You are here

Back to top

Sleeping in Africa

Asking in a pharmacy at an upscale mall for a recommendation for an over-the-counter sleep aide, the young man helping me questioned about the cause for my not sleeping. Rather than explain jet lag, two days of little sleep and most definitely too many B rated movies to pass the time on the airplane, I said, “Oh, sometimes I am thinking about things and can’t sleep.”

He confidently responded, “I am wondering if you know about sleep hygiene?” Nope, I had to admit that I had never heard of sleep hygiene and instead, secretly wondered if the hygiene of sleep was anywhere close to the highest priority of hygiene concerns in Kenya. Nevertheless, very professional, wearing his white medical jacket, he went onto explain that I needed to shut off every kind of electronics, the television, the computer, and even my phone for at least two hours before I intended to sleep. Then, I must also remember to exercise for at least some part of the day.

In America where we are inundated with countless absolutes for taking care of our health, I had heard all of his recommendations before, but had never heard them referred to in the realm of hygiene. Somehow, using that term takes me to a much higher level of obligation, as anything less than strict adherence would somehow be grossly neglectful! So, still purchasing my always go to solution for any ailment—a pill, of course—I left the pharmacy with melatonin in hand—and a head full of strong admonitions if I wanted to achieve optimal results for a good night’s rest. So, I leave you for now, having high hopes tonight of turning my American day into a slumbering Kenyan night.

our digs in our hostel in Nairobi…

Add new comment

Plain text

  • No HTML tags allowed.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Add Facebook Comment