Hello sleepy heads and
insomniacs!
Do you find it hard to
sleep? I am no expert and I admit to being an insomniac for the most
part of my life. Probably, you have read tons of the how-tos, do's
and dont's on sleeping and this post is not about that.
I will share thoughts on
my four pre-sleep buddies which have been helping me get to
slumberland.
Introducing Celestial
Seasonings Sleepytime Tea, Zen Zest Winter Wonderland room fragrance,
Alice Blue candle and Johnson's baby bedtime powder...
Yup, simple and even
boring right? Enough to make me sleep more than my 40 winks ;)
Our lifestyles have
changed a great deal and stress has plagued us with so many ills and
imbalance. In fact, this “stress” thing has become the “norm”
of young and old professionals --- some even claim that if they are
not stressed, they do not feel fulfilled or challenged.
On a personal note, my
wake-up call came after the “usually quiet me” spoke out about
this “damn if you do and damn if you don't” situation to a more
experienced colleague. She then told me that we should just grin and
bear it because being stressed out is part of our job description.
Probably, her statement is more honest when said in its original
Tagalog: “Kasama 'yan sa binabayaran sa atin”. That answer
enlightened me, but probably not in the way that she wanted to. It
began that inner revolution in me that simply refused to be chained
to that state of mind --- if martyrdom and apathy had a child, then
that situation would be the perfect daughter. I'd rather not describe
it at great length; I believe you will recognize it when you're in
that situation.
Well that was then, and
I've decided to give up some things (in the same way that I gave up
some things two years ago) to be able to have a job which allowed me
some freedom --- the job description that lets me go home and sleep
soundly at night (no more lingering negative thoughts on office
politics, unreasonable demands, lowered self-esteem and uncertainty
over values that are supposed to make up my Core). For me, challenge
should not be confused with stress, and vice versa. I'll have
challenge, any day.
Pre-Sleep Buddies
Pardon the lengthy
prelude; I only wanted to talk about some sleeping aids which may
help some of you, dear insomniac friends, who want to trick your
bodies and mind into relaxed states.
These are not
ground-breaking earth-shaking discoveries, okay. They are just the
simple things that we may have forgotten about but still work to give
our much needed bedtime prelude. These plus positivity (nothing beats
positivity).
I will not discuss the
beauty rituals that usually come before these pre-sleep buddies lest
this post becomes too lengthy enough to deserve its own blogsite :)
Let' begin with my
favorite “sleeping” tea.
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As I cleanse my face, I
boil some water. And then fix myself a mug of Celestial Seasonings
Sleepytime Echinacea Complete Care Wellness Tea (quite a mouthful for
something to make you sleep).
I drop the “string-less”
teabag on the mug and pour boiling water over it. As per
instructions, I allow it to steep for six minutes before I remove the
teabag. If I want it a bit sweet, I drop a sugarcane cube (I love
RawBrown Muscovado Rocks) but normally I take it as is.
One box contains 20
string-less tea bags (I got mine from Landmark Supermarket Makati).
The tea bags are string-less to help in waste reduction while the box
is printed on 100% recycled paperboard --- environment friendly.
Ingredients are also purchased straight from the source and helps
community fair trade. These advocacies are plus points for me. The
box also indicates the expiration date --- helpful information to us
who wants our teas fresh.
Celestial Seasonings teas
are blended in Boulder, Colorado and the company has been around for
quite a while. There are other tea variants, too. You may want to
learn more about them at www.celestialseasonings.com.
Here are the
Blendmaster's notes. Please take note of the FDA disclaimer below ---
These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and is not
intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. I say,
please consult a physician if you have a severe case of sleeping
disorder.
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Echinacea is
a flowering plant from the daisy family; the herb and root are used
for the Sleepytime tea. They are commonly called cornflowers with
spiny cone-like purple to pink flowers resembling sea urchins from
which it derived its name (Greek: echino). There are non-definitive
studies which claim that this help treat flu and common colds though
these claims are not supported by clear scientific evidence (credits
to Wikipedia and medicalnewstoday.com).
