Dealing With Anxiety Triggered By Insomnia
Anxiety can be a crippling problem, and it can affect every aspect of your daily life. Unfortunately, even if you haven't struggled with any kind of anxiety in the past, you may find yourself battling with it if you're having a hard time sleeping. Sleep deprivation can lead to anxiety and many other issues. Here are a few tips to help you manage your sleep struggles to help ease your anxiety issues.
Take Time To Wind Down
Sometimes, sleep problems can occur as a result of overstimulation. This can include excess exposure to media and electronics. Avoid all of your electronics, including your television, for an hour or more before bed. That will help your body and your mind make the shift into relaxation. This can make it easier for you to sleep, easing your anxieties.
Ensure That Your Room Is Dark
Darkness is important for your body to produce melatonin. This is the hormone that encourages sleep. Make sure that your room is dark. If you have a street light outside your window, put a darkening curtain over the window to block the light.
Avoid Stimulants At Night
If you enjoy a cup of coffee after dinner, it's important that you ditch the habit. The stimulants can disrupt your sleep without you even realizing it. You may not feel jittery or awake, but you could still be affected. Avoid all stimulants for a couple of hours before you go to bed at night.
Work With A Counselor
Sometimes insomnia is the result of other psychological struggles, including chemical imbalances that can affect both your sleep and your thought processes. It may also worsen the anxiety that you experience from a lack of sleep. Work with an individual counseling professional to identify the triggers that are causing your poor sleep in order to overcome the problem.
Have Patience
Remember that your sleep problems didn't start overnight. That means that it's going to take time to combat them, too. Don't get discouraged if you're not sleeping well right away. Results may take some patience and time. Make small changes if you need to, taking it in single steps if necessary. Allow your body the time to adapt to each change and see if it helps the situation. If you get frustrated over the lack of immediate results, that can actually intensify the problem and cause you to struggle with more sleep issues and worsening anxiety.