Massage is another helpful and enjoyable way of dealing with the stresses associated with insomnia, particularly for people who find it difficult to relax. To lie on a couch having your body caringly tended to can ease away all kinds of muscular and mental tensions. Touch and relaxation are healing in themselves; in addition, massage stimulates the circulation of blood and lymph, boosting the flow of oxygen and essential nutrients in the blood and also helping the body to free itself of waste toxins. This can be particularly beneficial for problems like rheumatism and arthritis.

It’s interesting how massage has taken off over the last decade in Britain, since the British are not famous for appreciating the power of touch. Some men, in particular, seem to find it hard to understand that touch can be intimate and healing without having to lead to a sexual clinch, and in some areas massage is only slowly losing its erotic associations. Yet it is one of the most ancient and most natural forms of therapy, practised since ancient times in the East, and adopted by Ancient Greek physicians as a valid aspect of medicine. It is now beginning to come into its own in the West, and is regarded as a valid therapy by both natural practitioners and hospital nurses.

Everyone can benefit from massage, from the very young to the very old. Baby massage is becoming quite popular; gently stroking your baby all over is not only soothing but will help him or her to grow up with a good sense of self-acceptance. Old people can benefit greatly from touch, and are often starved of it — a lack that can certainly contribute to insomnia. In addition, massage with a good oil helps to keep their skin strong and supple.

There are various methods of massage; probably the best-known is Swedish Massage which uses a variety of techniques to relieve stress, encourage circulation, take the tension out of tight muscles and break down fat. Becoming popular today is Intuitive Massage, which is less rigidly structured and also takes into account the body’s energy system.

A professional massage can take an hour or longer, and is a very pleasant experience. These days massage therapists often use aromatherapy oils in their massage oils.

Self-help

Many people find that giving a massage is a soothing as receiving one; more than one massage therapist has told me that focusing their attention on the other person is like a form of meditation. Couples attending massage courses find that it brings them closer; non-sexual touch can have a loving quality that can feed back into your sex life. And for couples going through a bad patch, emotionally or sexually, learning massage together can sometimes break through barriers that talking can’t.

Anyone can give a massage to their child, partner or relative, particularly concentrating on the neck and shoulders; but if you are untrained, keep your touch gentle — particularly if you massage someone’s head. It’s even nicer if you use a pleasantly scented aromatherapy oil. If you want to take it further, look out for evening classes or weekend courses. You can learn a great deal from the thorough and well-illustrated Book of Massage (details below) which gives instructions for intuitive massage, Shiatsu and reflexology, with sections on massaging babies and old people, and on the energy system and centres.

Massaging the feet

This can also be extraordinarily soothing, mentally and physically; among other benefits it draws tension away from the head, helping to calm an over-active mind. If you have a partner who is willing to massage your feet, try it after getting into bed; you may well find yourself drifting off to sleep.

Foot massage is also a very good way to get a fractious baby to settle down — just gently stroke the feet for a few minutes after a bath. Of course, with babies, you can do this at any time of day.

Massaging yourself

Self-massage is obviously not as satisfactory as having someone doing it for you, but it can still be quite soothing. Starting with your head, go down whatever bits of you you can reach, gently pressing and releasing with your palms and fingers. Then use your hands to lightly brush yourself down, smoothing out the energy field around you.

Simply massaging your hands and fingers can also release quite a lot of tension. Try it: you may find yourself yawning.

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Kinesiology is a way of examining and rebalancing the whole person. It can help the insomniac by identifying and correcting imbalances in body and mind, using a series of muscle tests and other techniques. It was the brainchild of an American chiropractor, Dr George Goodheart, who found that by testing the strength of specific muscles in a systematic way, it is possible to evaluate the patient’s state as a whole: nutritional/chemical, emotional, musculo-skeletal and energetic.

