Hypnos on the DL AGAIN!

As a late middle aged Vagina American I have a very loose/jangled/it’s-complicated relationship with the god of sleep. I’m not alone. I know that.

There’s nothing like a decent, uninterrupted, night of Zs to chill out the mind and body. I think I had one of those a few weeks ago. Mebbe.

Strategies from the National Sleep Foundation (hit the linky for more info/details):

• Eat healthy. Avoid large meals, especially before bedtime... Try foods rich in soy as they might minimize hot flashes.

No prob. Soy is a significant part of my diet to the point that I ought to start growing it myself. I don’t eat big meals but I do have an unfortunate habit of grazing. MUST stop!

• Avoid nicotine, caffeine and alcohol, especially before bedtime.

Nicotine’s not an issue for me and I never have caffeine after 11 in the morning. As for the adult bevs, I’m generally pretty damned moderate but perhaps I need to achieve some sort of pure asceticism. 

Sigh. 

Last night’s trigger might have been that second margarita I had. You see, we were having a late Cinco de Mayo celebration. Why so late? Eh, that’s how we roll — tardy.

• Dress in lightweight clothes to improve sleep efficiency.

Done.

• Reduce stress and worry as much as possible. Try relaxation techniques, massage and exercise...

Reduce stress and worry...HAH! Way easier said than done. 

I get regular exercise with triking, walking and stretching — I’m good with that. Getting serious with the relaxation techniques  might be the key.

I understand that yoga is grand for stress reduction but I've avoided it in large part because:

A) Deaf here. How will I grok what the instructor is saying? Sure, I can watch what she/he is doing and follow but won’t there be some subtleties that I miss? I assume yes.

B) I'm short a coupla balance nerves. With my radical tippiness, can I even do this without falling on my face while attempting any/every pose?

Is there another meditative, relaxation inducing activity that’s more appropriate for me and/or is there a brand of yoga and way of taking the class that could work?

Must explore.

In the meantime — here, have some pics that I shot while sleep eluded me.