SLEEPLESSNESS.

Western Star, Issue 857, 5 July 1884, Page 2 (Supplement)

SLEEPLESSNESS.

When the health is in a satisfactorystate, and there is freedom from care and annoyance, sound and refreshing sleep may be expected. Under such favorable circumtances, I usually sleep well, but have always found it difficult, when retiring to rest, to close my bedroom door on the cares and troubles of the day, and seek my pillow with thoughts of sleep alone. Whatever may have worried or caused recent annoyance is sure to intrude itself and be present in my thoughts when I endeavour to go to sleep; the brain is therefore kept active when it should be at rest, and consequently sleep is for a long time impossible. Towards morning when the mind as well as the body has become wearied, some sleep may be obtained; but, as the brain is not even then composed, it is generally unsound and unrefreshing. Amongst the remedies that have been recommended for sleeplessness are —the repeating of poetry, counting up to a hundred several times, &c. I have never heard, however, that such remedies were at all useful, and the reason is, I think, obvious; the brain engaged when it should be at rest. For a long time, therefore, X was anxious to discover some plan by which the tendency to mental activity would be lessened and a favourable condition for sleep secured. I had frequently noticed that when engaged in deep thought, particularly at night, there seemed to be something like a compression of the eyelids, the upper one especially, and the eyes themselves were apparently turned upwards, as if

looking in that direction. This invarably occurred; and the moment that, by an effort, I arrested the course of thought, and freed the mind from the subject with which it was engaged, the eyes resumed their normal position, and the compression of the eyelids ceased. Now, it occurred to me one night that I would not allow the eyes to turn upwards, but keep them determinedly in the opposite position, as if looking down; and having done so for a short time, I found that the mind did not revert to the thoughts with which it had been occupied, and I soon fell asleep. I tried the plan again with the same result; and after an experience of two years, I can truly say that, unless when something specially annoying or worrying occurred, I have always been able to go to sleep very shortly after retiring to rest. There may occasionally be some difficulty in keeping the eyes in the position I have described; but a determined effort to do so is all that is required, and I am certain that if kept in the down looking position, it will be found that composure and sleep will be the result.

It may be said that as the continued effort to keep the eyeballs in a certain position so diverts the attention as to free the mind from the disagreeable subject with which it had been engaged, sleep will follow as a natural consequence. It is not improbable that this is to some extent correct; and if so, it is well that by means so simple and so easily adopted, such a desirable result can be secured. But I think this is not the only nor the principal reason. The position in which the eyes should be kept is the natural one; they are at ease in it; and when there is compression of the lids or knitting of the brows, the muscles connected with and surrounding the eyes are relaxed. This condition is certainly much more favorable for sleep than for mental activity or deep thought.— Chambers's Journal.