The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-06-17

ton of sleep is one of the highest pos
sible Importance. We give one-th1r'
of our lifetime, precious as it is to Us
10 steep. Without fair allowance o
sleep we cannot be well and if deprive'
of it altogether we should soon die :
case is on record where a person got ~
sleep for nine days, dying at the enc
of that period. In China, long ago, de
privation of sleep was used as a form
of torture, and even of capital punish
ment [ have known people who were
actually afraid to go to bed for fear o.
! the dread spectre of insomnia which
was sure to haunt them through long
hours of the night. How to Danish tht
unwelcome visitor is the question.
/ I have suggested one or two expedi-
! ents but there are others. For exam
! pie, if you are a victim, try the effec'
/ of a bowl OF bot-not merely warm, but
/ hot-cla IN broth, or oyster-broth, OF
chicken-b broth. It will draw the blood
t from the brain, quiet the nervous sys-
tenn and bring sleep.
What is it that happens when one
goes to sleep? A complete answer can
not be given to this question, but it is
known that the blood flows out of the
BRAIN that the eyeballs are turned up
ward, that the pupils of the eyes be-
come contracted, that the pulse slack.
ems and that the breathing becomes
slower, the amount of air taken into the
lungs being only about one-seyenth OF
what it is when one is awake. Appar-
entity, the immediate cause of waking
is a flow of blood to the brain.
Obviously. then, when a person is
trounled with sleeplessness, any expedi-
ent by which the blood may be drawn
away from the brain is likely to be
good For, ordinarily, whatever may be
the cause of the mischief, too much
blood in the brain is directly accounta-
BILE for the wakefulness. hot foot
bath will often accomplish the purpose
in question; or a warm glass of milk,
or a cup of not water, may so act upon
the nutrition and circulation as to re-
lieve the brain of congestion. This, IN
deed, will often put a restless child to
sleep. or a grown person for that mat
ter.
The use of water outside and inside
of the body is neglected. There is
great deal in the old-fashioned water
cure. though charIatans once brought
it into disrepute. /SThe next time you
suffer from insoHinia take hot bath,
and swallow bowl of water as hot as
you can drink it. The two together
will make your skin act, stimulate your
circulation, lull and quiet your nerves.
and draw the blood from your brain
Hardly will you lie down before you
will find yourself falling asleep.
The Spanish women rub the backs of
their children to put them to sleep. 1t
is a good idea. Often, in cases of in
somnia, vigorous rubbing of the
spine, the abdomen and the head viii
cause the patient to fall into slumber.
L have myself noticed. while undergo
ing the attentions of barber, that the
friction of his hands on my head and
the back of my neck had a tendency to
make me feel drowsy.
When the baby cries and whines in
the night, instead of giving it medicine
it's digestion) rub its back,
or put it into a warm bath. The bath !
viii take all the congestion from it's
brain and spinal cord, and the little
one will go to sleep the moment it ,
comes out. How much better are such |
simple expedients than resort to |
1rugs And what is good for a child
is good for a grown person. A hot
water bottle at the feet may prove
serviceable in some instances; but re-
member always to lie with the head ,
nigh, and 20 admit plenty of fresh air !
% the bedroom.
Mental work after dinner should be
avoided. It causes a flow of blood to
he brain, interferes with digestion, and
las a consequent tendency to bring
leeplessness. Strong emotions-anxi-
ty, joy, sorrow, or what-not-have a
ike effect. Actors and stockholders,
whose lives contain too much excite
nent, are particularly Liable to i:.som-
ia To the busy financier-that type
# the modern human engine run at
Ugh pressure-the getting of proper
.llowance of sleep is the most serious
f problems. His nerve-centres are ex-
austed, and. when the time comes for
uiet, he cannot command repose.
These unfortunates apply for help to
he doctor, and he gives them prescrip-
ions for one sleep-producing drug or
mother. The poison, whatever it may
e helps them for a while, but it has a
to lose it's effect, and so the