When I dropped my son off at his college I initially thought I was fine. Then I ended up quietly cried on and off all the way home. It wasn’t just that my baby was leaving home or that he would be leaving an empty chair at the kitchen table or that I wouldn’t be able to hear his big laugh or trip over his big shoes on a daily basis. It was that this signified the end of a chapter in my life and I didn’t really know how the next chapter would unfold. 

If you’re reading this, chances are that you're part of the huge number of exhausted, depleted, sleep deprived humans who are experiencing what some experts are calling "an insomnia epidemic." I can totally relate. To say "I get it" would be an understatement. I've battled insomnia for years. I've tried everything - seriously - EVERYTHING - in my attempts to sleep through the night like a "normal" person.

I’m neither a doctor nor a trained sleep specialist - although I have personally seen my share of both. What I am is a certified Life and Health Coach who has worked with countless people over the years and insomnia has been a common complaint for many. Whether you have problems falling asleep, staying asleep or both, chances are you’ll find something here to help you. Each of the things on this list has worked for me and my clients at one time or another. It’s my sincere hope that you find some thing or things that can be a magic bullet to help you slay your insomnia and get back to the business of sleeping and living.

Right before I turned 50 I was in a bit of a panic. I mean, let’s be honest, the cultural myths around being a woman over the age of 50 are overwhelmingly dismal. Now, a couple of years later and past the big 5-0 mark, I’d like to set the record straight: your fifties can be better than OK. In fact, they can be a total transformation in the best of ways.

Somewhere in the process of becoming "Mommy" I lost something fundamental: I lost contact with my Essential Self. I would catch glimpses of her from time to time but she was like a shadow, getting bigger when the light was right, taunting me with her elusive and mercurial appearance.