Sleep loss because of worry is common. Besides losing sleep and exhauting you, worry kicks up your heart rate and makes your mind swirl with thoughts. Here are ways to beat insomnia if you struggle with sleep loss because of worry.
What’s the difference between worry and anxiety?
You probably didn’t worry too much about your life as a kid. But once you hit adulthood, worry is an unwelcome guest, especially at bedtime. Worry is feeling very concerned about problems or situations. You might worry about your health, family, job, or other things beyond your control.
Worry is:
Specific Stress-induced Your thoughts are non-stop May prompt you to do something Related to a genuine concern
Even though worry is specific, it may be out of your control to do anything. Worry becomes a big problem when it causes sleep loss.
Anxiety is a little different than worry. It lingers long and is hard to control. It may come out of nowhere, unrelated to anything around you. Anxiety also:
Triggers a physical response like a racing heart, headache, or nausea. You have a perception of your circumstance related to your stress. Interferes with your ability to work, so school, or daily life Usually need therapeutic intervention to overcome it Ten Ways Worry Can Cause Sleep Loss and Ten Ways to Beat Insomnia
Now that you know the difference between anxiety and worry let’s look at why you might be sleepless.
1. Worry follows you to bed
If you’re a worrier, there’s a good chance you don’t sleep well at night. This is because your worrisome daytime thoughts get carried over into the night. They keep you from falling into a deep sleep. If you do get to sleep, you may not stay asleep the entire night. Your worry and anxiety act like an alarm system, waking you up as if there is danger. Nighttime concerns feel more intense than daytime worries. Once your head touches the pillow, your brain magnifies the problems you may have thought about during the day. If your day was busy, you might not have dwelt on your worries too much, but you rehash those daytime worries at night.
2. Worry sets you up for negativity
Sometimes, going to bed is dreadful because you know you won’t be able to sleep. Bedtime becomes a negative experience which increases your worry and leads to anxiety. You may dread laying in bed trying to fall asleep, knowing you will be tired at work the next day.
3. Worry makes you fear focused
Worry is usually about bad things that could happen to you or a loved one. What you’re worried about hasn’t occurred, but the expectation of it happening makes you worry. The things that adults worry about the most are these:
Having a loved one die The critical illness of someone you love Fears about children Fears about keeping their job Not having enough money to retire from your career Medical bills Becoming critically ill Terrorism Government corruption Civil unrest Failing 4. Sleep reactivity and worry
Some people have what researchers call sleep reactivity. It’s a trait that disrupts your sleep, so you can’t fall asleep or stay asleep. People with high reactivity experience sleep loss, mainly when stressed or worried. Family history contributes to insomnia. Being female and living in a stressful environment also makes you prone to sleep reactivity …
Click here to read this complete article.
