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Sleep and Sheep

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Have you ever wondered why they say you should count sheep when you can't get to sleep?

One of the most common reasons behind insomnia is that you just can't shut your mind off.

Thoughts racing and relaxing to go to sleep can be mutually exclusive activities.

So in order to overcome the behaviours that are so familiar in insomniacs, we need to address what is going on in your head.

Option 1: Distraction

If your mind is racing we need to look at what we can do to distract it. Personally, I learnt to count at around the age of 4 - so these days counting sheep does not offer much of a distraction. So I have developed my own approach!

Sheep
My sheep run an assault course. Each sheep is a different bright colour and they have to get round the course to the field of fresh grass on the other side. It takes a lot of effort for me to move them, and maintain the image of a bright blue/pink/yellow sheep with leg warmers (yeah I know, weird!) running around an assault course. I find I can manage a maximum of 4 sheep before I nod off.

Whatever you do it needs to challenge your brain. Count back from 1000 in 7's, recite every 3rd letter of the alphabet. Anything that is complex enough to stop you thinking about anything else. 

This approach can be great if you need to get to sleep, it may not work as well for waking through the middle of the night.

Option 2: Change your mood

Sometimes it can be a set of negative thoughts that makes it difficult for us to get to sleep. It also can mean if we wake up through the night it is even harder to get back to sleep. 

So the best approach is to give yourself a way of instantly recalling a positive state.

There are a few steps to do this. Firstly get hold of a scent you like. Lavendar is good because it aids sleep but if like me you don't like that smell, anything will work.

  • During the day sometime close your eyes and remember a time where you felt calm and happy. 
  • Spend about 5 minutes exploring the memory. If it had a colour what would it be? If it had a shape what would it be? Is it an image or a sound or both?
  • When it is 8-10 out of 10 on intensity, have a smell of the thing that you have got hold of. 
  • Now put that scent on a flannel or something and put it under your pillow

Before you go to sleep, have a sniff of the scent and it should bring back that state. It will also work if you wake up through the night - taking you right back to that state of calm.  

Option 3: Control your environment

If you have been experiencing the symptoms of insomnia for a while, you may have inadvertantly created an association in your mind with your bed. When you climb into bed it might set off a chain reaction of thoughts based on previous experience 

"This is bed. I struggle to sleep in bed. I lie awake here for hours"

You need to take steps to break the association. So for a while, don't do anything else in bed other than sleep (ok, if you want to get intimate with your partner that's ok too!) but don't read, or watch TV or play on your phone.

Go to bed to sleep. If you're not asleep within 20-30 minutes get up 

If you're going to be awake, be awake somewhere else. Read your book, watch TV, play on your phone, then go back to bed to sleep. 

This same approach applies if you wake up through the night and struggle to get back to sleep. 

Hopefully these tips will help you deal with the symptoms of insomnia. If you think there is a deeper cause for your sleep problems, why not drop me an email and see if I can help? Dawn@thinkitchangeit.com

 

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