Facts on Massage for Insomnia, Santa Barbara, Ca.

Insomnia is a sleep disorder in which you have trouble falling and/or staying asleep. The condition can be short-term (acute) or can last a long time (chronic). It may also come and go. Acute insomnia lasts from 1 night to a few weeks. Insomnia is chronic when it happens at least 3 nights a week for 3 months or more.

Insomnia is a common sleep disorder. With insomnia, you may have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or getting good quality sleep. This happens even though you have the time and the right environment to sleep well. Insomnia interferes with your daily activities and may make you feel unrested or sleepy during the day.

Short-term insomnia may be caused by stress or changes in your schedule or environment. It can last for a few days or weeks. Chronic (long-term) insomnia occurs three or more nights a week, lasts more than three months, and cannot be fully explained by another health problem or medicine.

To diagnose insomnia, your doctor may ask about your sleep habits and ask you to keep a sleep diary. Your doctor may recommend healthy lifestyle habits such as a regular sleep schedule, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, and medicines to help you manage your insomnia.

Insomnia can affect your memory and concentration. Chronic insomnia raises your risk of high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.

Insomnia Causes

The causes of your insomnia will depend on the type of sleeplessness you experience.

Short-term insomnia, or acute insomnia, may be caused by a number of things including:

  • stress
  • an upsetting or traumatic event
  • changes to your sleep habits, like sleeping in a hotel or new home
  • physical pain
  • jet lag
  • certain medications

Chronic insomnia lasts for at least 3 months and can be primary or secondary. Primary insomnia has no known cause. Secondary insomnia occurs with another condition that can include:

  • medical conditions that make it harder to sleep, such as arthritis or back pain
  • psychological issues, such as anxiety or depression
  • substance use
  • sleep apnea
  • diabetes

Risk factors for insomnia

Insomnia can occur at any age and is more likely to affect women than men.

According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)Trusted Source, people with certain risk factors are more likely to have insomnia. These risk factors include:

  • high levels of stress
  • emotional disorders, such as depression or distress related to a life event
  • lower-income
  • traveling to different time zones
  • sedentary lifestyle
  • changes in work hours or working night shifts

Having certain medical conditions, such as obesity and cardiovascular disease, can also lead to insomnia. Menopause can lead to insomnia as well.

 

Insomnia symptoms

People who experience insomnia usually report at least one of these symptoms:

  • waking too early in the morning
  • unrefreshing sleep
  • trouble falling or staying asleep

These symptoms of insomnia can lead to other symptoms, including:

  • fatigue
  • mood changes
  • irritability

You may also have difficulty concentrating on tasks during the day.

What is the main cause of insomnia?
Common causes of chronic insomnia include Stress. Concerns about work, school, health, finances, or family can keep your mind active at night, making it difficult to sleep. Stressful life events or trauma — such as the death or illness of a loved one, divorce, or a job loss — also may lead to insomnia.
What are the 3 types of insomnia?
Three types of insomnia are acute, transient, and chronic insomnia. Insomnia is defined as repeated difficulty with sleep initiation, maintenance, consolidation, or quality that occurs despite adequate time and opportunity for sleep and results in some form of daytime impairment.
How can I stop my insomnia?
Basic tips:
  1. Stick to a sleep schedule. Keep your bedtime and wake time consistent from day to day, including on weekends.
  2. Stay active. …
  3. Check your medications. …
  4. Avoid or limit naps. …
  5. Avoid or limit caffeine and alcohol and don’t use nicotine. …
  6. Don’t put up with pain. …
  7. Avoid large meals and beverages before bed.
How do I know if I have insomnia?
You have insomnia if you regularly:
  1. find it hard to go to sleep.
  2. wake up several times during the night.
  3. lie awake at night.
  4. wake up early and cannot go back to sleep.
  5. still feel tired after waking up.
  6. find it hard to nap during the day even though you’re tired.
  7. feel tired and irritable during the day.
How can I stop my insomnia?
Basic tips:
  1. Stick to a sleep schedule. Keep your bedtime and wake time consistent from day to day, including on weekends.
  2. Stay active. …
  3. Check your medications. …
  4. Avoid or limit naps. …
  5. Avoid or limit caffeine and alcohol and don’t use nicotine. …
  6. Don’t put up with pain. …
  7. Avoid large meals and beverages before bed.
Is insomnia a mental illness?
Insomnia is caused by difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep, or waking up too early in the morning. Insomnia is rarely an isolated medical or mental illness but rather a symptom of another illness to be investigated by a person and their medical doctors.

Is there a test for insomnia?

