Unfortunately anxiety-producing thoughts may sometimes be hardest to deal with at the time when you most need some rest from them - when you are trying to sleep. On settling down in bed at night (or at some stage during the night) you may be hit with a very high level of anxiety. It is as though it has simply been lying in wait all day for the time when you are at your lowest points in terms of trying to work with those thoughts. Relaxation techniques, such as meditation are often useful at this time, since they are based around releasing the thoughts. But not everyone is able to put this into practice.
The least benefit is obtained, obviously, from simply lying in bed and turning the thoughts over and over in your head, which will only be added to the anxiety over not being able to sleep. Therefore, one method of taking some action, and hopefully relaxing enough to be able to sleep, is to take ‘’the bull by the horns’’ and deal with whatever is playing on your mind. It is best done by getting out of bed, sitting yourself in another room and attacking the problem with pen and paper in hand. If this is not possible, nor desirable, complete the exercise in the same way while lying in bed, making mental lists.
The first step is to define each situation which is causing anxiety, and then look at what can be done about it and when. If there is absolutely nothing you can do about it at the moment, consider briefly what action will be possible to resolve the situation, then add the action and the desired time-frame to your list.
As an example, let’s suppose you are having worrying thoughts about your health. If you consider that the symptoms are serious enough to need immediate attention, then call a doctor or take yourself to a hospital. If, on the other hand, you do not feel that the situation is that serious, then mark the action necessary (making an appointment with your GP) and when you need to do it (as soon as possible, the next day) on your list. Once you have taken either of these options, resolve that you will now be able to return to bed without continuing to worry about the situation as you have either taken immediate action, or have a plan as to what action you will take and when. A hint here is to try and confine the list to those particular situations which are causing most concern – it will not be helpful to stay up all night trying to deal with every issue you can bring to mind!
The final step is to return to bed and relax, reassuring yourself that you have either done what you can at the moment, or have prepared yourself for further action, in regard to those earlier worries. In this way you are making another move towards taking back the power over your disorder, since you no longer lying in bed at the mercy of your thoughts, but have done something positive. Hopefully, with a little practice, you will find it a useful option when trying to sleep.
By Sandy
The least benefit is obtained, obviously, from simply lying in bed and turning the thoughts over and over in your head, which will only be added to the anxiety over not being able to sleep. Therefore, one method of taking some action, and hopefully relaxing enough to be able to sleep, is to take ‘’the bull by the horns’’ and deal with whatever is playing on your mind. It is best done by getting out of bed, sitting yourself in another room and attacking the problem with pen and paper in hand. If this is not possible, nor desirable, complete the exercise in the same way while lying in bed, making mental lists.
The first step is to define each situation which is causing anxiety, and then look at what can be done about it and when. If there is absolutely nothing you can do about it at the moment, consider briefly what action will be possible to resolve the situation, then add the action and the desired time-frame to your list.
As an example, let’s suppose you are having worrying thoughts about your health. If you consider that the symptoms are serious enough to need immediate attention, then call a doctor or take yourself to a hospital. If, on the other hand, you do not feel that the situation is that serious, then mark the action necessary (making an appointment with your GP) and when you need to do it (as soon as possible, the next day) on your list. Once you have taken either of these options, resolve that you will now be able to return to bed without continuing to worry about the situation as you have either taken immediate action, or have a plan as to what action you will take and when. A hint here is to try and confine the list to those particular situations which are causing most concern – it will not be helpful to stay up all night trying to deal with every issue you can bring to mind!
The final step is to return to bed and relax, reassuring yourself that you have either done what you can at the moment, or have prepared yourself for further action, in regard to those earlier worries. In this way you are making another move towards taking back the power over your disorder, since you no longer lying in bed at the mercy of your thoughts, but have done something positive. Hopefully, with a little practice, you will find it a useful option when trying to sleep.
By Sandy
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