CBT - Cognitive Behavioural Training and juice for People with Insomnia

Recently, a close relative was having great difficulty falling asleep.  He went to see his family doctor who prescribed some sleeping pills. However, the person was experiencing some negative side effects form the sleeping pills which was gradually losing its effectiveness . 

Therefore he sought an alternative way of dealing with his insomnia.  He went to a clinic located  on Warden and Ellesmere in Toronto.  This clinic takes a comprehensive approach utilizing the services of psychiatrists, group therapy sessions and pharmacists who specialize and are devoted to helping patients with sleep disorder.
 
 This patient's family doctor referred him to this sleep disorder clinic. After the first session, the pharmacist strongly suggested Cognitive Behavioural Training (CBT) for him.

She told the patient that he needs to throw away his sleeping pills and suggested the following for him:

1.  Find out the source of your stress
2.  Don't do drugs, try sleeping naturally instead.
3.  Don't stay in bed if you are not sleeping in 30 minutes maximum. 
4.  Get up, turn on some soothing music and read a book; no TV, iPad, email nor any gadgets.
5   If you can't sleep at all, so be it. Eventually, the body will sleep naturally. Taking drugs altered this natural tendency.

That was the patient's first session only. He was very excited and could not wait to learn more about the CBT approach in dealing with his insomnia. 

Also, I have been reading a book by Dr. Sandra Cabot, an Australian doctor specialized in nutritional medicine. She is a firm believer in the healing benefits of raw juice. In her book " Raw Juices Can Save Your Life!", there is a recipe, page 108, that would help with insomnia called Insomnia Juice. To make this juice, you'll need:

2 to 3               large outer leaves of lettuce
1                      whole pear of a apple
1                      carrot
1                      sweet potato
1/4 to 1/2        medium bulb of fennel

Wash, trim and chop and pass through juicer. Drink 17 oz ( 1/2 litre) daily, with half in the morning and half in the late afternoon.

According to Dr. Cabot as stated in her book:

Lettuce contains natural opiates, which help to relax the body
Fennel is a carminative ( natural calming agent)
Vitamin C found in citrus fruits, aids breathing and oxygenation of the tissues during the night

She also advises to avoid stimulants such as coffee, tea, sugar, sweet foods and alcohol during the evening, and avoid drinking excess water during the two hours before bed.

I hope that people with insomnia will be able to try the method of CBT and the insomnia juice recipe therefore helping them to ease their problem.

R.T.
Toronto