How is insomnia diagnosed? Insomnia is not a disease, so no specific test can diagnose it. But when you can’t sleep well, it often has to do with some other cause. “Normal sleep” differs for each person, so checking your health and sleep history is an important first step to finding a cause for poor-quality sleep.
Can you go crazy from insomnia?
Longitudinal studies suggest that insomnia and other sleep problems worsen before an episode of mania or bipolar depression, and lack of sleep can trigger mania. Sleep problems also adversely affect mood and contribute to relapse. Anxiety disorders.
How long will insomnia last?
“Whether it’s a big test, a job interview, or a breakup, acute insomnia can last for a week or more. On the other hand, chronic insomnia is defined as three or more nights of disrupted sleep a week over the course of three or more months.
What will a doctor do for insomnia?
In some cases, your doctor may prescribe medicine to help you fall asleep and stay asleep. Prescription sleeping pills may help you sleep better. Common ones include eszopiclone (brand name: Lunesta), zolpidem (brand name: Ambien), and zaleplon (brand name: Sonata). These medicines can have side effects.
How can I cure insomnia naturally?
Tips and tricks
  1. Avoid chemicals that disrupt sleep, such as nicotine, caffeine, and alcohol.
  2. Eat lighter meals at night and at least two hours before bed.
  3. Stay active, but exercise earlier in the day.
  4. Take a hot shower or bath at the end of your day.
  5. Avoid screens one to two hours before bed.
What is the best herbal medicine for insomnia?
Here are some sleep-promoting herbal remedies that could make it easier for you to nod off:
  • Chamomile tea. Simple, delicious, and effective. …
  • St. John’s wort. …
  • Valerian. …
  • Passionflower. …
  • California poppy.
What is the best vitamin for insomnia?
  • Vitamin C. The first thing that comes to mind when you think of vitamin C might be that it’s a great boost for your immune system. …
  • Vitamin D. It may come as a surprise that the main vitamin we get from sunlight, vitamin D, is also incredibly important to us at night. …
  • Magnesium. …
  • Iron. …
  • Calcium.
What foods are natural sedatives?
Which foods can help you sleep?
  • Almonds.
  • Warm milk.
  • Kiwifruit.
  • Chamomile tea.
  • Walnuts.
  • Tart cherries.
  • Fatty fish.
  • Barley grass powder.
What foods help fight insomnia?
Here are the 9 best foods and drinks you can have before bed to enhance your quality of sleep.
  1. Almonds. Almonds are a type of tree nut with many health benefits. …
  2. Turkey. Turkey is delicious and nutritious. …
  3. Chamomile tea. …
  4. Kiwi. …
  5. Tart cherry juice. …
  6. Fatty fish. …
  7. Walnuts. …
  8. Passionflower tea.
Do bananas help insomnia?
But did you know bananas can also help you sleep? It turns out; this beloved fruit is the perfect sleep aid. It provides several vitamins and minerals that can improve the quality of your sleep. Bananas reduce stress and anxiety, alleviate muscle cramps, and regulate your sleep-wake cycle with serotonin and melatonin.
Is Ginger good for insomnia?
Some people take ginger tea as a remedy for insomnia as it helps them to relax before bedtime. Lemongrass has a relaxing effect on the brain, which helps relieve stress. It is also known for improving sleep patterns.
What is the strongest natural sedative?

Valerian (Valeriana officinalis)

With over 200 species worldwide, the most widely utilized species of valerian is Valeriana officinalis. Valerian has been used from time immemorial to treat restlessness, sleep disorders, and insomnia.

How do you break the cycle of insomnia?
Breaking the cycle of anxiety and insomnia is best treated by addressing both issues concurrently. Ideally, you can alleviate anxiety before bed so you’ll have less trouble getting to sleep.
…
  1. Practice yoga and meditation. …
  2. Keep a worry journal next to your bed. …
  3. Avoid common sleep pitfalls.
How does massage help with insomnia?
Two things occur when you get a massage that can help with sleep: a reduction in pain and tension in the body, and a gentler, more stable journey from wakefulness to sleep. Sleep is a whole-body process that responds to changes in body chemistry coordinated with the circadian system.
Is massage good for insomnia?
Conclusion. Massage is a smart, healthy, and drug-free option that has helped many people overcome insomnia. Because melatonin influences the sleep stage of an individual’s circadian rhythm, a natural way of boosting serotonin is a positive sleep-inducing option.
Why does massage help you sleep?
“Plus research has shown that the chemistry of sleep is relevant to massage therapy because massage can directly influence the body’s production of serotonin and the creation of melatonin”.

