The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-10-24
INSOMNIA.
Some New Methods of Treating an
Old Complaint.

Old Complaint.
Insomnia is best cured by outdoor air.
This has been said thousand times, and
still sufferers do not comprehend ,hc
force of the truth OF it. Very few peo-
pie indeed viii be sleepleSS after d whole
day out of doors, and sleep is SO much
matter of habit that It would be worth
much effort and contrivance to get this
whole day out of doors in many case
where such a measure is treated as quite
out of the question: one such day may so
help to break the habit of being awake
as to render other sleep-proyokins de-
vices effective that without the open-alr
eXpedient may have utterly failed.
Remember Professor TyndalPs verdict
on The hopelessness OF getting good air
in the house; do the best you can for It,
of course, but we have his authority and
demonstration to prove that all indoor
air is bad air, and all the world has long
ago found out that good air is the finest
nerve tonic and sOporific ever discovered.
One pleasant, desirable article of food
is invaluable in fostering sleep, and that
is lettuce salad-not merely lettuce-let-
tuce is eood-but the oil and havorinS OF
garlic that go to making good salad OF
it increase greatly it's soothing powers.
The garlic is. of course merely rubbed on
the dish, but pretty thorough use OF II
in that way will hep the case in several
ways; it, like all its vegetable KIN, mas
definite sleep producing tendency. and
then it makes a salad taste so well that
you eat twice as much of 1t as you other
wise would, and thai IS a point gained
Besides it's express sOporiilc tendency
most peoples stomachs stand IN sore
need of more salad than Jpev get arf
they profit in sleep by an improved di-
gestion Very Stubborn cases Vi n.solAl.a
are frequently cured by a steady habit of
eating such salad as described at the
evening meal Baths can be made In
valuable in treating insomnia, but either
hot or a cold bath just before going 10
bed is often perilous to sleep; il is. stimu-
Iating not soothing. For all who can
stand such hardy treatment cold morn
! ing plunge is good for sleeping haplts, pc
cause it tones the nerves; but the batn
! Immediately sleep provoking is the sitz,
| taken in conjunction with not loot
bath; hot foot bath alone is often tined
but where the brain activity is strong, II
is not effective enough in drawing the
| blood from the head. IF one has not q
+, sitz bathtub something approxtmating the
! sitz bath can be taken in an ordinary tub
| nv filing to the depth of ten inches or so
| with hot water and then sitting in 1t with
! the feet drawn UP SO as not 10 wet the
| legs above the knee: five minutes In the
| tub and water as hot as can be borne,
| then rub off (most of the person, rernenl-
! Der. should not be web, jump into bed,
| and few are the cases that after some
| preceding hours out of doors and let
| tuce salad for dinner won't go TO sleep
and stay asleep.
! In some cases of extreme sleeDlessness
great help has been found by putting tne
patient in q hammock, where they could
/ be gently swung, or swing themselves.
Rocking is deplored now for children,
and certainly it is better that they p ss
| trained to sleep without 1t; but Wnen II
is a case of sleeping or not sleeping for
a person of any age, it is better to sleep
by rocking than not to sleep at all In
| the case of the hammock the gam. Is
! 1-ifb MANY other devices, may be great
from temporary use of it, get person
in the way of sleeping and 1t Is COM
paratively easy to keep him in the - way way
Of other measures more or less famll-
lar and frequently recommended, one
of the best IS a little light food to be
taken at any hour of the night wheT
,yakefulness begins. The late Or; )
| Marion Sims was great friend OF tnis
habit and taught many patients OF hi:
to keep a little tray. with biscuits anc
wine or milk by their beds.
VIRGINIA FRENCH.