Sleep Problems and Solutions: Restoring the rhythm of rest
- Claudine Barnes
- Sep 23, 2025
- 5 min read
Updated: Oct 27, 2025
Everything you need to know about fixing your sleep.
Sleep is one of the most powerful medicines we have. It’s free, it’s natural and deeply restorative. Yet so many people struggle to get enough of it. Whether it’s difficulty falling asleep, waking often in the night or feeling unrefreshed in the morning, poor sleep has become one of the most common signs of imbalance in our modern world.
The modern sleep crisis
We live in a culture that glorifies busyness. Artificial light, screens, caffeine, and constant stimulation all disrupt the body’s natural rhythms. Stress keeps the nervous system on alert, preventing the deep relaxation needed for quality sleep. Over time, this state of chronic alertness wears down our resilience, leaving us tired, anxious, and more vulnerable to illness.
But sleep isn’t just about shutting down! It’s about repair and renewal. During deep sleep, the body detoxifies, the brain consolidates memory, and hormones rebalance. Without enough of it, even the best diet or exercise routine can’t fully support health.
Common Sleep Problems:
Stress and overthinking: A busy mind is the enemy of rest. Worry, rumination, and unfinished tasks can keep the nervous system in “on” mode.
Screen time: Blue light from devices suppresses melatonin, the hormone that signals the body to sleep.
Caffeine and stimulants: Even a morning coffee can affect sleep 10–12 hours later for sensitive individuals. But for most of us it's definitely no coffee after midday if you want to sleep well.
Irregular routines: Going to bed or eating at inconsistent times confuses the body’s circadian rhythm.
Hormonal shifts: Perimenopause, menopause, thyroid imbalance, and adrenal fatigue can all alter sleep quality.
Reclaiming Rest: Holistic solutions for sleep problems
True rest begins with creating the right conditions: physically, mentally, and energetically.
It’s not something we can force; rather, it’s something we allow when the body feels safe and supported. When we cultivate an environment of calm and rhythm, sleep becomes a natural response instead of a nightly struggle.
Physically, the body needs comfort, stability, and nourishment. A cool, dark room signals to our biology that night has come. Regular meal times and gentle evening routines tell our internal clock when to release melatonin and lower cortisol. Reducing stimulants, keeping blood sugar steady, and easing muscular tension all help the body slip naturally into its restorative phase.
Mentally, rest requires space. We live surrounded by noise and information, constant notifications, unfinished to-do lists and worries about tomorrow. Without conscious transition, the mind keeps spinning long after the day is done. Practices like journaling, deep breathing, or a simple gratitude reflection can quiet the chatter and shift awareness from doing to being. Herbs such as Lemon balm, Passionflower, or Skullcap gently support this unwinding, helping the nervous system let go of the day.
Energetically, rest is about rhythm and safety. If our energy is scattered, overextended, or depleted, the body reads that as danger and stays alert. Creating an evening ritual like dimming lights, sipping a calming tea, lighting a candle, or massaging the feet with warm oil, helps ground the body and signal that it’s safe to rest. Energetic balance can also come from connection: spending time in nature, turning inward, or practicing gentle mindfulness.
When we care for all three levels, the physical, mental, and energetic, sleep no longer needs to be chased. It arrives naturally, like dusk following day.
Here are some foundations for deep, restorative sleep:
1. Keep a regular schedule
Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, even weekends.
Set your ‘time-table’: if you want to achieve 8.5-9 hrs sleep per night… at what time do you need to go to bed?
Your body’s “internal clock” thrives on rhythm; the better you adjust to this the better you feel.
2. Get morning light
Expose your eyes to natural daylight soon after waking.
This helps set your circadian rhythm, making it easier to fall asleep at night.
3. Create a sleep-friendly bedroom: the 3 C’s
Make your bedroom a CALMING environment, a haven for sleep: quiet and dark. Unclutter. Keep it clean (dust-mites and mould can disturb your sleep too).
Keep your room COOL (around 18oC).
Keep the bed ‘CLEAN’. Make your bed a place for sleep and intimacy only : no TV, laptops, phones etc.
4. Reduce screen time at night
Blue light from phones, tablets, and computers tells your brain it’s “daytime.” (even if you use your ‘night-setting’)
Switch devices off at least 1 hour before bed. Turn the lights down so your melatonin starts rising.
Binge watching is devastating for sleep. Cliffhangers get your heart rate up and activate your brain. You don’t need this when you’re trying to sleep.
5. Support sleep with food & drink
Avoid caffeine, esp after midday.
Limit alcohol at night: it fragments sleep. It is not helpful for sleep to take alcohol.
No nicotine at night, it activates the body.
Have your last drink of the day 1.5/2 hrs before bed. That way your bladder will be emptied before you go to sleep.
Eat a balanced dinner (protein + healthy fat + complex carbs).
If prone to 3 a.m. wake-ups, try a light non sugary evening snack.
6. Wind down gently
Create a calming bedtime routine: body-temperature shower or bath, light stretching, reading, journaling, herbal relaxing tea, listening to some soothing music.
Avoid stressful conversations or heavy work right before bed.
To help you sleep use:
Progressive muscle relaxation
Hydro-therapy (neutral bath, hot footbath, cold cloth on neck covered with hot towel)
Aroma therapy: Essential Oils of Hops, Juniper, Rose, Dill, Sage
Breathing exercises (box breathing or 7/11)
7. Respect sleep’s role in health
Sleep is when your brain cleans itself, repairs, and stores memories.
Your body heals and cleans, hormones balance, and immunity strengthens.
✨ Tip: If you can’t sleep after 20 minutes in bed, get up, go to a dimly lit space, and do something calm until you feel sleepy again. Don’t toss and turn in bed.
If problems persist…
You might need some specific guidance whereby the following options will be explored:
Diet, digestion, nutritional deficiencies and blood sugar spikes. Also gut infections/dysbiosis.
Use of herbal relaxants (non-addictive) for day-time stress and/or insomnia.
Specific programs regarding hormonal imbalances
Pain issues or other
In summary
Healthy sleep isn’t just the absence of insomnia, it’s the presence of calm, rhythm, and restoration. By tending to the nervous system, honoring natural cycles, and supporting the body with nourishing food and practices, we can rediscover the deep, healing rest our ancestors once knew.
When sleep returns, everything feels more possible.
If sleep has been elusive, know that it’s possible to restore your natural rhythm. Sometimes all it takes is a few mindful changes and the right support.
🌿 If you’d like personalised guidance, I offer holistic consultations to help you find balance and restful sleep again.
