I’m sitting at my computer now holding Billy’s paw while typing. In case you don’t already know, Billy is my tom-cat. He literally fell into my life four years ago when he tumbled off my neighbour’s roof – where he was born – into my porch where Ginger, my dog, found him. Billy was so tiny then at just a month old, at most.

Billy sleeping in his favorite position

Now Billy likes to sleep on my desk, and anywhere and everywhere I happen to be at home. He sleeps on the sofa, he sleeps on the pillow under my desk, he sleeps on the chair at the little writing table in my bedroom, he sleeps in his basket, he sleeps on the dining chairs, he sleeps on Ginger’s day bed. He particularly likes to lay his head on my computer keyboard, which drives my computer crazy. Basically, Billy sleeps all day and all night. He never seems to have any problems sleeping.

If only we humans could doze off so easily. Nobody would suffer from insomnia. Ever since Michael Jackson’s struggles with sleeplessness came to light, insomnia has been in the spotlight. Phillip, one of my friends, says that the health supplement melatonin helps him to get to sleep. Neways International has an easy-to-take one called Megatonin. It’s certainly convenient, as you only need to take it 30 minutes before bed and you can even travel with it.

If you prefer off-the-wall natural remedies, one remedy for sleeplessness is oil-pulling, a practice gaining popularity in India and elsewhere. Basically, you gargle a tablespoon of sesame oil on an empty stomach. For 10 minutes, gently swish and swirl the oil through your gums and teeth. The oil will become thinner and whiter during this time. After 10 minutes, spit out the oil and rinse your mouth thoroughly. The oil may be toxic after all this oil-pulling, so make sure you don’t swallow it. Doing this at least once a day is supposed to guarantee a good night’s sleep. The results are apparently better when you do oil-pulling two to three times daily.

Besides keeping insomnia at bay, oil-pulling is also said to alleviate gum disease, stabilise loose teeth and whiten teeth. It may even cure headache, backache and knee pain. Not having any insomnia or gum problems myself, and virtually never suffering from headaches and other aches and pains, I never found a reason to try oil-pulling. For good oral hygiene, I gargle with Neways Eliminator. It’s great for preventing sore throat and mouth ulcers as well, and you can even use it to banish body odours, clean wounds and sores and treat acne. Really handy stuff and it sure smells nicer and fresher than sesame oil. But hey, different strokes for different folks, right?