my friend suffers from insomnia any ideas on how...

[nicnic131]

...get to sleep other than knocking him out???

[Qui-gon]

Sit him in front of the live feed of Big Brother on E4 , he'll be asleep before you know it :)

[purple_lily76]

Tell him to see his doctor to treat the problem instead of the symptoms.

[cavetroy]

Get pi$$ed, though not a good idea in the long run.

[bugaboo]

Talk to him in a really monotone voice about telegraph poles and railway lines.But I suggest knocking him out like you hinted at.. Its quicker..

[minormatt]

a intravenous injection of heroin should help. Or counting sheep. Either way he/ she should get a good nights kip.Baaaa.

[Guineapig]

Get your partner to say the Lord's Prayer or some other mantra 30 times silently [if they get to 12 before going to sleep that will be an achievement] and make sure their muscles are supported so they can really relax.

[Dr. H]

Although knocking him out is tempting, it could be hard on your knuckles if you have to do this on a daily basis. If you choose to do this, I recommend a blunt object. (Just kiddin')Myself, I prefer medication. There are a lot of sleep aids sold over the counter. Most of them are the ingredient in Benadryl, only with different names. Yes, some cough syrups such as Nyquil induce sleep because again, they have an antihistamine. What I use for myself and tend to recommend to my patients is to use Melatonin. It's over the counter, it's a natural substance, it is not habit forming, works quickly, and does not produce excessive drowsiness in the morning. My experience is that 3 mg is a safe and effective dose. It is cheap and found virtually in any pharmacy.

[jon h]

I suffer from it as well hence why i'm up now. I've tried using herbal stuff but it doesn't seem to work that well and i personally want to be able to fall asleep just normally. At the moment what i do is put a film i've seen a lot on my laptop and then lay in bed watching it until i fall asleep. failing that the lords pray idea is a good one but if your friend isn't familiar with it then get them to use something they are familiar with like their favourite song. hope this helps.