Does sleeping for only a few hours a night leave you miserable and a nightmare to live with? If the answer is yes,  you join one third of the adult American population. If you are female, then you are twice as likely to suffer from sleep deprivation effects on your body and fed up wondering how to get a good night’s sleep.

Being irritable is one thing, but there are also other problems associated with sleep deprivation effects. These include an increased susceptibility to heart disease, diabetes, depression, high blood pressure, anxiety and obesity and you may be more accident prone as well.

What can you do to get a good sleep? Number one, if you have been awake for half an hour, whatever the time, get up and find something to do. Don’t tell your brain that bed is where you lie awake. We are not talking about walking the dog, cooking, or studying hard, but to find something pretty boring such as reading an inane book or magazine, watching some night time TV etc. Keep the lights soft until you start to feel dozy then return to bed.

If you are hungry in the evening or in the night, carbohydrates are the best snack to go, for but do keep it light. Don’t go for sugary foods or alcohol as these will spike your blood sugar levels and keep you awake.

If you want to try any medications, be careful and read the instructions carefully. Even if they are over-the-counter natural sleep aids, it is wise to check with your own doctor and imperative if you are on other medications. Even herbal sleep aids can react with existing drugs in your system. Not all natural sleep aids will work for you and you will need to experiment as you don’t want something that makes you feel groggy all the next day. Don’t take anything like this for too long though, try and wean yourself off any medication so you don’t become dependent. Remember that as their effectiveness wears off, you are likely to want to take increased doses which isn’t good.

Apart from various relaxation techniques you could also consider hypnosis to provide a trigger to help you sleep. See a life coach who may be able to change your approach to life and stop some of your anxieties. Try some of the natural sleep aids and hopefully, the sleep deprivation effects will lessen and you will sleep like a log on a regular basis.