Tell me a story…

I was introduced to the art of true-life storytelling recently. Kate Walton, an inspirational true-life storyteller and great workshop leader who took a couple of sessions at my local writing group last month. Not only did I come away from those sessions enthusiastic about a new art form, I also left with a great new resource for combatting the wakeful hours – in the shape of a podcast called The Moth.

Concealing insomnia

Under-eye concealers don’t work. How do I know? Because, mug that I am, I feel like I’ve tried every bloody single one of them and I still look like I need to rent a permanent space in the ‘excess baggage’ queue.

Why I won’t convert to clean sleeping

Nicole Mowbray’s article on ‘clean’ sleeping in last weekend’s Guardian magazine is worth a read by anyone of the insomniac variety. Not least for me, because it served as a reminder to keeping my sleep obsession in check. I say “sleep obsession”, but comparing myself with some of the individuals she interviewed, I feel like I’m doing ok.

In praise of SleepPhones

SleepPhones are a great investment for any insomniac. Mine have been a constant bedtime companion since I invested in them a few months ago, so much so that forgetting to pack them when I go away for the night now sends me into a small panic. How will I ever get back to sleep if I can’t reach for them in the night?

The land of pod

I’d never taken the time to get into podcasts before this year, but since moving our little boy into what used to be my insomnia escape den (the old spare room, now his bedroom), I am increasingly relying on them to fill the wakeful void without disturbing my partner by switching the light on to read. Well, I generally don’t allow my podcast listening to disturb him, except perhaps for the time I let out a loud guffaw while listening the ‘Mr Happy’ Confession – see below. I also find them a great way to distract my whirling brain for enough time to make it possible to drop off during stressful times. I’ve found BBC online to be a great starting place for my voyage of podcast discovery, so here are my top ten BBC podcasts. Or rather, top nine and one that I’d advise you not to bother with…

No space for Headspace

I haven’t posted for a while. I was waiting for a transformation to happen. I planned to go away, try a bit of meditation and come back a couple of weeks later to tell you that yes, it really can change your life. Alas, my life remains unchanged. My insomnia hasn’t gone anywhere. Over the last three months or so I’ve failed magnificently to fit meditation into my life.

Keep calm and kiwi on!*

Have you ever met anyone who said the kiwi was their favourite fruit? No, thought not. The kiwi is the jobbing extra of the fruit world, never destined to play a lead role. It would rather camouflage itself and hang around in the fruit bowl for a few days before fulfilling its ultimate destiny of packing out a fruit salad.

The Truth About Sleep

You know the drill. You glance at the TV schedule and spot a documentary about sleep. Hoping that this will be the one that finally contains that revelation to put an end to your insomnia, you settle down to watch. An hour later you wondered why the hell you bothered – it was just more of the same obvious stuff you’ve heard – and tried – countless times before. Would ‘The Truth About Sleep’ be worth investing an hour of my time in?

Permission to stay up late

Six hours under the covers was all I allowed myself each night last week. As you’ll already know if you read my last post, I’ve been running my own little experiment to test Professor Jason Ellis’ theory that reducing the time spent in bed can help combat insomnia.