Anxiety, Insomnia, & Fatigue

Have you ever been too tired or too anxious to fall asleep? You know that if your mind would just quiet down for five minutes you might have a fighting chance to fall asleep. Well I personally experience many sleepless nights. I am pretty sure I see the sun rise at least 10 times a month and on other mornings I may fall asleep around 4:30/5:00 a.m., to awaken around 9:00 a.m. As I am writing this, I have been awake for about 36 hours. I am exhausted and want to desperately close my eyes to sleep, but my mind will not allow me to have that simple pleasure. Although I am awake for what seems like endless hours at a time, I am in no way productive because I am too damn tired to focus on anything. Physically I am wiped out but mentally I am alert and a thousand things come to mind that I could be or need to be doing.

Believe me when I say this is a vicious cycle. The people closest to me know this is something that I have struggled with for a longtime and respect my rules of not calling me after and during certain hours. They have also stopped lecturing me on what they think I should be doing and how I need to answer my phone when they call or respond to their text messages. Even if I am not sleeping I make time for myself to try to find a little bit of peace.

I do simple things that help me to relax, or at the very least slow my thought process down and release some of my anxiety. I guess you can call it my own personal meditation technique. I love candles, wine, music, and the ocean. Since I do not live near the ocean “yet”, I listen to music that has meaning, whatever genre that fits the mood. I pour a glass of wine (sometimes I sip hot tea), light my candles, and sit in the glow of only the candle light. I focus on my body’s senses, specifically taste, smell, and sound. Momentarily I am transported away from those things that have my mind racing and I am able to relax for a brief moment.

Now I am not saying my method is for you, but what I am saying is you need to search long and hard for that thing(s) that will help to slow your mind, and relax your body. If you suffer from insomnia, establish some ground rules for family and friends. If they love you, they will respect you and want to understand what you are going through. Family and friends must also understand that when you finally crash, you may sleep for hours, even days. The longest I have slept is 2 days. I only woke up to go to the restroom and sip water. I inform the VIP’s in my life that I may vanish for a couple of days, but not to worry because I am probably sleeping. This goes over well…

Anyway, we all know sleep is important to our bodies and over all health. If you suffer from insomnia and anxiety, and you find you are not successful with finding a solution, do not hesitate to seek holistic or medical assistance. Also, as hard as this may seem, put away your cellular and electronic devices approximately one hour before bed. (I am still working on this). Read a book, a book with a cover on it, you know the kind made out of paper… and not an electronic book. Try it out, and see what happens. Nothing to lose and everything to gain. We have one life…let’s take ownership.