I go through periods when I have insufficient sleep or poor quality sleep or I just have trouble going to sleep. Its a bit of a curse because I then wake up in the morning feeling more tired than the night before. Sometimes, it could be because of things happening in the day, or work, or personal matters or just nothing whatsoever.
I try not to be too dependant on sleep aids, but when sleep does not come even after tossing and turning in bed, I turn to a tried and true solution.
Lavender Oil.
I choose not to burn the oil because while that works, its just too dangerous to leave a naked flame alight while I sleep. If you have an electric burner that you can put on timer, then some lavender oil in some water will help. But I do it this way. All you need is a piece of tissue paper, and some pure lavender oil.
I read somewhere once that if you drop a few drops of lavender oil on your pillow, it can help you rest and thereby sleep better. The rationale I think is because it is close to your head and nose so you breathe in the soothing scent more easily.
I didn’t want to drop it on my pillow because oil can stain the sheets. So I use a piece of tissue paper.
Just drop about 2-3 drops of pure lavender oil directly on a piece of tissue paper, place the paper near your head and it works a treat! I find the scent of lavender soothing and next to your head, it is quite strong. With this method, I find myself falling asleep more easily, being more relaxed and generally, having better quality sleep so I wake up feeling refreshed.
It must be said that I do not have a chronic sleep problem. It just comes and goes so using this method does help me get back into my sleep rhythm and once I do, I stop so I don’t get too dependant or immune to it.
This is a trick I’ve been practising for a few years and it really helps. I do buy a slightly better quality lavender oil (mine have so far come from Australia) and a bottle can last me a long time. For this purpose, I would recommend buying something that is of better quality from a proper store, not one of those RM5 bottles because I just don’t know what goes in there. Pure and good quality lavender oil, like all essential oils, do not come cheap.
If you have a light sleep problem, do give this tip a try. I hope it’ll help you as it has helped me 😉
Have you tried doing something similar to aid sleep? Do you have a simple sleep aid to share?
Paris B
Jyoan says
August 7, 2012 at 8:39 amI will drink a glass of milk or eat a piece of bread. These foods are known to make the body produce sleep-inducing hormones. I have done this for a year now, and it really works.
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:08 pmThanks for the tip Jyoan 🙂 I can’t eat either (actually no milk & am cutting back on bread) but I can imagine its very comforting to have them both 🙂
LG says
August 7, 2012 at 8:52 amOhhhhh…. must definitely try this, am stressed out with final exams atm…. also have tried the kiehl’s midnight recovery as recommended by you, another soothing lavender scent….
also recently bought the aveeno stress relief body wash with lavender, so far am loving it…
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:09 pmOh yes, MRC on face and then, double whammy with the lavender oil just as you drift off to sleep. Hope it helps you get some rest for your final exams – good luck! 🙂
LeGeeque says
August 7, 2012 at 8:56 amI have chronic insomnia sometimes. So bad that the doctor once prescriped Stilnox for me (I think Olympic athletes are not allowed to take this for some reason). It gets me woozy the next morning and makes me feel worse so I stick to melatonin tablets. Failing that, sometimes I listen to jazz but I’ve taken to doing this trick to and I have a 50% success rate – depending how insomniac I was that night ><
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:10 pmWow I took a herbal sleeping pill once while in uni and facing stress induced insomnia. I was so groggy for 2 days after that that I swore never to take it again. I never have thanks to that scary episode 😛
Hanny Daforcena says
August 7, 2012 at 9:00 amI can’t sleep before 1-2AM every night for some reason, but if I wake up at 6 in the morning, I feel as rested as when I wake up at 11! The only problem is that I get dark circles underneath my eyes. Hmmm… strange case for me, maybe I should get some to try if I can sleep better.
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:11 pmAh youth! 😉 If there’s nothing on, I’m in bed before 11pm on most days but these Olympics is taking a toll on me – darned time difference!
Lily says
August 7, 2012 at 9:07 amI find exercising helps with better sleep. Also, some stretching before bed. If all else fails, a warm drink makes my tummy warm and cosy and I’ll be able to sleep better.
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:13 pmOh yes, exercise does help. I sleep like a baby after yoga classes, not to mention of course my muscles ache like crazy anyway hehe I usually don’t take a warm drink because I’m too lazy to brush my teeth again – lame right? 😛
Jesz says
August 7, 2012 at 9:12 amI love pure lavender scent…I have the lavender oil from Crabtree & Evelyn which is quite relaxing. =)
Sometimes, taking shower with the lavender shower gel followed by the lavender body lotion is good enough for this purpose, relax & get into sleep better. =D
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:14 pmHmm I didn’t know C&E had a lavender oil 🙂 I usually go for a warm shower and then lavender body oil and then the lavender drops. Perfect! 😀
germs says
August 7, 2012 at 9:23 ama cheaper option which i use sometimes is the body shop’s lavender sleep pillow (S$8.50) 🙂 i find it hard to sleep when i’m travelling and sleeping in unfamiliar environments, and the body shop pillow is pretty good for soothing the senses!