This system, which Dr Goodheart called Applied Kinesiology, is taught in the UK as Systematic Kinesiology; some practitioners refer to themselves as systematic kinesiologists, some as kinesiologists and some as kinesiotherapists. There are also simplified forms such as Touch for Health and Balanced Health, which are intended only for family use or as an adjunct to another therapy.

Some practitioners work purely as kinesiologists, while a number use kinesiology combined with other skills. An extremely basic form consists of testing whether a person’s arm becomes weaker or stronger in reaction to certain foods, substances, or thoughts. This can look impressive; it is fascinating to see how an anxious thought, for instance, or a sugar-lump in the mouth, can cause someone’s arm instantly to weaken, while a happy thought or a bite of an apple will strengthen it. However, serious kinesiologists regard this as a party trick: properly practised kinesiology is a great deal more complex.

It is based on the knowledge of a whole series of connections between particular muscles, organs, glands and bodily systems, including the acupuncture meridians and the circuitry of the brain and nervous system. So for correct treatment it’s important to go to somebody who has done a reasonable amount of training, as well as being a good counsellor.

For insomnia, says kinesiologist Maggie La Tourelle: ‘The first consideration would be to look for a balance in life, including nutrition, exercise and fresh air. Is the person in over-load or under-load? Some people don’t sleep because they are not doing enough in their lives, and are not satisfied or motivated; if they’re not expelling healthy energy during the day this can disturb them at night. Or are they working too hard? I would probably find all this out through counselling. I would look at the various stressors — emotional, work, environmental, chemical and so on, and identify where the stress is, both by counselling and by muscle testing.’

Muscle-testing is a way of asking the body non-verbal questions, to which its reactions give a truthful reply. To detect nutritional deficiencies and allergic reactions, the kinesiologist tests the strength of particular muscles in response to the patient’s contact with items of food, vitamin and mineral samples and so on.

What is actually being tested is the brain’s response to two things at once: holding the muscle in a particular position, together with another factor, like food. If there is a stress caused by the food, the brain cannot respond to the muscle test, and the muscle weakens. Items you need will strengthen the muscles, while items that are not therapeutic will weaken them. This is very useful if you are uncertain what supplements to take; Dr Goodheart once tested a film star who was taking 56 nutrients, and found she only needed four!

The kinesiologist can also ‘ask’ the body which of the various aspects — emotional, structural and so on — needs treating first, and whether any other treatment is needed. Once the areas of weakness have been discovered, he or she applies various techniques to strengthen and rebalance the body and its circuits. These include light massage on body reflexes to stimulate the lymphatic and vascular systems, and touching or holding the meridians and acupuncture points to release energy. Treatment includes nutritional and dietary advice; the kinesiologist may also recommend Bach Flower Remedies.

An important aspect of kinesiology consists of techniques for creating balance in the brain, both between the left and right hemispheres, and also the forebrain (to do with future projects) and the back-brain (to do with memory and the past), which are often in conflict with each other. If the insomnia is caused by an over-stress on the logical hemisphere and neglect of the intuitive side, the balance is restored by using a number of brain integration techniques. Brian Butler, director of the Association of Systematic Kinesiologists, suggests drawing a large ‘lazy 8′ (the figure 8 lying on its side); then keeping your nose pointed towards the centre, follow the 8 round with your eyes for a minute or two. This can improve concentration and memory, among other benefits.

Another helpful technique, Emotional Stress Release, gently clears emotional trauma. By placing his or her hands on the patient’s temples, the kinesiologist takes the charge out of an emotionally charged event, so that the memory is no longer disturbing. Clients can be taught to do this for themselves at home, which could be very helpful if a memory keeps you awake at night.

Kinesiologists may suggest other physical or mental exercises to do at home, including writing or repeating affirmations (positive statements), so that the balance can be maintained. T think that’s very important,’ says Maggie La Tourelle. ‘So that people know they can leave the therapist’s room and do something for themselves.’

Muscle testing can also be used to test for geopathic stress; for this the kinesiologist would need to test you on-site at home.

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