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Welcome to the forum!
Your experience seems to be telling you that anxiety is out of your direct control. The more you try to fight or avoid it, the more difficult it becomes. The more power and influence it has over your life. The more you get pulled away from doing things that matter. The more you struggle. The more stuck you feel.
That’s a hard situation to be in.
What might things be like if you could experience anxiety with less resistance? So it showed up and became more like water off a duck’s back rather than something that drew you into an exhausting and endless battle?
—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.
Welcome to the forum!
Stress triggered some sleep disruption and you’ve identified that ongoing analysis of sleep (and perhaps effort to make it happen) created a struggle and kept the difficulty going — although you feel you are on the mend now, and feeling a lot better.
You want to get an extra hour of sleep. What would you be doing differently with your life if you got that extra hour of sleep?
—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.
I get the impression that moving away from mirtazapine is an action that is important to you. And, as an action, it’s within your control.
Withdrawing from medication (or experiencing any kind of change) can affect sleep. And, sleep seems to be something that’s out of your control.
It seems that what this comes down to now is how you want to respond to sleep not happening as you want it to happen — whether that’s caused by the medication withdrawal or not (and whether that’s caused by Cyclothymia or Bipolar II or not).
What I would like to do is reassure you of something important. The human body doesn’t require any kind of medication for sleep to happen. That doesn’t mean that medication is never appropriate — just that sleep can still happen, medication or not.
—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.
Welcome to the forum!
You’ve done a lot to make sleep the best it can be. And, it makes complete sense that you want to make a certain amount or type of sleep happen!
When sleep doesn’t happen as you want it to, you are running at 70% of your potential. What do you do differently (not think and feel — but do) when you are running at 70% of your potential versus 100% of your potential?
From reading your post, it sounds like the more you try to make a certain amount or type of sleep happen, the more complicated it can become and the more likely you are to get pulled away from the life you want to live.
You want an active social life. You want to travel more. You don’t want to live like a zombie. You want a rich, full, and meaningful life.
To answer your question — you might sleep longer and you might not. You might feel better on more days and you might not (I am not sure any human being feels great every single day!).
It seems that those things are out of your direct control although your actions — how you choose to live your life in response — is in your direct control.
As the expert on yourself, what do you feel is the most workable way forward?
—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.
You have started implementing a sleep window, thanks to your commitment to action and willingness to make change happen.
You are noticing the reappearance of sleepiness, which is a reminder that your sleep system is working just as it should be working.
You have also noticed that when there is no pressure, effort, or “requirement” to sleep you are more likely to experience a strong sense of sleepiness (and maybe sleep, too!).
When you go to bed, something changes — maybe there’s more pressure and more effort. Perhaps your brain might also be firing up to prepare you for the struggle it predicts is about to happen, and protect you from the “threat” it believes that being awake at night has become.
As you shared, you have the option to get out of bed in response. And, you can stay in bed, too. What might matter most here is exploring how you might be able to reduce that pressure and that effort — and how, through your choice of actions, you might help train your brain that wakefulness isn’t a threat it needs to be alert to protect you from.
—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.
Welcome to the forum! You’ve been through a lot over the past fifteen years — and that means you’ve also learned a lot. It sounds like you have decided you need to do something different, and CBT is one option. What makes it feel like that’s the direction you need to go?
—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.
When you put pressure on yourself to make sleep happen, it becomes more difficult. When you try to get rid of anxiety, it seems to become more powerful, difficult, and influential.
You don’t want to be the person who stops working because of how you might or might not sleep. You are good at your job!
You can’t stick to a consistent sleep schedule while working shifts and the more you chase after sleep the more elusive it seems to become.
Based on what you’ve shared, what opportunities are there to approach things differently?
—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.
Setbacks and ups and downs are a normal part of any journey.
Sometimes they can show up for clear and obvious reasons, and sometimes not. What matters is how you respond because your response is what determines whether you get pulled back into a struggle or continue to move in the direction you want to be heading.
You have been reminded of your ability to continue doing things that matter, even when anxiety and panic show up — and even when sleep doesn’t happen as you might want it to happen.
