Are natural remedies enough to cure sleep disorders?

Struggling to sleep may seem harmless, but it may all be connected to an underlying

condition

When you are tossing and turning at night, over-the-counter sleep aids, tea for sleep or lavender oil may be the logical answer.

But why do only a third of the people who take them get to see results in their sleep?

Claudia Celadon, a psychotherapist based in North London, said: “It may be very frustrating to find that not even a [herbal] sleeping pill can put you to sleep.”

Most of these natural remedies have one thing in common – the small letters at the bottom that say: ´for temporary relief of symptoms associated with stress´.

The reason why these over-the-counter remedies do not seem to work for a lot of people is because actual sleep disorders are likely to be linked with other health factors.

Dr Anthony Cunningham, a post-doctoral researcher from Harvard Medical School, said: “It is rare for a sleep disorder to occur in isolation.”

These over-the-counter, herbal-based remedies for sleep are not designed strictly for sleep conditions or mental health issues. They are designed for one sleepless night or a stressful week.

Dr Cunningham said: “A lot of progress can be made using both pharmacological and therapeutic treatments, but for most cases, sleep disorders, like long-term insomnia, comes as symptoms of an underlying mood or an anxiety disorder.”

There is evidence that natural remedies can be helpful as Dr Cunningham suggests, but it may not be enough to give you the treatment you need if it is more than just a bad night.

Claudia Celadon said: “It can be hard to accept when you’re overstressed or emotionally unwell, but you must ask yourself, is ignoring the problem going to make it any better?”

If you are suffering from sleep disorders persistently for more than two weeks, we recommend to contact your GP.