Do you think you are plagued by insomnia or some other sleep disorder?

If so, you are not alone!

The "National Commission For Sleep Disorders Research" concluded in 1993 that about 30 - 40 million Americans suffer from chronic disorders of sleep, maybe 30 million have chronic insomnia problems and about 20 million have problems sleeping because of sleep apnea.

You can see you are not alone .....

The question then becomes what steps you can take to get a good nights sleep?

The first decision is if you think you need to see your doctor to begin with.

It is easy to understand that if a medical condition is the cause of your insomnia - sleep apnea (caused by snoring, for example), some heart diseases, severe asthma and diabetes are just a few of these - you need professional help.

Unless your insomnia is tackled at its root no sleeping aids will help for long.

A simple example - treating your severe asthma may well cause your insomnia to go away!

Right, when that has been checked you can go on to look at your sleep hygiene.

Make sure your bedroom is as quiet as you can make it, your bed is comfortable and that it is cool and dark.

Try to tick off as many as possible of the following boxes:

* Make bedtime and getting out of bed to a firm routine, even when it is a weekend.

* Daytime naps is a no-no.

* No night caps - yes, it will make you fall asleep but you'll keep waking up later during the night

* No caffeinated drinks in the evening, i.e coffee, tea, "Coke".

* No smoking!

* Try to get into a habit of relaxing in the evenings. This means avoiding loud music, TV and exercise in the evening'

* But do exercise earlier in the day - you will sleep much better!

Now to a much discussed matter - how much sleep do we need?

Some people are quite happy to sleep 4-5 hours, whilst others will enjoy 10 hours per night (teenagers are a good example...).

On average most people will sleep 6-8 hours, but this is variable.

The simple test is that if you feel like you have slept enough - then you have!

This should help you treat your insomnia, unless you suffer from a really severe sleep disorder - no more "I can't sleep!.