If you can't sleep at night, you have a hard time falling asleep, and it's something you suffer from often, it's probably not ju...
If you can't sleep at night, you have a hard time falling asleep, and it's something you suffer from often, it's probably not just simple temporary insomnia, but you may be suffering from nighttime anxiety. Treating this condition on time can help you not only have a better rest but also an improvement in your quality of life.
It is common for daily life, the hustle and bustle, worries, and stress to cause sleep to not be present when bedtime arrives. Maybe you have tried everything, but just when you go to bed you cannot fall asleep, even if you are very tired. This may be due to the disorder known as sleep anxiety, a phenomenon associated with insomnia that can occur for a prolonged period of time, affecting the quality of life of those who suffer from it.
Insomnia or night anxiety?
Night anxiety basically occurs when you have to relax and you can't, knowing that you have to go to sleep because, for example, the next day you work early. According to experts, our minds have a tendency to the psychological phenomenon known as "rumination", which happens when negative thoughts come back to our head again and again, even though we want to remove them. Then the vicious cycle is fed and anxiety increases.
It may happen to you that you cannot sleep at night because you have slept enough during the day, because your circadian rhythm is changed, or because you have ingested a stimulating drink such as tea. But when you are sleepy and anxiety takes over when it comes to relaxing, you could be suffering from sleep anxiety or night anxiety.
Causes
There are many factors that affect night anxiety; some of them are:
Daily worries and stress
psychiatric illnesses
Bad eating habits
Some diseases
certain medications
Anxiety affects your body
Suffering from anxiety during the day and night can bring serious consequences to your body. According to the American Psychological Association, anxiety has effects on:
The brain: Bringing insomnia problems, a saturation of the nervous system, and changes in the brain
The stomach: prone to ulcers, digestive problems, and changes in metabolism.
The heart: causing cardiovascular diseases
The skin: appearing skin reactions
5 things you can do
Perhaps, at this point, you think that you have already tried everything. However, you can still achieve a pleasant sleep if you put a few tips into practice :
1. Play sports: Playing sports
involves greater energy expenditure, so you can arrive at night more tired. In addition,
sport secretes endorphins for the body that fight stress and make us feel happy.2. Do not eat in bed: the bed is for sleeping. Looking at the phone, eating, or working on the laptop are
activities
that can interfere with sleep and increase anxiety.3. Avoid smoking: It may be a mistake to resort to cigarettes if you suffer from sleep anxiety disorder since
tobacco can
increase the level of nervousness.4. Take a deep breath: There is a breathing
technique that can help you fall asleep in a few minutes and in a very simple way. In
this way, anxiety is removed and you can sleep peacefully.5. Seek help: If your anxiety is affecting your life, it's time to seek qualified help, as it can lead to other health
problems.
By identifying the causes, you can address the worries that cause nighttime anxiety. Anxiety is an emotion that you can calm down if you put your will and seek help. Sleeping satisfactorily will be just one of the many benefits that the absence of anxiety will bring to your life. Say goodbye to anxiety at night and start sleeping comfortably today.