Adequate sleep is necessary for healthy functioning, and quality sleep is vital to health and wellness. But an estimated 50 to 70 million Americans experience sleep issues that affect their health,1 often leading to low work performance, slowed reaction time, obesity, higher risk of long-term disease, and substance abuse.2

Chronic insomnia causes extreme fatigue and problems with concentration, and can adversely affect a person’s mood and well-being. For healthcare professionals, helping patients overcome insomnia is critical for fostering overall health and wellness.3 According to Ralph Pascualy, MD, medical director of the Swedish Sleep Medicine Institute (SSMI) in Seattle, both the quantity and quality of an individual’s sleep directly affect their health.4

Nutrition and exercise are often recommended as the foundation of good health, but research shows that quality sleep should also be part of any holistic treatment. Those who sleep less than 8 hours per night are experiencing “sleep debt,” which cannot be reversed by sleeping more on the weekend.4

According to the Mayo Clinic, studies have found massage to be beneficial for insomnia-related stress, as well as2:

  • Anxiety
  • Digestive disorders
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Headaches
  • Myofascial pain syndrome
  • Paresthesias and nerve pain
  • Soft tissue strains or injuries
  • Sports injuries
  • Temporomandibular joint pain

Benefits of Massage Therapy

The National Institutes of Health has advised that massage therapy can reduce fatigue and improve sleep5 and, based on research gathered by the American Massage Therapy Association, massage has been shown to improve sleep in infants, children, adults, and the elderly alike, as well as individuals with psychiatric disorders, fibromyalgia, cancer, heart disease, lower back pain, cerebral palsy, and breast disease.1

Anne Williams, director of education, Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals, and author of Spa Bodywork and Teaching Massage, says, “Massage helps people spend more time in deep sleep, the restorative stage in which the body barely moves, which reduces the neurotransmitter associated with pain.”

There are many different types of massage, including this common types2:

  • Swedish massage—This is a gentle form of massage that uses long strokes, kneading, deep circular movements, vibration, and tapping to help relax and energize.
  • Deep massage—This massage technique uses slower, more forceful strokes to target the deeper layers of muscle and connective tissue, commonly to help with muscle damage from injuries.
  • Sports massage—This is similar to Swedish massage, but it’s geared toward people involved in sports activities to help prevent or treat injuries.
  • Trigger point massage—This massage focuses on areas of tight muscle fibers that can form in muscles after injuries or overuse.

The chemistry of sleep is relevant in relation to massage because it directly influences the body’s production of serotonin, which is essential for the production of melatonin. A study on back pain, published in the International Journal of Neuroscience, demonstrated that in addition to a decrease in long-term pain, subjects receiving massage experienced improved sleep and an increase in serotonin levels.3 Results were based on twice-weekly, 30-minute massages for 5 weeks, using these techniques:

  • Kneading and pressing the back muscles
  • Massaging both sides of the spine and hips
  • Gliding rubs to the legs
  • Kneading and pressing the thighs

In the supine position, participants received:

  • Gliding strokes to the neck and abdomen
  • Kneading of the rectus and oblique muscles that help bend the trunk of the body forward
  • Rubbing of the legs
  • Kneading of the anterior thighs
  • Flexing of the thighs and knees
  • Gentle pulling on both legs

In addition to other assessments, the asleep scale to measure the quality of sleep and urine samples to measure levels of serotonin were used in the study.

Conclusion

Massage is a smart, healthy, and drug-free option that has helped many people overcome insomnia. Because melatonin influences the sleep stage of an individual’s circadian rhythm, a natural way of boosting serotonin is a positive sleep-inducing option. This connection calls for further research showing the direct effects massage therapy has on serotonin and sleep. In the meantime, the existing evidence is enough to recommend regular massages for sleepless patients.3

A growing number of healthcare professionals recognize the benefits of taking a multidisciplinary approach to patients in order to better identify the source of illness4—rather than simply treating the symptoms. At the same time, sleeping pills and pain killers should take a back seat to complementary and alternative forms of medicine, including massage therapy, for treating the whole person and improving outcomes.

more info at:
Therapeutic Swedish Massage, Sports Massage Therapy in Santa Barbara, Goleta

*Disclaimer: This information is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease without consulting with a qualified healthcare provider.
Please consult your healthcare provider with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.
The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended as a diagnosis, treatment, or prescription of any kind. The decision to use, or not to use, any information is the sole responsibility of the reader. These statements are not expressions of legal opinion relative to the scope of practice, medical diagnosis, or medical advice, nor do they represent an endorsement of any product, company, or specific massage therapy technique, modality, or approach. All trademarks, registered trademarks, brand names, registered brand names, logos, and company logos referenced in this post are the property of their owners.