- Books
- The Insomnia Workbook: A Comprehensive Guide to Getting the Sleep You Need, by Stephanie Silberman; New Harbinger, 1 ed. (6/2009); 224 p.
- Recommended Apps or Blogs
- SleepBot, free: This app has three major features: a motion-tracker, a sound-recorder and a smart alarm. You can choose to activate one, all or any combination of these features simply by tapping a checkmark next to each — making this app one of the easiest to navigate of all the apps reviewed. To track your nighttime motion, plug in the phone (all of these sleep apps are battery hogs), start the app and place the phone face-down on your bed near your body. The sound-recording feature will automatically detect sleep-talking, snoring and bumps in the night and record clips so you can get a better idea of nighttime disturbances in the morning.
- Sleep Cycle (iOS) Sleep as Android (Android), initial download fee: This app has a smart alarm with a customizable window and a library of soothing wake-up music. You can also choose an alarm from your own music library. The alarm can be snoozed with a simple tap on the phone, and the length of a snooze can be set at predetermined intervals or, in "intelligent" mode, will adjust automatically to wake you by the end of your wake-up window. Conveniently, Sleep Cycle lets you set your weekends to automatically turn off the alarm on days when it's not needed.
- Relax Melodies, free: People who have difficulty going to sleep and staying asleep are plagued with stress and anxiety problems. It is helpful for them to make a point of relaxing just before bedtime, and this app can certainly help with that. Research has shown that music can help calm the nerves and help you fall asleep. Relax Melodies makes use of 48 relaxing ambient and nature sounds, ranging from ocean waves to white noise and even an oscillating fan, to help you ease your worries at bedtime. You can make your own mix out of these melodies and set a timer for them to stop playing when you fall asleep.
- Other Supports and Resources
- 4:7:8 Breathing Technique
- Demonstration
- Breathwork, initial download fee: The truth behind the 4-7-8 exercise is it takes practicing this twice a day over two months to perfect the technique until you can truly fall asleep in a minute. Once you’ve mastered it, it will become more and more effective and even help you deal with anxiety and stress in your life. Soon, going to bed will be as simple as taking a deep breath.
- Sleep Assessment – National Sleep Foundation
- Sleep and Sleep Disorders – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- 4:7:8 Breathing Technique
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