Insomnia- How to Fall Asleep When your Brain Won't Shut Up!

4 snips

Jun 20, 2024

Feeling restless when trying to sleep? You're not alone! Discover why your mind races at night and how to break the anxiety cycle. Learn practical strategies like mindful reflection and scheduled worrying to gain control over your thoughts. Uncover techniques to create quiet moments in your day to promote better sleep quality. Say goodbye to those sleepless nights and hello to peaceful slumber with effective methods to manage nighttime anxiety!

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Attention Fuels Racing Thoughts

Trying to force stop racing thoughts only makes them louder and harder to control.
What we pay attention to increases, so struggling actually strengthens anxious thoughts.

INSIGHT

Brain's Nighttime Problem-Solving

Racing thoughts happen because the brain is trying to solve problems or address threats.
It nags at night because it doesn't trust you will process worries during the day.

ADVICE

Limit Daytime Distractions

Reduce mindless distractions like random social media throughout the day.
Schedule focused times for social media and create space to process thoughts deliberately.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

Do you want to learn How to Process Emotions and improve your Mental Health? Sign up for a Therapy in a Nutshell Membership, you'll get access to all of Emma’s courses, workbooks, and a Live Q and A with 100’s of exclusive videos: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/membership

If you are lying in bed trying to go to sleep, and find your mind racing, feeling anxious, what's the next best step to stop the anxiety cycle?

You all know that feeling. I’ve been there, You’ve got a big day ahead, or you’ve had a long day behind you, you really need to sleep, you’re soooo tired, but when you finally lay down, your mind starts running, you worry about everything, or you can’t stop thinking about all the mistakes you made throughout the day. You can feel your stress levels rise, and despite your best efforts, you can’t sleep. And that makes you more anxious, which perpetuates the cycle, and on it goes. You desperately want to sleep, but your brain won’t shut up. In this podcast, you’ll learn why your brain doesn’t trust you to process these thoughts during the day. And, there is something you can do about this. So, let’s talk about the science behind why your brain gets stuck doing this, and 3 things you can do to escape that cycle.

Looking for affordable online counseling? My sponsor, BetterHelp, connects you to a licensed professional from the comfort of your own home. Try it now for 10% off your first month: https://betterhelp.com/therapyinanutshell

Learn more in one of my in-depth mental health courses: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com

Support my mission on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/therapyinanutshell

Check out my favorite self-help books: https://kit.co/TherapyinaNutshell/best-self-help-books

Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health. In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger Institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction.

And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe

If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or your local emergency services.