[LauraA]

Hello!
I am currently experiencing a road bump in my recovery journey from Insomnia. My Insomnia started over a year ago and was extremely bad for about a month and a half (getting like an hour of sleep a night). After that, I slowly started making improvements, worked on my mindset and for the past 5 or 6 months I’ve been doing extremely well to the point where I wasn’t even thinking about sleep at all during the day and was sleeping consistently well at night without concerns.
Recently, some family stressors and just general increased anxiety led to a sudden regression with sleep. My thoughts quickly spiraled and I feel sort of like I’m back at square one. Well, not really, because at least this time I know I can get through it and I know I can function during the day, but it’s just not helping me avoid the feelings of hyperarousal and hyperawareness at night.
Some nights, I will sleep amazingly, some nights I will sleep for a few hours and then wake up and not get back to sleep, and other nights I will be up all night. Again, I know it’s a process and I am working through it everyday, but I am wondering if anyone has any approach to that middle of the night hyperarousal.
I will wake up and at first, I will be fine. I will tell myself it’s okay, I am capable of sleeping and even if I can’t get back to sleep, I will be okay the next day. I feel calm and at ease. Then, if enough time passes and I start to drift, I will become hyperaware of the feeling of falling asleep and start to get adrenaline that sort of jolts me awake. This process will repeat until I am completely anxious, my heart’s racing, I’m nauseous, I’m panicking…
It’s very frustrating because I know all the thoughts that lead to this and rationally I KNOW I will be okay. I’ve done this soooo much worse over a year ago. But sometimes the physical anxiety symptoms feel out of my control. Even getting out of bed won’t make a huge difference because I will watch TV and try to do something to calm me down but they physical symptoms remain. Any advice?

[Martin Reed]

Hello Laura! Difficult nights from time to time come with being a human being — just as difficult days from time to time come with being a human being.

Sleep can happen no matter what thoughts your brain is generating and no matter what feelings you are experiencing.

What can make sleep so much more difficult is reaching for a (metaphorical!) sword and shield, covering your body in a heavy suit of armor, and going to war with your mind as you try to fight or avoid or otherwise control your mind. After all, how likely is sleep to happen if you are engaged in a war with an invisible enemy each night?

From reading your post it sounds as though trying to fight or avoid certain thoughts and feelings or trying to control stuff that’s going on inside you doesn’t seem to be working — would you say that’s accurate? If so, perhaps that might be the next area to explore on your journey?

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If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Mastery program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

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