Orbit to help insomnia?

[Ocean]

Hi everyone,

 

I've checked the archives for info about insomnia but couldnt find what I'm looking for...

 

Insomnia is an old, long standing issue that I'd alivietated to a large degree but a few months ago it flared up again.  It's not that bad to be honest - the worst it gets is that it takes me three hours to get to sleep.  So not a lot to complain about, but I really want to start getting up earlier, and that means figuring out how to get to sleep faster.

 

Not looking for any advice right now about herbs or sleep hygience (have researched that stuff to death) - what I really want to know is if there is an energy orbit (?) that can help with getting to sleep? (I'm very new to Daoism so please bear with me when it comes to teh terminolgy )

 

I've been working with energy for 12 years, but with a more less informed system.  A lot of the exercises I do are ones I figured out athrough trail and error. I'm discovering that some of them are already a thing in Daoism... which is nice!

 

I figured out an "energy exercise" that works sometimes and I'm wondering if anyone knows what I'm doing?!

 

Basically I focus on sending the energy from my head out to heaven (for want of a better word), and then I spread my energy out really really wide, so that it fills my whole room.  Without fail, when I do this properly two things happen:

 

1) I hear noises in other parts of the room, which I attribute logically to my energy field getting larger, but sometimes I cant help but think "ghost" and it snaps me out of my reverie

 

2) If I manage not to get scared I pass out within a few minutes.  I think the fear is an obstacle towards sleep, and to opening myself up to the Universe, so it's all connceted somehow.

 

Questions about my sanity and suggestions for a better energy exercise to the usual address

 

So

[silent thunder]

Great user name mate!

 

I have one that I use.

****************************************

I'm lying on the beach. 

in very warm, tropical waters.

 

Waves very slowly lap up and surround my body

saturating it in warm water

 

my body, is made of sand

and dissolves as each wave recedes back into the Sea.

 

 

energy enters the feet with each wave

rests in the belly

then exits through the feet

pulling everything along with it

eventually I am gone

only sleep remains

[Wu Ming Jen]

A good method to fall asleep is to wiggle your feet. This helps get rid of the mental chatter and bring the energy out of your head and to your feet. 

 

Reading the Taoist classics which can be read over and over helps me to fall asleep as well.

 

As soon as I stop thinking it is lights out but I never had any trouble with sleeping. Sleeping just happens to be something I am really good at.

[Seatle185]

I used to struggle with insomnia too. I would just let my mind go wild and it would start jumping all over the place and some of the thoughts would cause anxiety and at that point might as well get up because i wont be sleeping that night haha.. trying not to think of anything would cause me stress and so would focusing on my breath. One thing that helped was binaural beats for sleep just get some comfortable headphones because you will likely be sleeping in them most of the night. One other thing i do now without headphones is "yoga nidra" there are videos on youtube you just listen to and follow along, you are going through and feeling different parts of the body and relaxing them then there are other techniques that follow to get you even more into that state. I was doing it for so long i can remember the order and just do it mentally and most nights fall asleep within minutes .. the problem i always had is if i was "trying" to fall asleep i never could so i had to find ways to do it without thinking about it too much.. anyways this worked for me good, hope it can benefit you too

[Rara]

A good method to fall asleep is to wiggle your feet. This helps get rid of the mental chatter and bring the energy out of your head and to your feet.

 

Reading the Taoist classics which can be read over and over helps me to fall asleep as well.

 

As soon as I stop thinking it is lights out but I never had any trouble with sleeping. Sleeping just happens to be something I am really good at.

I will try this! Feet wiggling might annoy my partner but at least I can pull my books out as a plan b

[Rara]

the problem i always had is if i was "trying" to fall asleep i never could so i had to find ways to do it without thinking about it too much..

This is a big one for me. Not being able to then "trying" becauase there's some sort of pressure (brought upon myself) to do so.

[Seatle185]

This is a big one for me. Not being able to then "trying" becauase there's some sort of pressure (brought upon myself) to do so.

Yes, i never could understand how people sleep so easy. For me it always seemed to require effort. its like i had to find that tiny razors edge between effort and no effort if that makes sense. If i didnt put forth any effort my mind would just start jumping all over the place and with too much effort i would still be over stimulated.. and what i would hate is when i feel like im finally drifting off to sleep - i used to get excited that im finally falling asleep but that excitement would jolt me back awake . I feel like i have so much on my plate i never want to go to sleep thats one of my problems. I always am thinking about responsibilities i have to take care of the next day or week. So having a nice relaxing ritual before bed helps. After a while your body and mind become accustomed to it and when you start doing it you are preparing for sleep. Iv found its good to go over what you have planned a few hours before bed so you dont lay in bed worrying about it. Feng shui wise i have read the bedroom should not be the place you do stimulating activities, it is a room for rest and rejuvination. So the t.v. and computer and other electronics shouldnt be kept there. Of course this is the most ideal, but i cant follow it in my present living situation. But in my old apartment i followed this and always seemed to have an easy time going to sleep... but as i have said in my first post here, going through the motions of the yoga nidra relaxation always works, it sort of distracts my mind away from worrying or thinking too much and puts it on relaxing and just being present and sleep usually sneaks up on me in a few minutes before i even finish the routine. I do hope it helps. Insomnia is very frusterating.

