The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1907-04-21

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y somnia. The mere strain Of
waiting through the long night
+ for the rest which never comes Is ruin
Gus TO the nerves. leaving the subject
Of the disastrous effects of loss Of sleep
out of the discussion. Few. however.
know Of the really damaging ravages it
makes on whatever good looks its uu-
fortunate victim may possess.
Only one night Of sIeepIessnesz- brings
as its concommitant heavy eyes, dull
skin and nabby muscles; think, then. Of
the results OF many weeks absolutely
devoid Of slumber! One hesitates be-
fore q catalogue of the ills this dread
disorder brings in its train Lusterless
hair, wrinkles, dark circles under the
eyes, trembling hands-alI are numbered
within It,
FortunateIz, Insomnia is no longer an
incurable ill., 1t occupies. in fact. some
thing Of the position of the proverbial
cold for which there are more remedies
than there are sufferers from il. The
fact that it was so long considered IT.
remedial was due TO the failure Of the
old and established cures" Counting
once the most widely believed OF these,
is a sure road TO insanity. rather than
10 sleep! So. too. of the counting exer-
Cises, where one was supposed TO lie
wlde-eyed and count one thousand, or
ten thousand, or "a hundred thousand,
the agony usually being terminated
only by the cocks crow or the break
fast bell All Of these tasks are impo-
sitions upon . the already overworxed
nervous system. and generally asgra-
vate the condition instead of relieving It,
The Value of Repose.
The new science teaches the value OF
repOse Only by perfect rest and that
forgetfulness that comes only through
extreme concentration. can one acquire
sleep. First of all. the body must be
thoroughly relaxed and as little cum
bered by clothing as possible Lie fat
on your back and make no effort TO
close your eyes; in fact. abjure mUscu-
lar effort entirely. Then. striving for
the utmost concentration. carry out one
of the following exercises: Imagine the
word sleep or "repose" 10 be hung
on sign over your bed and even
though the room be in utter darkness, /
pretend 10 yourself that you can see II
perfectly. Continue staring al this
fictitious word. concentrating all your
attention on il, until the eyellds fall of
themselves and sleep rewards your eff
forts. The second exercise is more
difficult and requires some practice. Ia
the same way as in the previous drill,
imagine the word peace" 10 be writ
ten in letters Of fire. and allow the flame
10 travel over your entire body. from
your head 10 each Of your feet AT
first this feat appears impossible. and
even ridiculous. but in a short time It
becomes easy, aud is a sure way Of in
ducing slumber.
To pass from the purely mental to
the purely physical, insomnia is often
cured by taking nourishment before re-
firing and during the night On a
small table By the bed place a spirit
or electric lamp. a glass Of milk, or
orange or lemon juice and a few
crackers or biscuits This is best for
Intermittent sleepers. as a little warm
milk and cracker taken whenever one d
awakes soon destroy the reason for
their presence. Oranges are also good
for this purpose, If the sleepIess ones
neighbOrs do not object to the odor
Never take any heavy food. but have
something warm if possible. If 1t is
only glass Of hot water,
Exercise plays an important parr in
the new treatment. One Of the finest
OF these. causing actual dizziness is to
ron the head from side TO side. and
backward and forward, until it drops
from exhaustion. Do not however. en-
pIoy this exercise Immediately after