Elderberry (Sambucus
nigra) is used as an
antioxidant, to lower cholesterol, improve vision and boost the
immune system. The plant bears large clusters of small white or
cream-colored flowers followed by clusters of small black, blue-black
or red berries (credits to Wikipedia and www.herbwisdom.com).
My
google search for Elderflower led
me to fruit cordial recipes. If you're lucky enough to live where
these flowers grow, you may be interested in creating your own summer
soft drink concoction:
www.britishfood.about.com/od/recipeindex/r/efowercordial.htm)
Stevia
is commonly known as sweetleaf or sugarleaf and used as sweetener or
sugar substitute (credits to Wikipedia).
Celestial Seasonings
Sleepytime Tea also contains chamomile, spearmint, peppermint,
lemongrass, tilia flowers and orange blossoms which are widely
popular elements to help in relaxation. That said, it's not just for
helping ease you into sleep but will also work for those downtime
moments when you want to unwind (e.g., spending Friday night at home,
a lazy Saturday afternoon or an easy Sunday morning --- the best
parts of the week, right?)
After the tea...
It should really be quiet
(the TV playing orchestra music and set to sleep timer, or turned
off).
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I pick any one of these
tricks.
Alice Blue candle
(www.alicebluecandle.com).
These soy candles (the wax comes from a renewable source and
is biodegradable) are hand-poured and with longer-lasting fragrance.
I get my candle from the Alice Blue kiosk at Glorietta (Trivia from
their website: Alice Blue is a pale shade of blue and was named
after Theodore Roosevelt's daughter, Alice Roosevelt-Longworth.)
Hmm... now, my fave blue shade is a toss up between Tiffany Blue and
Alice Blue...
My favorite scent has
always been the “Berry Crumble” which is supposed to smell like
Glorietta and Greenbelt malls. I'm not sure how memories of malls
will help you sleep but I love Berry Crumble. I light the candle and
reflect for a few minutes before I carefully turn it off by dipping
the wick into the candle wax (using a metal nail pusher; couldn't
find my wick stick before I left Iloilo). This way, the scent lingers
in the room (as opposed to blowing the candle). Then, I smell the
lovely Glorietta/Greenbelt memories and am ready for my royal
slumber...
I say, listen to your
heart and pick the candle scent that brings you to that carefree
state. Lavender is not universal and may be overrated that we've
become immune to it.
Zen Zest Winter
Wonderland Room Fragrance. I spray this on the area over my
bed. It smells like, well, Christmas (spicy cinnamon and cloves). I
got this post-Christmas from Zen Zest's discounted offers. Again, I
don't know how the scent of the most exciting season of the year can
help you sleep. To each our own; I say, pick the room spray which
brings back a calming memory (childhood, oranges, flowers or coffee
if you must). In my case, the scent of a snow-covered forest where
the proverbial Alice (in Wonderland, yes) once roamed (I made this
up) is a fairy tale-ish setting I want to keep through my own
dreamland.
Johnson's baby
bedtime powder. Cheap thrills, yeah? I sprinkle the powder
inside my pillowcases and a few more over the bed sheet. While the
powder is in a lavender-colored dispenser, there is no lavender in
the ingredients list; again, lavender is not universal. If you may,
sprinkle some powder on your hands, rub them a bit, and spread these
on your skin. We are entitled to this as babies are. Freshly washed
pillowcases and bed sheets plus the smell of Johnson's trademarked
NaturalCalm essences (a proprietary blend of soothing aromas and
delicate essence of Jasmine Blossoms) translates to a “lalalala”
lullaby for me...
Those are my pre-sleep
rituals. May these inspire you to find your own. More importantly,
nothing beats a positive view of life to give you peace of mind. When
the day ends with lots of To Do's and uncertainties, I remind myself
that tomorrow's another day; rest for now and leave for tomorrow what
should be done for tomorrow.
Finishing everything in
24 hours does not necessarily mean finishing it well. There's more to
life than work and deadlines so why spend every waking hour keeping
tabs of what was done and what needs to be done. We need to focus on
those important priceless positive thoughts (of family, friends and
dog kisses) which deserve more recesses and better accommodations in
our memory banks. Let's make reservations, shall we?
Sleep tight dears. Sweet
dreams.
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