[Rara]

Yes, i never could understand how people sleep so easy. For me it always seemed to require effort. its like i had to find that tiny razors edge between effort and no effort if that makes sense. If i didnt put forth any effort my mind would just start jumping all over the place and with too much effort i would still be over stimulated.. and what i would hate is when i feel like im finally drifting off to sleep - i used to get excited that im finally falling asleep but that excitement would jolt me back awake . I feel like i have so much on my plate i never want to go to sleep thats one of my problems. I always am thinking about responsibilities i have to take care of the next day or week. So having a nice relaxing ritual before bed helps. After a while your body and mind become accustomed to it and when you start doing it you are preparing for sleep. Iv found its good to go over what you have planned a few hours before bed so you dont lay in bed worrying about it. Feng shui wise i have read the bedroom should not be the place you do stimulating activities, it is a room for rest and rejuvination. So the t.v. and computer and other electronics shouldnt be kept there. Of course this is the most ideal, but i cant follow it in my present living situation. But in my old apartment i followed this and always seemed to have an easy time going to sleep... but as i have said in my first post here, going through the motions of the yoga nidra relaxation always works, it sort of distracts my mind away from worrying or thinking too much and puts it on relaxing and just being present and sleep usually sneaks up on me in a few minutes before i even finish the routine. I do hope it helps. Insomnia is very frusterating.

Right there with you. The worries about the next day etc etc.

 

Also the "not wanting to sleep"...and my answer is to not bother and then eventually I pass out. It's better than lying in bed with an over-active mind at least, but not ideal.

 

But contrary to popular belief, the TV helps. It helps me take my mind away, and therefore I can eventually drop off.

[Ocean]

Honestly, the exercise I described above has been working pretty consistently now... It helps me "get out of my head" (literally), but it's also kind of  a curious experience that requires my attention.  It's kind of trippy and dream like in itself...

 

I used to do Yoga Nidra but it only worked a few times.  What does work, ironically is imaging myself actually doing yoga poses.!  Again, it distracts me from my thoughts, and also induces a feeling of relaxation.

 

But shooting energy out of the top of my head and then merging my aura with everything is working better than that.  I guess there's no equivalent orbit in Daoism

[Ocean]

@Silent Thunder - loved your description of the exercise you do.  Could actually hear it in my head as you wrote it.

 

Oh, and Rara, yours was one of the old threads that I turned up when looking through the archives.  You were going through the ringer at the time!  You feeling better now?

[Gerard]

Hi dear friend,

 

Please read the following information:

 

http://www.shen-nong.com/eng/lifestyles/tcmrole_sleep_development.html

 

No orbits will fix your problem.

 

You need to introduce major changes in your life.

 

All the very best.

[Rara]

@Silent Thunder - loved your description of the exercise you do. Could actually hear it in my head as you wrote it.

 

Oh, and Rara, yours was one of the old threads that I turned up when looking through the archives. You were going through the ringer at the time! You feeling better now?

Oh really? Haha.

 

No, afraid not but I'm just taking a laid back approach. If I care too much it makes it worse so I'm just allowing it to do its thing. I eventually will settle down, the key is to not stress and make it worse.

 

Gerard's points above pretty much some me up though. Conditioned as a chronic worker and worrier...I like greasy food too. Gently I'm making improvements but it's difficult to do "alone" considering my line of work appears to promote mindless irrationality and so on. But I was already involved when I became a Taoist and my next stage is obviously to stop making the same mistakes and find a way out!

[cheya]

Possible refinement of the wiggling the feet suggestion: Bruce Frantzis recommended rotating the ankles 60 times in each direction. I think he explained it as nourishing the Kidney Organ System.... Tires out your calves too.    

Edited May 8, 2017 by cheya

[Rara]

Possible refinement of the wiggling the feet suggestion: Bruce Frantzis recommended rotating the ankles 60 times in each direction. I think he explained it as nourishing the Kidney Organ System.... Tires out your calves too.

I tried this last night but just got tired muscles from it :/

[[email protected]]

Improve your day with physical exercises. Start to get up early independently from when you go asleep. Get fresh air into the room before going asleep.

Don't eat at least one hour before going asleep.

Take a cold shower before going asleep.

At least one of these advice must bring you the result.

Rgrds, Ilya

[cheya]

Some years back I went through an extended period of waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to get back to sleep. I didn't want to turn the lights on (suppresses melatonin) so I started spending the time working on energy practices. Some of the energy practices left me tired in the morning, if I spent much time in them, just because I was not sleeping. 

 

But one of them, I could do for hours, and in the morning, still felt just as good or better as I would if I had slept through. Being able to do that, the concern about missing sleep disappeared. Which of course meant that I was more likely to be able to sleep.

