To live a well balanced, rewarding life of our dreams by day and sleep restfully at night.
Doing these five things will practically guarantee you a good night sleep.
Published February 6, 2013 | 
Doing these five things regularly almost guarantees that I will sleep well at night (and it will work for you too):
1. Remember to stop and pause from all the activity of the day. Going outside. Breathing, even for just a minute does wonders.
2. Going to bed happy and in harmony with my husband.
3. Not allowing myself to get caught up in indecision. It is okay to weigh a few options when needing to make an important decision but ultimately I find it is better to just do something rather than stew. Then when I take action, do not second guess myself.
4. Do my best not to complain (even when I feel like it).
5. Start my day and end my day writing down in my journal a few things I feel thankful for NOW.
Have a blessed day and restful night tonight!
In Peace,
Debra
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Posted in Benefits of Journal Writing, Getting a good night sleep, Gratitude list, insomnia, journal writing, Positive living, Tips to help insomnia, Ways to relax | 
breathing outside, confident in decision making, getting sleep, gratitude list, indecision causes anxiety, journal writing, tips for insomnia | 
Leave a commentSix ways to Stay Still to Get a Better Night Sleep
Published January 13, 2013 | 
A worrying, fidgety mind and restless body are not going to set us up for the best night of sleep. When we are lying there in the dark and find that we can not sleep, our impulse is to toss and turn, sigh heavily, get up repeatedly, etc. This course of action is going to give us a miserable night of insomnia (and probably our partners as well).
Instead of this stressful scenario when we find ourselves awake when we’d rather be sleeping, why not do these six things instead?
1. Cultivate an attitude of not caring so much whether we sleep or not… if we loosen up our expectations about how well we are going to sleep we just may become relaxed enough to sleep!
2. If we find ourselves awake at night, resist the urge to move and fidget. Be still! I have found doing this one thing alone has really helped me go to sleep.
3. Do what we can during the day to set us up for being more still (physically and mentally) at night. Exercise, write down our worries before bedtime in a journal, do something soulful such as meaningful work or helping somebody…
4. This is worth repeating:
do not care or stress about whether you are going to sleep or not.
I think the more we stress, focus, and identify with something we may unintentionally manifest what we don’t want. So, don’t give your insomnia any attention at all. Relax. If you don’t sleep well tonight it is okay. It won’t kill you. Just relax and be as still as possible. Breathe. Think about something that is going well in your life. Breathe…
5. Realize that you may be sleeping more than you think. Even if you are just lying there awake your body is still getting rest (and your mind too if you are not stressing about being awake).
6. Consider starting a meditation practice to train your body and mind to be still and at peace. This is really worth doing!
In Peace,
Debra
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We will sleep like a baby if we do these five things.
Published May 9, 2012 | 
We can sleep like a baby if we:
1. let the events of the day go before bedtime,
2. don’t eat an overly heavy meal late at night,
3. keep our bedroom a peaceful sanctuary (clutter-free, pleasing to the senses, comfortable bed and temperature),
4. dress in comfy sleepwear (or perhaps nothing at all) and wear socks on our feet,
5. we remind ourselves of the good we did and that we are safe and loved. Things are just as they should be.
Sweet Dreams!
Debra
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Eight ways to get our minds off of our insomnia
Published February 27, 2012 | 
If we are having a hard time sleeping, one of the worst things we can do is lie in our bed and remain awake. It’s a form of torture, really.
What I find to be the most helpful when I am awake when I (desperately) want to be asleep is I come up with ways to get my mind off the fact that I am not sleeping.
This morning I offer you eight ideas to get your mind off your insomnia:
1. Get up and write in your journal.
2. Get up and read.
3. Get up and eat a light carbohydrate snack like a banana and a piece of toast or small bowl of cereal.
4. Make love.
5. If you were to write a novel, what might you write about? Plot a good story in your mind.
6. Focus on one color ( really like blue or indigo).
7. Are you warm enough? Put on socks.
8. Are you too hot? Often times being too warm causes sleeplessness. Take off that heavy blanket layer. Crack open a window.
If you can’t sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there worrying. It’s the worry that gets you, not the lack of sleep. ~Dale Carnegie
To a good night’s sleep,
Debra
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Another reason to improve your sleep habits: managing your diabetes
Published July 10, 2011 | 
According to a new study in Diabetes Care, researchers found that people with diabetes who also had insomnia had a 23% higher fasting blood glucose level, a 48% higher fasting insulin level, and an 82% higher insulin resistance than people with diabetes who had no sleep issues.
Source:HealthSmart Advice from The Doctors, USA Weekend July 8-10, 2011
Here at The Warm Milk Journal, we support improving sleep habits by:
1. Exercising and stretching
2. Eating well
3. Writing in our journals
4. Cultivating an attitude of gratitude
5. Finding the pleasure and humor in little things
6. Choosing love over ego based choices such as having to be right or getting our way all the time.
7. Spending time outdoors
8. Focusing on things that matter to us
9. Stretching and practicing yoga
10.Meditation and prayer
11.Communicating, educating yourselves and getting help if one of you snores
12. Comfortable sleep environment: soothing colors, high quality mattress,bed linens, and comfy sleepwear with feet covered, dark, quiet,etc.
