Yoga India Foundation

How Yoga and Meditation can help you to overcome Insomnia

How Yoga and Meditation can help you to overcome Insomnia

 Insomnia is considered a sleeping disorder. If you find it difficult to fall asleep at night or stay asleep, you might suffer from Insomnia. Persistent sleeplessness is known as chronic insomnia.

Causes of insomnia include extremely stressful situations, emotional or physical discomfort, depression, and anxiety.

If you suffer from insomnia you are likely to experience sleepiness during the day, irritability, concentration problems, emotional fluctuations, and poor memory.

To overcome insomnia and feelings of anxiety, we recommend practicing yoga and meditation daily.

It is scientifically proven that regular meditation practices in combination with yoga can reduce insomnia drastically.

Practice silent meditation in the morning

Meditation can help you to remove negativities from your mind and reduce stress. Through the removal of stress, you will begin to feel more relaxed and calm at night and get into a healthy sleeping pattern again.

Begin your meditation practice in the early morning. Take a comfortable pillow and place it under your buttocks. Now simple-cross your legs and straighten your spine. Place your hands on your knees and relax your whole body. Gently, close your eyes and sit quietly.

Ideally, you should start with 5 minutes of sitting silently. Do not move your body. Just observe your thought and keep your eyes closed. This might be very challenging at first, but after regular practice, you will increase your patience and find it easier.

Build up the duration of time sitting silently to at least 30 minutes per day.

Yoga asanas and pranayama for a better sleep

After your meditation practice, you can immediately start with your yoga practice. Therefore it is important to wait for a little until you take in your breakfast. If you are very hungry, eat a banana or muesli bar.

To overcome insomnia, it is important to balance your body and release accumulated carbon dioxide.

Practise 12 rounds of Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutation) every morning followed by this sequence:

  • 20 seconds Tree pose
  • 10 seconds Forward Fold
  • Mountain Pose
  • Child’s Pose
  • Cobra Pose
  • Child’s Pose
  • Fish Flapping Pose
  • Savasana (Final Relaxation)

Make sure to lie on your back in the end (Savasana) and relax completely for 10 minutes.

3 Om Chants and Brahmari Pranayam can be very soothing as well.

To learn yoga and meditation on a deeper level and live in a real yogic ashram environment, you are cordially invited to join our Yoga Teacher Training Programs in India.