 

I learned this practice that seemed to have the same regenerating effect as sleep from Richard Leirer, who called it "Ten Breaths, Eight Mai". This practice circulates the chi through the eight extraordinary channels (eight mai) and covers the macrocosmic orbit. You can find a version in Charles Luk's book, Taoist Yoga, pgs 25-26.

Joe Blast kindly posted those 10 steps/breaths in another DB thread: 
http://thetaobums.co...editation-time/
Scroll down to his post (last one on the first page) for the ten step description.

 

 

[Ocean]

Hi gentlemen,

 

The reason I specifically said I dont want any advice apart from "orbits" is cos':

 

1) I've tried all the conventional wisdom advice.

 

2) I'm continually working on the deeper roots of everything.  True healing is a long process, and this request wasn't about finding a quick fix.  It's important to have a tool to help in the short term.  It's a part of the puzzle, no less valuable than exploring the deeper roots.

 

I think Rara is right, and to improve on something there's a certain amount of detachment that has to happen before something can shift. Detachment is very misunderstood as a process though, and most people tend to vaciallate between the extremes of grasping and apathy.

 

Thank you Cheya - I'll try that!

[Rocky Lionmouth]

That there detachment thing has helped me out tremendously. Hard to achieve and maintain sometimes but what that in itself tells you is most often "Yo self, you should have slowed down last tuesday, so please: slow down."

The gap between stimuli and reaction should always be cultivated, but at times you cant even fit a razors edge in there, no matter how much you've cultivated it.

 

I used to have completely sleepless nights and just push through to try to sleep the next evening at it was a horror.

I kept thinking: "Not yet! Soon i'll sleep! Not yet! Soon..."

With detachment came a different attitude:

I cant sleep and if i do pass out now i'll be a zombie for at least a whole day and repeat that crappy process all over. I'll go fire up the computer and make some music or get a pen and draw a little instead. I'll put some coffee on, get my headphones and do my thing.

Some of my best work this last year was concieved and/or finished on nights i just couldnt sleep. I just gave up and decided to enjoy my waking hours instead, used to be i laid in bed and just hated it. The energy is obviously there and fighting it wasnt helping.

 

Surely it's not optimal but how many days are? Twice a week is already dripping gravy and dunked in sauce.

Remaining five days are so-so but thats no reason to get angry or worry. No sleep? I'll already feel like a wet bag of hammers, why not try to use the time for something stimulating?

Of course, this presumes and requires a permissive environment. After all, loosing sleep and it's aggregated stress on daily life is a major stress factor and puts your health at risk, but many jobs (i.e. managers) can probably understand and let you work at your own pace provided right understanding of the sitch. Insomnia has a pretty bad reputation so those that know will understand and those that dont usually just need to hear some of your experiences and what practical impacts it has on your performance. You're not asking permission, you're communicating your current ability to perform. (Insert other practical boss-speak here )

 

I had some pretty good results with an exercise i got from a site about shamanistic practices, suppsoedly it's a preparation for deeper/further journeys but it resonated really well with what my dear Sifu has told me about sleep:

You're done with the day and tomorrow isn't here yet. Forget all that and just rest.

 

The exercise is to have an undisturbed zone, lay down and with breath awareness. When that has stabilized you start by feeling your toes and work your way very slowly up your legs, torso and arms. When you're feeling your body you start over by sensing your temperature, toe to head. By now you're in a deeply relaxed state. In the beginning it might take you half an hour but i suspect any cultivator who's been at it for a couple of years will get a "under five minute hang" of this pretty quickly.

It's a familiar and intimate state of relaxed awareness and detachment.

 

In that state i say to myself:

 

Today is done, i finished all i could and now i'm done, i did good.

Tomorrow will contain the following: XYZ and i'll solve that tomorrow, not now, i know what to do tomorrow.

Now it is time for rest.

 

Soon i will start to fall asleep.

It'll feel good and when the alarm rings at X:X tomorrow, i will have rested and i will wake up fresh.

 

I will sleep soon and it will be a relaxing and restorative sleep.

I will not worry now about the things i already know.

What i dont know i cant worry about now, but i'll deal with it when it comes.

Now i will relax and soon i will sleep.

Tomorrow i will wake up with the alarm and feel well rested.

 

.... and so on.

 

The trick here is to come back out of this state gradually and do your bed-time stuff as usual while retaining that ease and comfort you just gave yourself. THEN you go to bed, do your thing for a while and turn the lights off. Bam.

Sleep.

Then alarm. Presto! You're up, feeling pretty ok AND you got a few hours of shuteye!

 

Funny thing is you can tell yourself to wake up five minutes before your alarm sounds. It'll work eventually. Once you get this exercise down to a dot you can forgo the alarm even. Just tell yourself to wake up at 7 and you most probably will. Maybe dont bank on it at first yeah?

It's worked for me even when i only had three hours to sleep. I didnt feel great but the rest and sleep was decent.

It doesnt matter, i'll sleep better next time.