Research has shown that a minimum of 7 hours sleep is one of the most valuable things you can do for your health.  Sleep deprivation is debilitating.

Long term sleep issues are often caused by ongoing stress and anxiety. Keeping busy with our thoughts and actions during the day can suppress anxiety.

However, when we are still and quiet at night, anxiety that we might not have known was there, can emerge: “Gotcha!”  In those cases therapeutic intervention is required.  I have seen amazing results for people in those situations.

it is important to try to accept and relax into the wakefulness rather than stressing about it.  Getting upset about being awake enhances the problem!  Here are some simple things that can occupy your mind in helpful ways and support you in going to sleep.

• Write any worries or concerns before going to bed and put them in a box for another time.
• Have blackout curtains or blinds
• Gratitude: think of all the things you are grateful for, eg, that you live in one of the safest countries in the world, that you have somewhere safe to sleep, that you have a body, for your senses, people, interests, holidays, etc.
• Love: think of the people you love, send love to them, imagine you are with them
• Childhood: remember being a child doing the things you loved
• Safe Place: be in a beautiful place and absorb the sights, sounds, smells, feelings
• Continuous EFT Tapping with or without words
• Do a Body Scan starting at your feet and noticing how they feel, gradually progressing up the body
• Cuddle a soft toy or cushion
• Breathing Exercise: inhale to count of 4 through the nose, exhale to count of 8 softly through pursed lips as though trying NOT to blow out a candle.

Practising any of these regularly, when you are feeling more at ease, will build those relaxation muscles so these methods are then more effective when you are more stressed.  Addressing the anxiety and its causes can bring lasting benefit.