If you are one of the millions of people that are dealing with diabetes, I hope these suggestions will help you to get a better night sleep.
I believe no matter what our health condition or other issues going on in our lives getting a good night sleep will only improve the quality of our lives.
Keep visiting The Warm Milk Journal where we support each other to live life to the fullest by day and rest peacefully at night.
Have a blessed day,
Debra
* I am not a doctor and The Warm Milk Journal does not intend to give out medical advice. If you have any kind of serious health issues please consult your physician. Thank you.
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Posted in Bedroom ideas, Getting a good night sleep, Good Health, insomnia, journal writing, Love, Physical Exercises, Positive living, Tips to help insomnia | affects of insomnia on diabetics, good sleep and good health, improve sleep habits, insomnia, manage diabetes, tips for insomnia | Leave a commentThe next time you have insomnia, tap your way back to sleep…
Published May 25, 2011 | 
Tap your way back to sleep by taking these steps the next time you find yourself lying in bed stressing about being awake…
With two fingers from either hand, tap ten times:
1. above your eyebrow
2. under your eye
3. under each arm
4. under your eye again
5. your collarbone
6. under the eye
7. your collarbone
Now place your other hand in front of you and tap on the back of it between your ring finger and your little finger.
You should be sleeping like a baby shortly…
Source: For other wonderful ideas such as this to help with your insomnia, check out Paul McKenna’s I Can Make you Sleep. This tip can be found on page 131.
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Ten tips to getting enough sleep: The Mew Way
Published May 1, 2011 | 
My cat Mew never feels sleep deprived. However does he do it? Here are Mew’s ten tips to
GETTING ENOUGH SLEEP: THE MEW WAY
1. Find a comfy cozy place to sleep: beds, laundry baskets, by a sunny window, boxes, towel cabinet, and bathroom tile floor are all good options.
2. Stretch well before going to sleep.
3. Never skip a meal.
4. Don’t ever watch the clock. Sleep when you feel sleepy.
5. Wake up only when you feel like it (or when you hear the sound of the can opener).
6. Snuggle and sleep next to a loved one.
7. Experiment with different sleep positions.
8. Make napping a priority.
9. Don’t let life stress you out.
10. Be mellow most of the time.
That’s it. Thanks Mew!
No worries here!
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5 Rules to follow if you have insomnia- or 5 rules to break, if that works for you!
Published July 21, 2010 | There is a lot of advice given to help people sleep better. Some of it is good advice. We are all different and some advice given to help you with your insomnia will work. Sometimes, however, it works to do the opposite and “break the rules”. Let’s see…
- No naps. It makes sense to not take naps, stay awake all day, and then sleep only at night. I personally, love my afternoon naps and my siestas do not seem to affect my sleep at night. You do what works for you!
- No caffeine after 2:00pm. I am personally okay if I limit it to one cup of ice coffee, tea, or regular coffee in the afternoon. Don’t like to have much caffeine after, say, 6:00 pm. I am sure this will vary for each person depending on one’s body chemistry.
- No eating too close to bedtime. This rule makes pretty good sense. I can eat close to bedtime so long as it is not a heavy greasy thing (no roast or sausage lasagna right before bed). I sometimes like a simple snack such as a banana, cup of milk, or cookie right before bed, however.
- No TV in the bedroom. I do follow this one. We used to have a TV in our bedroom but we hardly used it. We replaced it with a beautiful mirror. I don’t really notice a difference on my sleeping either way. I like the mirror, however.
- Use bed for sleeping and sex only. I am afraid that I am a huge rule breaker on this one! This bedroom is my nest. I spend so much time in here. I read and write and work on The Warm Milk Journal right here on my bed. My boyfriend, John, even made me this beautiful wooden lap desk for my MacBook. He also built me special bookshelves for the wall on my side of the bedroom. I don’t have an office here at home so my “nest” is it. Does it effect my sleeping? Nope.
We are all different and do what works for you. Follow the rules or break the rules. The important thing is that you are getting the rest you need at night.
Debra : )
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Ten things to avoid if you want a good night sleep
Published June 18, 2010 | - Don’t eat too much right before bed.
- Limit caffeine intake after 3:00 pm
- Make sure your bedroom is not too hot
- Don’t exercise too close to bedtime
- Don’t go to bed mad at your spouse/partner
- Don’t bring your worries to bed with you.
- Don’t watch violent tv , movies, or the news too close to bedtime.
- Don’t take too long a nap during the afternoon
- Don’t eat an overly heavy and high fat meal at dinnertime
- Don’t drink too much alcohol before bedtime.
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