Is the alarm clock one of the most dreadful sounds lately? Knowing you must drag yourself out of bed after a sleepless night or a night with just a few hours of sleep isn’t easy.
If your anxiety is keeping you up at night, the lack of energy and fatigue could be what’s perpetuating it. To help you break the cycle, we asked Dr. Jacob Leivent how anxiety and insomnia feed on each other.
Understanding the link between anxiety and insomnia
Many people may think of anxiety as fear, but fear in itself isn’t an unhealthy response. Fear when threatened can mobilize you to save yourself from dangerous situations. Anxiety is not fear in the present, it is fear of the future, a fear of an event that may or may not happen which makes you act in advance either by worrying excessively or by avoiding certain situations.
Sometimes anxiety is generalized, meaning you may be fearful of new situations, work, relationships, or the future as a whole. Other times anxiety is more specific, meaning you are only afraid of specific situations, for example being exposed to spiders, public speaking, or injections.
Anxiety can also be linked to the use of drugs, especially during the withdrawal period.
So how is all of this linked to insomnia?
Insomnia occurs in all types of anxiety disorders, but they are more likely to occur when the following symptoms are present:
- Frequent nightmares
- Excessive worry
- Intrusive thoughts
- Irritability
When nightmares are present, someone may dread going to sleep due to fear of having another nightmare.
How to manage your anxiety and insomnia
When you are anxious, your body believes you are in a perpetual state of danger. There’s no easy answer to how anxiety can be managed as each individual has it’s own triggers and vulnerabilities. However, there are a few strategies that work for almost every patient. These include:
- Reducing the use of stimulants, including caffeine
- Reducing exposure to watching the news or any other outlet that may increase your feelings of fear and helplessness
- Taking inventory of your relationships and finding out which relationships are beneficial for you and which aren’t
- Taking time to schedule your day out to remove the anxiety associated with being hurried while doing your tasks
- Creating a daily meditation routine to clear up your mind
- Keeping a diary to become a better observer of your thoughts
- Seeking professional help
Treating anxiety and insomnia isn’t an easy feat, but it is an endeavor worth taking as it can change your life in ways you’ve never imagined. Many people who took steps to fight off their anxiety are now living a life free of excessive fear and worries, opening them to the possibility of living life to the fullest.
For more immediate relief, Dr. Levin can prescribe antidepressants, which are also shown to decrease anxiety levels and improve sleep quality. In addition to medication, he may recommend psychotherapy for long-term relief.
If anxiety and insomnia are bothering you, contact us to schedule an appointment with Dr. Levin to find out more about his approach to managing it.