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When the alarming news about the spread of the virus is bombarded all day and we are locked at home alone with fear, it is very difficult to turn off anxiety and fall asleep. As luck would have it, unpleasant thoughts often creep into my head closer to the night. Is it possible to cope with the problem and return a calm and healthy sleep?
In recent times, even balanced people experience anxiety. This is a natural reaction to an unusual situation, but what if anxiety keeps you awake? After all, healthy sleep supports immunity, which is extremely important now.
5 tips to help you get rid of anxiety and fall asleep.
1. Stop the News – Especially Before Bed
Remove all screens from yourself – experts always give such advice to people who have problems with sleep. This is all the more important today, says sleep consultant Marianne Taylor.
First, blue light has a stimulating effect.
Secondly, and most importantly, news is exciting and can fuel anxiety and fear. Of course, it is important to be aware of what is happening, but within reason. Reading the news before bed can cause an adrenaline rush that makes it hard to relax.
2. Clear your mind
For those who have a habit of watching TV in the evenings, sleep coach Cathy Fisher suggests choosing comedy shows as a “distraction from disturbing thoughts.”
And Marianne Taylor recommends taking some time—not necessarily just before bedtime—to practice writing. “Thoughts, anxieties, worries—write it all down on paper,” she says.
Research has shown a link between this practice and a reduction in anxiety caused by certain thoughts.
3. Prepare the “nest”
“If you’re struggling to fall asleep or wake up frequently during the night, don’t lie down too long: this creates a connection in your brain between your bed and wakefulness,” says the expert.
It helps well to “make a nest” in another room and read a book in it, listen to a podcast or calm music (without a TV or phone) if sleep does not come in bed. And when you start to feel sleepy, go and go to bed.
4.Calm your breath
Cathy Fisher says deep belly breathing can reduce anxiety symptoms. It relieves tension, calms the rapid heartbeat. For example, the simple technique of sama vritti, or equal breathing, can help you deal with anxiety.
You need to lie on your back, put one hand on the top of your stomach and the other on your heart, feeling heaviness in your shoulders and keeping your hips open and relaxed. Take a deep breath through the nose, counting to four, filling the stomach, then the chest, then the upper chest with air, as if a balloon is inflating inside.
When the lungs are full, you need to pause and then exhale slowly. When the air is out of the lungs, pause again. Fisher recommends repeating this cycle for 5 to 10 minutes, or until drowsiness sets in.
5. Fill your day
Before lockdown, Taylor notes, daily stress interfered with normal sleep. Now there is too much free time. As many people work and move less for the foreseeable future, mental health problems will become more frequent, he predicts.
Structuring each day, waking hours, specific hours for work, food and exercise will help you stay focused.
Taking care of sleep and ultimately overall physical and mental health is the responsibility of every adult. Therefore, in the new conditions, self-discipline and the development of self-care skills are required from us. For some, this is a familiar process, someone will have to make an effort.
But if you have useful information and desire, everything is possible – and the results of such work on yourself can bring tangible benefits.