After a perfectly relaxed condition of body and mind has been attained, it is not necessary to remain lying on the back.  Any position of the body may then be assumed which seems most restful.

My patients frequently ask what position of the body is best during sleep.  It is not good to lie continuously in any one position.  This tends to cause unsymmetrical development of the different parts of the body and to affect unfavorably the functions of various organs.  It is best to change occasionally from one position to another, as bodily comfort seems to indicate and require.

Many persons fret and worry if sleep does not come as quickly as desired.  They picture to themselves in darkest colors the dire results of wakefulness.  Such a state of mind makes sleep impossible.  If persisted in, it will inevitably lead to chronic insomnia.

Instead of indulging in hurtful worry, say to yourself:  “I do not care whether I sleep or not!  Though I do not sleep, I am lying here perfectly relaxed, at rest and at peace.  I am strengthened and rested by remaining in a state of peaceful relaxation.”

However, the “I do not care” must be actually meant and felt, must not be merely a mechanical repetition of words.

Nothing is more conducive to sleep, even under the most trying circumstances, than such an “I-don’t-care” attitude of mind.  Try it, and the chances are that just because you do not care, you will fall fast asleep.

Chapter XLI

Conclusion

Our critics say:  “If Nature Cure is all that you claim for it, why is it not more generally accepted by the medical profession and the public?”

The greatest drawback to spreading the Nature Cure idea is the necessity of self-control which it imposes.  If our cures of so-called incurable diseases could be made without asking the patients to change their habits of living, without the demand of effort on their own part, Nature Cure sanitariums could not be built fast enough in this country.

No matter how marvelous the results of the natural methods—­when investigators learn that the treatment necessitates the control of indiscriminate appetite and self-indulgence and the persistent practice of natural living and all that this involves, they exclaim:  “The natural regimen may be all right, but who can live up to it?  You are asking the impossible.  You are looking for a perfection which does not exist.  Your directions call for an amount of willpower and self-control which nobody possesses.”

Fortunately, however, this is not true.  Human nature is good enough and strong enough to comply with Nature’s laws.  Furthermore, the natural ways must be the most pleasant in the end or Nature is a fraud and a cheat.  True enjoyment of life and happiness are impossible without perfect physical, mental and moral health and these depend upon natural living and natural treatment of human ailments.