Over the past year, the epidemic, economic and social changes have made many of our friends feel anxious. Not only are you tense during the day, but it is also hard to let go of yourself at night. The more anxious you are, the harder it is to sleep; the harder it is to sleep and not get enough rest, the easier it is to be anxious. Unknowingly, it also enters the vicious cycle of insomnia.
In fact, anxiety is not all bad. Being alert to the environment is a trait that organisms use to protect their survival. This trait was valuable to humans who were relatively weak on earth tens of thousands of years ago.
Of course, in modern times, there are no longer any beasts ready to eat us. However, the pace of life, the speed at which information spreads around the world, the high standards of perfection brought about by mass communication, and the strong self-imposed demands, have created anxiety in the minds of modern people that is no match for the lion that suddenly appears at our doorstep.
Anxiety is magnified and depletes modern health
Internal fears are far more realistic than real-life threats, and they continue to deplete physical and mental health. This is the dilemma faced by modern people.
We live in such a fast-paced era that we naturally want to solve any problems quickly. In this premise, many friends will inevitably take the fluctuation of sleep as a problem, or even disease to look at.
Yes, it is true that a person who does not sleep well is uncomfortable and has an immediate impact on mood and responsiveness. We have all experienced this pain. Prolonged insomnia not only makes it difficult to concentrate, but may also affect the quality of life and work, as well as leave the body unrested and unbalanced, and even cause physical illness.
But when you think about it, it’s usually when we reach a certain age and have to take on responsibilities large and small that we start to taste insomnia. From this perspective, insomnia is like a kind of rite of passage in life, reflecting the changes in life and reminding us to adjust ourselves to new challenges.
Focus on the breath for deep relaxation of the body and mind
Think of insomnia as an adaptive physiological change. Although this viewpoint is the opposite of what people generally think, I still hope that people with insomnia can try to adopt it to see if they can break the vicious cycle of “anxiety → insomnia → more anxiety → more insomnia”.
For those who suffer from insomnia, it is recommended to focus on breathing. By taking deep breaths and exhaling long, at least let yourself relax first, then even if you can’t sleep, you can still get some rest. After relaxing physically and mentally, make an affirmation to yourself – insomnia is actually not a serious problem. More sleep, less sleep, are normal.
In case you still can’t sleep and your worries come up again, you should go back to deep breathing and long exhalation again to relax your body and mind. Next, once again, I affirmed to myself that insomnia is not as serious as I had feared. I can sleep, I can’t sleep, everything is fine, everything is fine.
Next, instead of rushing yourself to sleep, try to stay in the feeling of “nothing”. This kind of relaxation is something we may not experience all day.
Bringing this concept in, we try to accept the insomnia and the interruption of sleep, which may be a little uncomfortable at first, and we may feel more uneasy the first few times. But if we can relax and allow ourselves to be at least a little bit relaxed, we will naturally find that we can still be awake the next day when we thought we would be tired. Even if you are really tired during the day, you can still make some adjustments and get some rest to meet your body’s needs, and the impact is not as great as you thought.
Not only can we remind ourselves of this at night, but during the day, we can continue to affirm with ourselves in the face of all kinds of worries-everything is fine, everything is fine. Everything is fine. Next, give yourself a few seconds to dwell on the feeling of “nothing”.
Letting go of the problem of sleep and readjusting the perspective of life may help you get back to sleep. This is something that you and I can experiment with and see for ourselves.
By exploring this new perspective, the problem of sleep may be transformed. Further, by adopting this new perspective of “letting go of the problem” in the face of everything in the world, we will also find that life becomes lighter. With this experience, we naturally gain confidence that we can get through even the most difficult situations.
In the face of the changes in the world and the turmoil of life, such faith will be our best blessing.
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