I was pretty desperate.
After years of what can be called nothing short of the worst bloody sleep ever, I decided to try hypnotherapy and despite entering the appointment with hesitation, I can say without any that it worked for me.
For years, my mind has been extremely active, especially when darkness blankets the sky and everyone else in the world seems to be visiting the land of sleep apart from me (this may be a slight exaggeration). My brain will think of anything that can be thought of, even the sheep you are supposed to count become sheep with personalities, names and adventures out in the paddock. This active mind is handy at times, just not when you need to recharge it along with your body to face a new day.
The worst of my sleep deprivation occurred when my two daughters were newborns. Both weren’t great sleepers (maybe it runs in the family) and the motherly duties of breastfeeding (which I loved) and of tending to upset babies throughout the night (which I didn’t love) meant frequent trips in and out of bed. This combined with a mind that refused to switch off, despite exhaustion in between these frequent trips meant an extremely fatigued and unhappy person.

As my daughter’s grew and the trips throughout the night reduced, my sleep improved naturally. But it was still never anything to brag about and as soon as any stress in life reared its head, sleep deprivation would return in full force. Over the years I have attempted to combat my ongoing issue by trying almost anything to get me to the destination I desperately wanted to reach, sleep.
Although all legal, some are not ideal, especially in combination with others. Some had other side effects while I was on them or when I decided I should stop using them. My desperate attempts ranged from mindfulness - on apps, from books, in my mind, from aromatherapy and essential oils, baths, reading, writing my thoughts down before bed, not using screens, sleep psychologists, sleep testing, sleep hygiene, melatonin oral spray, melatonin tablets, antihistamines, prescription medication (it’s OK it was my own), sleeping tablets, sleeping apps and my old favourite, a couple of glasses of wine.