There is no doubt that regularly getting a good night’s sleep is important to your health. It boosts your immune system to help you fight illness and disease, it makes it easier to fend off those intense sugar cravings that tend to hit in the afternoon, and it allows you to be more patient with the ones you love.
So, when does a good night’s sleep become unhealthy? When you take too many sleeping pills to get it.
The Dangers Explained
First and foremost, sleeping pills can become extremely addictive. You may take them once to cure a night of insomnia only to find out that it worked and you were able to get some quality shut-eye. So, the next night when you’re not drifting off as quickly as you’d like, you take it again. Before you know it, you can’t sleep without it and you’ve turned a short-term problem into a long-term crisis.
Additionally, it’s not uncommon to engage in certain behaviors while you are taking sleeping pills without even being aware that you’re doing them. It is called parasomnia and can include doing things such as sleep walking, sleep eating, and even sleep driving. Talk about things dangerous to your health!
Add all of this to rather common side effects of sleeping pills like heartburn, constipation or diarrhea, burning or tingling in your extremities, shakiness, weakness, headaches, and stomach pain, and are you really doing yourself any favors?
Good Sleep Options
If you are having difficulty sleeping, there are other, better options to try first. Here are just a few:
- Use room darkening curtains
- Stop caffeine after noon
- Keep a regular sleep schedule
- Spray your pillow with lavender
- Meditate prior to bedtime
Sleeping pills aren’t the answer. In fact, they’re becoming more of the problem. Deal with your sleep issues naturally and long-term relief is ahead.
