How to Fall Asleep When Your Anxiety Keeps You Awake

When your anxiety keeps you awake, trying to fall asleep can be extremely difficult. It becomes an endless cycle where you feel anxious you aren't sleeping, and then you can't sleep because you are feeling anxious. Many people, including me, get especially anxious at night and aren't sure how to manage it as well before bed. In this article, we will cover how to fall asleep when your anxiety keeps you awake. 

If Anxiety Keeps You Awake at Night, Do This Before Bed

Try these things before bed if anxiety is keeping you awake at night:

Do Yoga

Doing yoga helps you to connect to the present, and be in a more mindful state. By focusing on the present, you will naturally become less anxious. Typically, anxiety is caused by worrying about the future, so if you can shift your thoughts to the present, you are able to relax much easier.

Meditate

Another way to bring yourself to the present moment is to meditate. Rather than just sitting in silence, you can use a guided meditation app that talks you through the meditation. If you get anxious thoughts, acknowledge them without judgment and redirect your mind to the present. 

Journal

Unlike most people, I write my to-do lists before bed rather than in the morning. In my experience, anxiety hits me because I am obsessive about everything I need to get done the next day. Writing out everything that needs to get done and writing out why it makes me anxious allows me to clear my mind, preventing anxiety from keeping me awake. 

Daydream

Once I'm laying in bed, I start daydreaming about something I am looking forward to. It can be as simple as going out to dinner in a few days or as complicated as a vacation I'm looking forward to. I play out what my days will look like, what I will wear, what I will eat, and every detail in between. Before I know it, I'm drifting off to sleep.

Deep Breathing

With both meditation and yoga, you are focusing on your breath. However, you don't need to do either of those things in order to pay attention to your breathing patterns. Put your right hand on your heart and your left hand on your belly. Take a deep breath in, hold for a second, and slowly release. Do this as many times as you need to.

Do you have tips for reducing anxiety when it keeps you awake? If so, please share them below in the comments.