In order to better explore the elements of drama as a vehicle to alleviate insomnia, I investigated some similar example interventions, the most common and popular of which are Yoga and Sound baths.
As neither the Yoga nor the Sound bath workshops I attended allowed for filming, I searched the internet for similar videos/pictures to showcase. Combining these two approaches, I find that their most direct aim is not to cure insomnia as a disease (as discussed in the last Tutorial, I am not a doctor who treats physical illnesses), but to soothe the body and mind through yoga or sound baths, and thus meditation, which can help with sleep.
Yoga
Yoga is an aerobic exercise that can help treat insomnia on the following basic principles：
- Yoga relaxes tight muscles and internal organs, allowing for a smooth blood flow and also eliminates fatigue, thus guiding the brain into deep sleep.
- Insomnia is often the result of excess heat in the right chakra and excess heat in the liver, which is drained away through meditative yoga, thus helping with sleep.
- A major cause of sleep quality is psychological stress and change, and yoga has a very good regulating effect on the nervous system. And yoga mediation effectively strengthens blood circulation, regulates the function of the nerves, spinal cord, heart and other internal organs, and clears the confusion of the mind caused by physical tension.
Sound Bath
Sound bath therapy is a form of physiotherapy which is based on the following principles：
- By affecting the person’s physiological state: music can help relax the body and mind into sleep by soothing the autonomic nervous system. Music affects the regulation of hormones, including the stress hormone, cortisol. When a person listens to soothing music, cortisol levels are reduced, stress is released and the body relaxes, thus helping sleep to set in.
- By altering one’s emotional state: music stimulates the limbic system of the brain and induces the corresponding emotional experience, causing one to become immersed in it. Music is often an accurate and nuanced description of the subtle changes in human emotional activity, and can act directly, quickly and effectively on emotional activity.
- By diverting the person’s attention: on the one hand, music can mask external noise and reduce environmental distractions, as is the case with white noise sleep aids; on the other hand, music can make the listener less aware of feelings such as insomnia, anxiety and pain, thus increasing the person’s sleep efficiency.