You don’t like being awake, and you are responding to it by choosing not to battle it (something you know only makes it more difficult). You also notice frustration, which is a normal human emotion.
A change in routine can have a short-term impact on sleep. And, I suspect you have found the right answer on how to deal with this — keep on keeping on! Keep on responding in a workable way. Keep on experiencing all the difficult stuff that’s out of your control by making space for it rather than going to war with it because that only creates a struggle and makes everything more difficult.
It sounds like you are on the right track to me! You’ve learned a lot and you are putting what you’ve learned into action!
—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.
You are seeing things in a new light because of the actions you’ve taken as you worked through the course.
You are living a values-based life, independently of sleep. You are closer to the life you want to live because of your commitment to values-based action.
As you continue to do that, fatigue and sleep is less likely to be labeled as a problem that your problem-solving brain needs to focus on and try to “fix”. That gives those things the opportunity to take care of themselves.
You’ve reclaimed your life, Shelley — and that’s all down to you!
—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.
Pretty much everyone wants to feel good and not many people want to experience difficult thoughts and feelings. That’s probably why it’s so easy to get stuck!
Your superpowers of curiosity, honesty, and self-reflection have revealed that action is what matters, @janiceannmckeachern!
You’ve also learned that trying to control what is out of your control uses energy and attention that could be used to take meaningful action — and pulls you deeper into a struggle.
Taking action and learning from what you are doing is a reflection of progress. I wish you all the best as you continue to move forward!
—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.
Hello Helene and thank you for sharing the changes you’ve noticed!
When you wake early in the morning you find yourself feeling completely alert, even though it feels as though you haven’t had enough sleep. And, there’s nothing particularly unique or unusual in that.
Waking during sleep is normal and, if your brain detects what it thinks might be a threat (and when we’ve struggled with insomnia it can identify being awake as a threat) it’ll generate alertness so you don’t fall asleep in the face of danger!
This is a part of your brain that might be out of your control. If it was in your control you might switch it off (or leave it switched off) by accident and then get eaten by a bear in the middle of the night!
Perhaps the way forward might involve exploring how you could help “train” your brain — through action — that being awake isn’t a threat. If you were to do that, how might you get started?
—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.
Thanks for the great question! You would be out of bed by the end of your sleep window no matter what time you go to bed at night and no matter what sleep looked like that night.
So, as an example, if your sleep window is midnight to 6:00 AM and you go to bed at 3:00 AM or don’t fall asleep until 3:00 AM, if you are observing the sleep window you’d still be getting out of bed at 6:00 AM.
Does this answer your question?
—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.
As you consider the opportunity to implement a sleep window of 1:00 AM to 7:00 AM you are reflecting on your experience and wondering whether such a change is worth the risk.
Perhaps you don’t want to make a change — and that’s OK, since you are the expert on yourself! In what ways does your current sleep window serve you right now?
—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.
Ups and downs come with any journey — and just as nobody experiences the day they want to experience every single day of their lives, nobody experiences the night they want to experience every single night of their lives either!
It’s impossible to return to square 1 unless you return to all the actions you know don’t work! Even then, you’d be further along than square 1 because you have the knowledge and experience of what helps you experience all this stuff with less struggle.
When you experience it with less struggle, less fighting, less resistance, less avoidance — you can then refocus your energy and attention on actions that reflect your values and move you toward the life you want to live.
The tools are at your disposal. Actions are always in your control. What do you want to do in response to what’s happening right now?
—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.
Hello Molly!
Thanks for letting me know that my reflection on what you shared helped you identify the progress you’ve made and the work you’ve been doing.
You are responding to the difficult things out of your control with mindful awareness — and that seems to be a more workable strategy compared to resistance and battle. And, since mindfulness is a skill, it makes sense that it’s going to require ongoing practice and that practice will come with ups and downs!
I wonder, too, in 100 years from now as you reflect on the life you lived — will you be remembering all the times you didn’t feel anxiety and all the times you got x hours of sleep? Or, will you be remembering all the things you did and experienced?
—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.
