Find Restorative Sleep When You Have Insomnia

Check out Sleeping Protocols at Your Favorite Spa

Sep 10, 2008

More soothing than a power nap, sleep enhancement therapy have wended its way into the top spas. In a holistic spa setting, guests are lulled to a restorative sleep.

Sleep therapies, spa protocols, and sleep inducing natural products, such as hypoallergenic pillows, memory foam mattresses, and lavender oil, are all part of a holistic movement aimed at restorative sleep. With several major studies showing that 7 to 8 hours of sleep are necessary for optimal health, consumers are finding ways to take the elusiveness out of a good night’s sleep.

Increasing evidence has proven that sleep-deprived individuals are less efficient at work, more likely to be overweight, more likely to have hypertension, more likely to take time off sick, often struggle with relationships, and are at increased risk of being involved in traffic or other accidents. With an increasing number of people relying on addictive sleeping pills, some with troublesome side effects, it’s not surprising that a holistic approach to the problem is being sought.

Spas with sleeping program have protocols in which they combine hydrotherapy, massage, and relaxation techniques to induce sleep. The goal is sleep therapy is to teach clients how to relax and sleep spontaneously.

At the Sphatika Holistic Treatment Center in New York City, a 2 to 3 hour-long Royal Sphatika Experience taps into the body’s natural healing mechanism for inducing sleep. The first step in Sphatika’s sleep protocol is the far infrared sauna. Afterwards, a caring massage therapist soothes the guest to sleep using soft healing music and products from the Elixir of Quartz Crystal natural skin care line.

At the Miraval Life in Balance Spa outside Tucson, under the guidance of Director Andrew Weil, guests are instructed in sleep techniques by the psychologist Rubin Naiman, who set up the sleep program at Canyon Ranch in 1995. The author of Healing Night, Naiman frowns on the use of sleeping bills. Instead, he instructs spa guests on a holistic approach to a restful sleep, complete with dreams.

Following the trend, which started in America, the Cucumba Spa in Central London offers a Snoozebooth. The Snoozebooth protocol includes a massage followed by 30 minutes of shut-eye in a darkened room. Likewise, the Royal Spa in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, has a bedroom available for spa guests to catch up on their sleep. The Spa at Pennyhill Park, Surrey offers a spa sleepover night during which clients sleep on handmade mattresses and select their favorite pillow from a wide assortment.

In Thailand, guests at the Chiva Som Spa, can participate in a specific insomnia treatment and sleep-inducing therapy as part of the spa’s its anti-aging program.

Nodding Off

Some establishments cater exclusively to clients in need of restful sleep. These sleep centers provide a restful location with enhancements conducive to sleep.

At Yelo in downtown Manhattan, guests are escorted to one of the spa’s 7 YeloCabs. YeloCabs are private hexagonal pods, containing a leather reclining chair, a blanket of Nepalese cashmere and soporific sounds and lighting to lull guests into the land of Nod. At the end of the 20-minute session, the chamber lightens gradually, mimicking the dawn. Nearby at MetroNaps, guests recline in specially designed chairs encased in spherical hoods for their 20-minute sessions.

The copyright of the article Find Restorative Sleep When You Have Insomnia in Spa Treatments is owned by Elaine Moore. Permission to republish Find Restorative Sleep When You Have Insomnia in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.