Sleep Anxiety

[yogalvr]

I have had minor anxiety my entire life and recently underwent a life changing event breaking my family apart. This has caused me to experience chronic anxiety and start to cope with childhood traumas and low self esteem. I have undergone cognitive behavioral therapy and feel comfortable in my ability to start living with anxiety. I feel confident and excited about life again; however, I am terrified at nighttime. I cannot, for whatever reason, cope with anxiety in order to sleep. I have had a few all nighters with panic attacks all night long. I do not know what to do. Seeking advice or suggestions.

[Mountainlover57]

What my therapist has suggested was for me to go into the evening letting myself think that I'm going to rest instead of forcing myself to sleep. I am also going through cognitive behavioral therapy, listen to an app that has brainwave frequencies that change the beta waves (The anxious overthinking brain waves) to alpha and sometimes delta waves. I also do meditation using the Calm app at about 7:00 p.m. at night and then I try to focus on just resting at night which takes the anxiety from trying to sleep. I also take 50 mg of trazodone until I double up a better sleeping pattern. I understand what you're going through because I also have had anxiety before going to bed. Just releasing anxiety about sleep helps me quite a bit.

[Madaboutsinging]

I have had CBT for anxiety and it definitely helped. For the last year I have been suffering from insomnia, exacerbated by anxiety about my sleep problems. I am finding the iTalk programme very helpful and I also use the Insight Timer app and the Mindful Movement sleep meditations useful. My iTalk supporter has suggested I subscribe to Headspace again to use their sleep modules which I am going to try. Hope that helps.