Struggling with anxiety and having a difficult time sleeping? You are not alone!
Most of my clients who deal with anxiety have a difficult time getting to sleep or staying asleep and I’m here to share with you some tried and true ways to help you calm down and get some shut-eye. Give these easy techniques a try and not only will you feel more rested but you will be able to decrease your daytime anxiety too!
You can think of a good night’s sleep as your armor against the stressors of the day. When you get less than 7 hours per night you leave yourself more susceptible to emotional dysregulation and less able to fight your daytime battles.
You don’t need to hit that sweet spot of 7-8 hours every night but if you can manage to get those kind of Zzzz’s on more nights than less, you will find yourself moving through your days with greater ease.
If you make a nightly practice of these simple exercises you will carve out some new neural pathways and build your capacity to relax - and it will be so much easier to get back to a place of calm during your hectic days.
Just read over my list and choose the one that most stands out to you and commit yourself to trying it tonight.
You may also want to take a picture of the list with your phone so that you can refer to it because we all know that at 2am we are are not always at our most patient so it might help to try one technique and then another or maybe both at the same time.
1. Place one hand on your heart and one hand on your belly.
This may seem incredibly simple to you and that is absolutely true but there is a lot of science behind the calming power of touch so go ahead and try it. Keep your hands there for at least 5 minutes (or all night long!) and see what you notice.
2. Reach out and touch your partner or pillow.
When your stress cup overfloweth, it can be very grounding just to feel the presence of the person next to you. Just move your arm or leg alongside theirs or reach for their hand. If you sleep solo or your bedmate is a super light sleeper who would not appreciate a 2am wake up call, just grab a pillow, wrap your arms around it and give it a squeeze.
3. Focus on your breathing and let your mind go.
Keep bringing your mind back to your breath, noticing the inhale and exhale, feeling your chest rise and fall, or, if you are doing belly breathing, feeling your belly rise and fall. Tell yourself that your to-do lists or your worries can all be dealt with tomorrow, this is the time for you to have some escape from them, some you-time.
4. Don’t put pressure on yourself to get to sleep.
As I said before, these exercises will be helpful in lowering your anxiety throughout your days and nights - you are basically working out at the relaxation gym. Tell yourself that these techniques are just as productive as sleeping and and that just lying in your bed and relaxing can be restorative and help you recharge for the next day.
5. Surround yourself with love.
Think of all the things you love in your life. Bring faces, places, music, or objects to mind - anything or person who makes you feel grateful. Try to do this with ease and relax the grip of your mind. In the daytime you are thinking and doing but at night you can just explore and be. Have you ever had absurd thoughts or funny imaginings and thought, “I must be falling asleep.” That is where we’d like our minds to wander.
I’d love to hear from you and what helps you get to dreamland so please comment below.