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:15 pmThat’s a good tip (I didn’t know there was one) A friend gave me a lavender pillow once and it was so comforting but then the smell went away so I went back to the lavender drops heh…
Jenn says
August 7, 2012 at 9:46 amI have been dying to try this out for AGES… but its so hard to find high quality essential oils in Penang 🙁
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:16 pmSomeone mentioned Crabtree & Evelyn sells them? I don’t know myself to be honest. Else, I’m not sure if Body Shop still has oils (I used to buy theirs) or any stores selling organic stuff might have them. Good luck Jenn!
Efrain says
August 7, 2012 at 9:47 amI liked that tip, the only thing that I do when I can’t sleep is turning on the TV and I don’t know why but I finish sleeping; but this is a better way to sleep and is eco friendly 😉 I’ll buy one bottle of lavender oil.
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:19 pmMaybe its the white noise from the tv that helps. In my case, unless I’m extremely tired, I can’t sleep in front of a TV or with too much noise either. Or I just feel more tired. I hope this lavender oil trick works – its easy and as you said, more eco friendly 😀
xin says
August 7, 2012 at 9:59 ami don’t usually have insomnia but recently i have problem waking up even though i have 8 or 9 hours sleep ><
i do have a small lavender pillow (with lavender in it) which I occasionally drip some lavender oil to enhance the scent. and my electric mister is put into good use when i color my nails in the room 😉
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:24 pmOh no! Me too! I have trouble sleeping and then I have trouble getting up the next day >.< Terrible in the mornings to draw myself out of bed 😛
Stacey says
August 7, 2012 at 10:27 amI would put 3 drops of kiehl’s midnight recovery concentrate on my palms, warm it up and cup over my nose and inhale deeply then pat on my face. good for insomnia and beneficial to my face too! hehe
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:26 pmI think I’m immune to the effects of MRC since I use it so often LOL! But that’s a good way to start the relaxing routine 😀
Arianne says
August 7, 2012 at 10:30 amThis is such a timely post, Paris! I was wondering what to do with my lavender oil lying around here. It’s been so hot lately and I’ve been having trouble falling asleep, so I will try this method and hopefully I’ll get some restful sleep.
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:33 pmWhat can I say, I read minds! 😉 I do hope it helps you get some rest Arianne, I always feel like a zombie when I’ve had poor sleep but this trick does do it for me.
beetrice says
August 7, 2012 at 11:28 amThanks for the tip! I used to drop a bit into a small bowl of water and place it under my aircond so the smell circulated as the water evaporated, but can’t do that here..
At the moment I have a lavender room mist spray from Australia – when I can’t sleep, a few spritzes of that around my room plus the “rain storm” app on my iPhone sends me off to dreamland super fast! 😛
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:34 pmRemember that room spray thing I got from Bioessentials? It doesn’t work for me 🙁 I mean, it doesn’t kick me off to dreamland as well or as quickly but it smells nice so that’s a bonus 🙂
kay says
August 7, 2012 at 1:14 pminstead of using tissue, i use a terracotta pendant to diffuse the essential oil and i hang the pendant around my fingers because i tend to sleep with my hands close to my face so i will always smell the essential oils. i also use geranium or ylang ylang essential oils alternating with lavender when i sleep, or i use lemon, eucalyptus or peppermint essential oil when i read books at a cafe. helps me to focus and easier for me to relax.
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:36 pmA terracotta pendant! How very intriguing 🙂 I love the smell of geranium too. I used to have a whole host of essential oils but now I mostly only use lavender for sleep, and eucalyptus when I have a blocked nose LOL!
Kay says
August 8, 2012 at 1:09 amI bought a lot of essential oils only to realise I’m not using them fast enough, so now I mix rosemary, eucalyptus, lemon and bergamot essential oils with castor oil and apply to my legs before I dry-brush every morning. And I also mix some rosemary essential oil to my Sukin purifying shampoo twice a week to clarify my hair. There’s so many things to do with them.
