I've had insomnia for almost as long as I can remember.  If you're visiting this article right now, chances are that you suffer from insomnia too.  I understand how miserable the feeling is.  Pure exhaustion... yet you're unable to sleep.  It's awful!

Over the last couple of weeks, I've given several tips to beating your insomnia, at least for one night.  Today is my final installment of these fifty tips.  I hope at least one of them helps you out.  In order to see the last ten tips, click here.

Here are the last ten tips to beating insomnia:

Focus on your senses rather than trains of thoughts.  This might seem weird, but it really works.  Instead of allowing yourself to focus on a specific worry, focus on your senses.  How soft your blanket is, how comforting your room smells, the dim lighting, the quietness all around you, the minty freshness of your breath after you brushed your teeth...  Focus on comforting senses rather than worries about the next day.

Try to set a specific bedtime.  Bedtimes are annoying.  I realize that.  However, getting your mind and body used to going to bed at a specific time will often help you become tired as your bedtime draws near.

Soak in the sun.  Try to get at least fifteen minutes of Vitamin D each day by standing in the sunshine.  Go on a walk with your dog.  Sit out in your yard and read a book.  When your body receives natural Vitamin D, you will be able to sleep better at night.

Exercise during the daytime.  Exercise is important to help you sleep at night.  It will keep your body healthy and active, and your body's internal clock will be more likely to tire when it comes time to go to bed.  However, be sure not to exercise at least two hours before you go to bed.  Otherwise, your adrenaline will be rushing through your body and your blood pressure will be high... not good factors for trying to sleep.

Make a list of things to do tomorrow.  If you tend to lie awake all night worrying about things you have to do the next day, write a big list about thirty minutes before you go to bed.  Even if it's a bunch of little things like, "Go to the store" or "Email Mom," those worries will be curbed enough for you to think about rest.  You'll have them available for you to remember as soon as you wake up the next morning.

Listen to an audio sleeping tape.  I know this will probably make most people laugh, but here goes.  Some professionals have made CDs that you can put into a stereo and listen to right before you go to sleep.  They basically consist of someone with a gentle voice coaxing you to fall asleep.  My dad bought me one by a guy named Frank A. Prince called Speed Sleep.  You can check it out here if you want.  It worked the first night, but after that, I was too curious about what the guy was saying to fall asleep.  Decide for yourself.

Don't sleep in too late in the mornings.  As an eighteen-year-old teen, I absolutely love to sleep in.  It's something I enjoy.  But when you sleep in and get a fourteen hour night's rest, your body isn't going to want to go to sleep at ten o'clock the next night.  That's just how life is.  So if you're struggling with horrible insomnia during the week, you may not want to sleep in during the weekends.

Stare at one place on your ceiling.  This works for some people, but it rarely works for me.  Find one spot on your ceiling that isn't too distracting.  Just a place, like a corner, or a crack... not a water stain that could be transformed into all sorts of pictures in your mind.  Stare at your sleep spot every time you want to fall asleep and don't think about anything else.  Eventually your bored mind might let you drift into slumber.

Place a sleeping pill by your bed.  Now, don't use sleeping pills unless they are prescribed to you by a doctor.  Sometimes the mere comfort of a sleeping pill by your bed can make your subconscious think, "If I can't sleep tonight, I'll have a backup plan."  This will decrease your anxiety and you may be able to sleep without the sleeping pill. 

Visit your doctor.  If nothing works and you are simply getting no sleep, please visit your doctor.  He or she will know how to best help you with your situation.  I'm not a doctor.  I'm simply a fellow insomniac, and in some cases, my silly tips just won't be able to help you out.

Sweet dreams, insomniacs:

Insomnia is miserable.  There's no way around it.  If you suffer with insomnia like I do, you may feel desperate to read any tips to beating this awful disorder, even for one night.  No worries.  I've made a list of 50 tips to tricking your insomnia.  Some may work for you.  Some might not.  It won't hurt to try.  Click here for the last ten tips.

Here are the next ten tips to beating your insomnia:

Follow a specific routine before bed.  About one to two hours before you go to bed, start a routine.  Maybe your routine will be to watch a thirty minute sitcom, take a warm shower, put on your pajamas, eat a small snack, brush your teeth, write in a journal, read for half an hour in low lighting, set your alarm clock, and turn off the lights.  Whatever your routine should be, try to keep it the same every night to make your body get adjusted to the schedule.  Once you begin your routine, your mind will learn to realize, "I'm going to go to sleep in about two hours."

Associate certain senses with sleep.  Every night before bed, put on a certain lotion.  Only drink warm milk and honey before you go to sleep.  Put on special fuzzy socks right before you hop into bed.  Associate your senses with sleep.  When your mind recognizes this triggers, you will begin to feel sleepy.

Create a peaceful alternate reality in your mind.  This trick rarely works for me, but I have heard many people say it works perfectly.  In your mind, create the most beautiful scene you possibly can.  Perhaps it's a picnic blanket in a soft, green field.  Perhaps it's a hammock hanging over a warm, tropical beach.  Whatever imagery is the most peaceful to your mind, create that scene.  Imagine all five senses: taste, touch, sound, sight, smell.  Imagine yourself falling asleep in your mental picture and you may find yourself drifting off to sleep in real life.

Practice breathing exercises.  Sometimes deep breathing is all you need for your body to relax and let you drift off into slumber.  There are many routines that you can try out, like the one at this website.  You can also try out some techniques of your own and see which breathing exercises work best for you.

Get up and move around.  Sometimes, the longer you lie in bed thinking, the less you'll be able to sleep.  Get up and pace the floor.  Walk around your bedroom or your home.  Go outside and take a walk in the cool night air.  Be sure to keep low lighting and don't exert yourself to the point of waking up your body even more.  Merely allow yourself to get up and move around until your body begins to relax, cool down, and allow your mind to become tired.

Lie in bed and try not to fall asleep.  It's reverse psychology for your brain.  Remember when you were a little kid and you were absolutely desperate to stay awake all night to catch Santa in the act?  It's like the harder you try not to sleep, the faster you fall asleep.  And the harder you try to fall asleep, the more awake you become. 

Go several days without caffeine.  I'll admit right now that when it comes to caffeine, I'm totally addicted.  You might be too, which makes this trick a last resort.  When you go through a spell of insomnia so severe, you're completely desperate, boycott caffeine for at least three days.  Let your body rest from anything that will keep you awake.

No spicy or fatty foods before bed.  As your late night snack, don't go to Taco Bell and buy yourself the spiciest food on the menu.  And don't go to Coldstone Creamery and purchase a three scoop ice cream cone.  Spicy and fatty foods will give you indigestion and possibly make it harder to go to sleep.  So avoid spice and fat after nine o'clock.

Take a walk in the cool night air.  For some reason, night air can either make me way excited or way sleepy, depending on the circumstance.  Driving at night, however, exhausts me.  If you have someone who will drive you around at three a.m., go for it.  If not, try taking a little walk around the block at a slow, peaceful pace.  Try to relax your mind and body.

Don't spend the day in bed.  You want your mind to associate getting in bed with going to sleep.  If you spend the afternoon sprawled out on your bed, surfing the internet or reading a book, your mind isn't going to make that connection when it's time for you to go to sleep at night.  When you want to relax and be awake at the same time, try a beanbag chair or the couch... not your bed, however tempting it looks.  Save the bed for sleep.

Check back on Thursday for the next ten tips on how to beat insomnia!