Can’t sleep? Time to call in the Sleep Guru

If none of those have worked, you could be forgiven for wondering how yoga is going to help. Yet yoga instructor Anandi, otherwise known as the Sleep Guru, is convinced that she has been able to cure her own chronic insomnia and believes that yoga nidra (meaning yoga sleep in Sanskrit), can help you too.

"Our modern view of relaxation is collapsing on the sofa with a coffee, switching on the TV or lighting up a cigarette, none of which actually revive the body, mind or spirit," says Anandi.

"When yogis meditate their consciousness shifts to a very deep and stable state which is able to heal and recharge the mind and body. Just 30 minutes of deep relaxation achieved through yoga nidra is as good as four hours sleep."

Trained in India, Anandi is lucky enough to count such yogic luminaries as Shiva Rea, Anne Richardson and Deepak Chopra amongst her teachers - experiences which she describes as "very intense and profound parts of my journey."

Having spent years perfecting her technique, Anandi now offers sleep retreats in Italy, where she helps people ease themselves back into the arms of Morpheus.

While her techniques do require some practice (like all things) thankfully you don't need to sit cross-legged on a mountain to benefit.

According to Anandi, practising yoga nidra along with other techniques such as pranayama (yogic breathing) can help you enjoy an immense sense of relaxation - and at the same time give you boundless energy for the day, as well, of course, as a better night's sleep.

Anandi's own yogic journey began many years ago, when she visited Trudie Styler and Sting's house in Wiltshire as a fitness instructor.

"One morning Sting was there and we were talking about my love for Italy and he invited me to their Tuscan home. When I was there, I happened to be sitting next to Sting's yoga guru at dinner and he invited me to do yoga with him in the morning.

"At the time I was a fitness instructor and wasn't into yoga. It was the turning point of my life! The yoga was in Sting's underground chapel, candle lit and frescoed. I had such a profound yogic experience that I knew yoga was my path, and I haven't looked back since," she says.

Her interest in yoga for sleep problems developed after she experienced a chronic bout of insomnia, brought on by the stress of divorce and near bankruptcy.

"I suffered with permanent headaches, felt ill all the time, looked dreadful and found it impossible to function," she says.

Anyone who's experienced a bad night's sleep will know how damaging the effects can be. As well as tiredness, mood swings and poor concentration, a lack of sleep can lead to memory problems, anxiety and depression - even hallucinations.

While the exact function of sleep (and dreaming) remains something of a mystery to the scientific community, its importance to our health and wellbeing is widely accepted. Recent studies have linked a lack of sleep with everything from weight gain to high blood pressure. In fact, humans can survive longer without food than they can without sleep.

Aside from medical issues, Anandi believes that the most common cause of sleeplessness is stress, not winding down properly in the evening and feeling overwhelmed with life and work.

"When people are lacking fulfilment and direction in life and find themselves at a crossroads, insomnia is often the result. It's the body saying - DO SOMETHING!" she says.

When people come to see Anandi now, she uses specific pranayama techniques, visualisation, fulfilment sessions, restorative yoga therapy, nutrition and - very importantly - nidra meditation to help them.

"I believe that if you look at the person's life holistically, rather than trying to treat just one part, you can help them to restore a normal sleep pattern without the use of sleep aids," she says.

Lucy, 51, is just one of the many people who have benefited from Anandi's techniques after suffering with years of insomnia, brought on by stress, smoking and the menopause.

"She came to one of my sleep retreats in Italy where she learned the practice of nidra having used the Yoga Sleep CD. She now does the practice every day before she goes to bed and says it has transformed her life. She's even given up smoking - something she thought she would never be able to do," says Anandi.

So once perfected, what does yoga nidra actually feel like? "It's hard to describe," laughs Anandi. "Your body kind of dissolves into nothingness, you're conscious of the sounds of nature around, but totally uninvolved with any noise, you just drift and drift.

"In nidra you are not asleep, you are somewhere between deep relaxation and sleep. After a while, I feel my body filling with warm, healing light. I can't actually describe it very well - it is such a deep experience."

If you would like to find out more about Anandi you can visit her site: www.anandi.co.uk, buy her Sleep CD for £10.95 or attend one her sleep retreats in Italy.

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