praxis@somamed.at or call +43 (0)7732 455 76 during office hours.
