The health blog at the New York Times points out that there are all sorts of behavioral changes you can adopt to fight insomnia that have been proven to work—they just sound so ordinary and common that people either don’t think they’re effective or assume pills will work better.

Some suggestions: turn your clock around so you can’t watch time pass; don’t eat, read or watch TV in bed; avoid caffeine and alcohol before bedtime; light-proof your windows; get up at the same time every morning; and if you can’t fall asleep after 15 minutes, get up and find something boring to do. (We guess you just estimate the amount of time that’s elapsed, since your clock is facing the other way.)

Some of these suggestions are meant to train your brain to equate “bed” with “sleep time,” while others are meant to prevent your central nervous system from becoming “hyper-aroused.” Funny, we thought that stopped after puberty. (Rimshot!)

“Curing Insomnia Without the Pills” [New York Times]
(Photo: Getty)

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