Paris B says
August 9, 2012 at 3:51 pmMmmm sounds like lovely concoctions you have made! 🙂 I will agree that essential oils have loads of uses. I used to be a huge fan but have tapered off over the years and now only keep a bottle of eucalyuptus for freshening the air and lavender and geranium for relaxing 😀
Tine says
August 7, 2012 at 1:35 pmThis trick works a treat. I love sniffing lavender as I prepare for my bedtime. It’s such a good relaxing method to end the day 🙂
PS: I’ve read that lavender’s not really suitable for pregnant women though. Am not sure if this is still okay for expectant mothers (maybe it’s just topical application that’s not recommended). Just something I’ve read up, y’know, just in case 😉
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:38 pmYep! You’re right about lavender and pregnant women. I dont’ know about smell (don’t think it’s bad) but definitely not for topical application. In fact, we shouldn’t be applying any essential oil neat on our skin at all. Some people don’t realise that 🙂
trah says
August 7, 2012 at 3:32 pmI’ve been having bad quality sleep since beginning this year so I decided to use Johnson & Johnson Bedtime Bath (the purple bottle) to help me sleep better at night. Thank goodness it works for me.
For bad insomnia, I use a product which also use lavender as main ingredient. Roll it on the wrist, inhale deeply twice and sleep with wrist near to the nose. I don’t use this often because I will have really deep sleep which is not suitable for weekdays. Morning cannot go to work wor…
Paris B says
August 7, 2012 at 3:43 pmGlad you managed to find something that helps you with your sleep, Trah. I sometimes take sleep for granted till I don’t have a good night then I suffer! That item you mentioned sounds intriguing. I think the lavender partly absorbs into the skin too which aids the relaxation process. I usually just slather on the lavender body oil and use a couple of drops of oil and I’m good to go 🙂 But as you said, sometimes the sleep is just a wee bit too deep and waking up in the morning is a chore! 😉
Sunny says
August 7, 2012 at 4:43 pmI had a period where I suffered from sleeping problems, and I did exactly the same thing! I’ve always loved lavender, and it’s seriously calming! I do also drink herbal infusion that’s supposed to help me sleep sometimes, but I cannot vouch for whether it works or not. You see I don’t normally have sleeping problems (unless not being able to get up counts LOL)!
Paris B says
August 9, 2012 at 3:42 pmHaha yeah getting to sleep is one battle and then getting up is another! Usually when I’m in bed, I try not to eat or drink anything (lazy to brush teeth & boil water etc) so I’m glad I worked out this oil trick. Previously some warm honey helped too!
Sukie says
August 7, 2012 at 7:03 pmI do the same too! I love anything lavender-scented so the last time i was in Provence I did a proper stock-up on pure cold-pressed lavender oil! :p I always have trouble sleeping and I resort to using the tissue paper method only if it gets really bad as I fear I may start relying on it too much! But I’m happy to hear someone out there uses the same trick too! When I get a blocked nose I do the same, the only difference being the oil used – swap lavender for Olbas oil and it works a treat! Okay digression end. :p
Paris B says
August 9, 2012 at 3:43 pmOoh yay! Happy to know someone else does this too and its not just me 🙂 How lovely to have fresh lavender oil from Provence 🙂 If I have a cold, I use eucalyptus oil
bronzechiqz says
August 7, 2012 at 8:22 pmOmg what a post!I had to share my experience last night.I tried Clarins Lotus Oil for 2 weeks, and it did make my skin so soft but didn’t do that much to my breakouts.So Ive been itching to try Decleor Aromassence Neroli Oil Serum lately after having had read great reviews bt it, I got a sample vial and tried it yesterday.
You guys should know that I’ve a baby of 8 months and of course sleepless night.But for the very first time, I dozed off and my hubby had to wake me up several times coz my baby was crying!This is crazy coz I am a light sleeper but Im just not sure if its a coincidence of these essential oils really helps in peaceful sleep :S
Paris B says
August 9, 2012 at 3:49 pmLOL What a story! Thanks for sharing 😀 Indeed, essential oils can help relax the body and so promote rest and sleep. I love the scent of the Clarins Lotus Oil. I find it incredibly relaxing. But your poor baby! 😀
bronzechiqz says
August 9, 2012 at 8:00 pmYes I do prefer the smell of lotus oil over this! this smells more like eau de cologne and medicinal, anyway i think its kinda breaking me out where as Lotus oil didn’t :S
Pearl says
August 7, 2012 at 10:10 pmI do with my Badger Night-Night Balm, it was meant to be a sleep balm for kids lol, but it works for me when I have troubled to sleep occasionally!
Paris B says
August 9, 2012 at 3:49 pmI used to use the Badger Night Balm too 🙂 But I grew to dislike the balmy texture on skin so I stopped using it. Glad to know it helps you