How To Sleep Like A Baby…Or Not!

Have you ever thought about the saying “sleep like a baby”? I don’t know what your experience with babies has been like, but I can tell you for sure that I NEVER want to sleep like my first baby did. I like to joke that nearly 14 years after his birth, I am STILL catching up on the sleep I lost during his first few years of life. That is not a typo, I really said YEARS. He did not sleep through the night until he was 4 years old. And many of those nights were total scream fests for reasons we couldn’t figure out.  It was pure misery.

All of that sleep I lost during those years with him and the years with my other newborns took a huge toll on my health that I am working to overcome now. Some days I don’t know if I will ever be completely better and full of energy again. But I do know that I when I get a great night of sleep I feel pretty good and I get alot accomplished. Sleep is so important – we all know that! I couldn’t take care of this house and farm if I didn’t get a good quantity and quality of sleep most nights. Unfortunately it doesn’t usually come naturally to me any more.

My sleep patterns have become so disrupted that I have really struggled to get them normalized. Years of having youngsters trained me to be a light sleeper – so any noise at all used to wake me up – some nights I could even hear the dog snoring from across the house! ugh! At one point I had to use over the counter sleeping pills to get to sleep even though I knew they were bad for me and would probably make things worse in the long run. They eventually stopped working and I wasn’t about to go on a prescription with potential worse side effect.  But I was desperate for sleep. I just wanted to stop feeling like a zombie day in and day out.

Then I found an answer that was a total Godsend. Essential oils. Like I have said before – I originally made a purchase because I hoped they would clear up my skin (and they did!). What I didn’t realize was that the lavender I was applying too my face at bedtime would give me some of the best sleep I had gotten in years. After reading about this fantastic effect in some of the FB groups I get to participate in, I knew it wasn’t too good to be true. I had found a SAFE,  natural product that I could use to get better sleep – and there were actually many different oils that could help me (and my family!) so if one doesn’t work as well as I need for who-knows-what-reason, then I can just apply another one and that will usually work.

So every night, I use lavender on my face and get at least TWO natural benefits – pretty skin and better sleep. Lavender is an oil that has a balancing effect on the body (also called adaptogenic – as in, it does what you need it to do). 

There are nights when I’m too wired up for lavender and might need to add another oil. I don’t know why – maybe it’s my adrenals needing something or my nervous system needs relaxing, or my brain just won’t stop thinking – but I can always find a solution to help. I respond really well to Peace and Calming and Tranquil. I use those on my neck at the base of my brain stem, and on the bottom of my feet. Sometimes I have jumpy legs and those oils will help too. My youngest daughter really loves Peace and Calming too and I will rub a drop on her forehead if she is having trouble calming down at bedtime.

I am so very thankful that God brought these natural remedies into my life! I have wondered many times how those early baby childhood years would have been different if I had only known about them. I think my son would have been able to sleep and we all would have been happier. I will never be without a bottle of lavender. 

If you would like to try essential oils to help you sleep better, this is a great time because the April Oil Of The Month is Lavender! Check it out on my Challenge Page. All other oils can be found here and if they aren’t on the front page, there is a product search tab on the left side menu and you can always leave a comment with your question – I would love to help you out!