Insomnia ¦ Trouble Sleeping: Symptoms, Causes, Treatment, Remedies for Kids and Adults (I'm travelling)

If you’re not really tired, don’t force it. Tossing and turning can cause sleep anxiety. If it is late at night, and you cannot fall asleep, get out of bed and do something relaxing. If you wonder how to deal with insomnia, try meditation for insomnia, listen to soothing insomnia music, or walk around. When you start getting sleepy, go to bed. If you don't fell asleep in the next 20-30 minutes, get out of bed and try again.

If you are not sure how to deal with insomnia, try wearing ear plugs. Outside noises like traffic, neighbour's pet, loud party on the floor above you, all that can interfere with a good night rest. To cancel out agitating noises and enjoy a complete silence, use earplugs.

You can order them at Amazon. There are many types, so learn which ones works best fo you.

If you don't know how to stop insomnia, try This type of gentle yoga will help you relax and make it easier for you to sleep. You don't need any previous yoga experience. Check this video for instructions:

Can depression cause insomnia? Possibly, it can. If it does, to fight against insomnia, you need to win the fight against depression, first. St. John's Wort is a plant that works as an antidepressant and as such can relieve your anxiety and help you sleep better. You can order St. John's wort pills at Amazon.

Always check with your doctor if you are trying any herbal remedy.

When booking a hotel room, make a thorough research about where is hotel located (if it's on a busy street, or if it's near nightclubs). If you can't pick a hotel, you can at least pick a room that's further from the street.

Use TripAdvisor or Oyster.com to check hotel reviews.

If you usually fall asleep listening to music and it's part of your bedtime routine, take your favorite songs with you so you can have the same bedtime routine even when away from home.

If you have a special pillow that has a great impact on the quality of your sleep, consider bringing it with you. I know it can add a lot to your baggage, but having a good night's rest might be worth it. 

If bringing your pillow is not an option, at least bring your own pillowcases and bed sheets. They don't take much space, and can make a hotel bed look like yours and help you fall asleep with ease.

When in a hotel, especially in a foreign country, it is not unusual to sense a smell that just doesn't suit you. And if you are sensitive to smells, that can prevent you from having a good night's rest. 

To avoid that, bring your own scent. It could be vanilla, lavander, or your favorite perfume (or your partner's perfume), or anything else that you find soothing and relaxing.

When trying to sleep in a strange bed, reading your favorite book can make you feel like you are at home and reduce your stress and take your mind off the fact that this is not your bed.

Eating a large meal late in the evening can occupy your digestive system for hours, make you bloated and gassy and give you heartburn, all of which could interfere with your sleep.

You don't want to go to bed too hungry because hunger can keep your brain alert and cause you discomfort and a sleepless night. The best thing to do is to have a moderate, healthy meal 2-3 hours before bedtime.

Lowering intensity of lights in your home signals the body that bedtime is near. You don't have to be in total darkness for hours, but you can install lights with adjustable level of brightness.

Avoid light bulbs (especially fluorescent and energy saving light bulbs) that have harsh, bright light. They often emit blue light that can affect the quality of your sleep. Look for light bulbs that are labeled "soft" and have a color temperature rating of less than 3000 Kelvin such as this one.

It is usually a bad idea (for insomniacs, anyway) to exercise right before bedtime, because you get all fired up (adrenaline is high, heartbeat is elevated), and all that makes it really hard for you to fall asleep. But, it seems that certain leg exercises can relieve your brain and appease your mind by redirecting blood to legs. Try some leg lifts or squats.

If you are travelling in multiple time zones, you are likely to suffer from jet lag. Try adjusting your body clock several days before your trip. If you are traveling from east to west, your body clock needs to be delayed, which means you should try going to bed one hour later and waking up one hour later than the day before. Do the opposite if you are traveling from west to east.

If you apply this technique several days before your trip, you will endure jet lag much easily, or maybe even completely avoid it. If you are staying in a different time zone only for a few days, it's not worth adjusting your sleep schedule. Just stick to your local time.

Melatonin is naturally produced in our bodies and it helps with regulating our sleep rhythm. Some studies have shown that melatonin supplements can help you fight jet lag by adjusting your sleep rhythm. You can buy some at Amazon.

Consult your doctor before taking any supplements.

Consider over-the-counter sleeping pills as a quick solution to help you fall asleep. You should use them only occasionally when other methods are not available to you, for example, when you are traveling. Constant use of sleeping pills will raise your tolerance to them and will eventually make them useless.

You can pick from dozens of types at Amazon. Consult with your doctor before trying any medication.