Feeling Tired but Wired? 7 Tips for Improving Sleep with Anxiety
Getting good quality sleep is crucial for our mental and physical health.
Unfortunately, many people who experience anxiety and perfectionism have problems sleeping. These problems can include taking a long time to fall asleep, waking up during the night, having frequent vivid dreams, or feeling less-than-rested in the morning.
There’s something about the late night hours that seems to ramp up anxiety. Maybe it’s because there are fewer distractions and we’re more likely to be alone with our thoughts and feelings.
And some people experience worries specifically related to the nighttime hours, like fears about a break-in or fire happening while they’re asleep.
Here are some ways anxiety can show up at night:
Feeling like your mind is racing and your thoughts won’t turn off
Dwelling on thoughts about the day. Like going back over conversations you had with people or things you wish you’d handled differently
Running through your to-do list for the next day, maybe even dreading what’s ahead
Feeling tired but also physically tense, restless, and on edge
How Does Anxiety Affect Sleep?
Research suggests there’s a two-way relationship between anxiety and sleep. Feeling anxious interferes with sleep. And struggling with sleep can increase anxiety over time.
Anxiety Impacts Sleep: When we’re anxious, we’re typically in a state of hyperarousal. That means that our nervous systems are activated and our bodies are ready to respond to any threats around us. We’re in “fight or flight” mode. Of course, this state is not very compatible with sleep.
If we routinely experience anxiety at night, over time we can start to associate the nighttime hours with stress and tension. We may then get even more anxious in the evening, because we’re anticipating problems with sleep.
Sleep Impacts Anxiety: When we’re short on sleep, it becomes that much harder to think in flexible ways, manage our emotions, and cope with challenges. So we may feel more prone to anxiety when we’re exhausted versus well rested.
Caught in a vicious cycle between high anxiety and poor sleep? Keep reading for 7 tips on reclaiming sleep from anxiety.
7 Tips for Improving Sleep with Anxiety
1. Practice good sleep hygiene
Establish a routine that supports good sleep. These suggestions aren't new or ground-breaking, but I’m including them here because they’re important. We’re unlikely to benefit from some of the other strategies listed below if we don’t have the basics in place.
Good sleep hygiene includes:
Doing relaxing activities in the evening (e.g., taking a warm bath, reading, knitting, colouring, doing a puzzle)
Turning off electronics 30-60 minutes before bed
Creating a comfortable sleep environment
Establishing a consistent wake-up time, if possible
Avoiding or limiting naps
Watching your caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine intake, particularly in the afternoon and evening
Getting some physical activity during the day
2. Notice your thoughts
Pay attention to your thoughts about sleep. Getting stuck on unhelpful thoughts could increase your anxiety and hyperarousal as bedtime nears.
Here are some examples of unhelpful thoughts about sleep:
“Watch, I probably won’t be able to sleep again tonight”
“I’m going to be a complete wreck tomorrow”
“If I don’t get enough sleep tonight, then….(insert terrible situation here)…will happen”
“Is this just my life now? What if I never sleep again?”
Take a moment to acknowledge any unhelpful thoughts, then try shifting to a more neutral perspective.
For example: “I notice that I’m expecting the worst right now. But I don’t know what’s going to happen tonight. The best I can do is try to unwind and see what happens.”
3. Use a “worry period”
If you find your thoughts running wild at night, try setting aside a “worry period” during the day. This is a dedicated time to reflect on your fears and worries.
If we spend all day trying to distract ourselves from anxious thoughts, they can come back with a vengeance at night. This strategy is about creating time to acknowledge anxious thoughts in a proactive way. We can’t turn our fears off like a light switch (wouldn’t that be nice!), but we can be more purposeful about when and how we engage with them.
Schedule the worry period for a time that fits with your daily routine, and that won’t interfere with sleep. For example, you could reserve a 20-minute window when you get home from work or before you have your evening meal. Set a timer and write down all the things that are on your mind that day. When the timer goes off, move to another activity.
If you notice worries popping up at other times, remind yourself that you can think about them during your worry period. Write the worry down if it’s something you want to revisit later. Then redirect your thoughts back to the present moment.
Trust me, I know this is easier said than done, but it’s a skill that we can build with practice.
4. Do relaxation exercises
As discussed, anxiety involves physical symptoms that can get in the way of sleep, like a racing heart rate, tense muscles, shaking, sweating, and restlessness.
When we’re in a state of hyperarousal, relaxation exercises can help to soothe our bodies and promote sleep.
Create some time in your nighttime routine for practicing a relaxation exercise.
There are tons of resources available these days, so I suggest trying different activities and apps until you find something that fits for you.
Here are some of the free resources I use:
MindShift app from Anxiety Canada. This app offers relaxation audio recordings along with other resources for anxiety.
Meditation audio recordings from McGill University Student Wellness Hub. Here you’ll find 19 different guided relaxation exercises of various lengths. I like the one called “Breaking the Anxiety Cycle.”
Youtube videos:
Keep in mind that relaxation and mindfulness exercises can be really challenging for people who experience anxiety. Anxiety activates our stress response system, while relaxation exercises are intended to calm that response. That’s not an easy thing to do! So don’t feel discouraged if you struggle with them at first.
Start small. Even a few minutes of relaxation can be helpful, and you can always build from there over time.
5. Limit what you do in bed
If possible, use your bed only for sleep (and sex). We want our brains to associate the bed with rest. Not with the fun of watching our favourite TV shows or the stress of working from home.
6. Limit the time you spend in bed
Often when we’re desperate for more sleep, we spend more time in bed. But if we’re spending that time lying awake, feeling anxious or frustrated, those are the feelings we’ll start to associate with sleep.
While it may seem counterintuitive, to improve sleep, start by limiting the amount of time you spend in bed.
Wait until you’re sleepy before going to bed.
If you’ve been lying awake for 20 minutes, get up. Do a quiet activity like reading, working on a puzzle, or listening to chill music until you feel sleepy again. Avoid using electronics or doing other things that are likely to wake you up. Nothing too exciting!
Try to wake up at the same time every day, if your schedule allows (I know this might be impossible for some people, like shift workers). Sleeping in to catch up on sleep can throw off our routines even more. If we’re able to get up consistently, our bodies will get used to that rhythm over time.
I know this strategy can be scary to embrace! But while you could experience less sleep in the first few days, the goal is to retrain our mental relationship between sleep and anxiety, promoting better sleep long term.
7. Set realistic expectations
It’s totally normal to wake up once or twice during the night and to have periods of poor sleep. This is typical even for the best sleepers out there.
Focus on improving your sleep little by little instead of pressuring yourself to get things perfect.
About Marnie Rogers-de Jong
My goal is to help people who feel overwhelmed by anxiety and perfectionism overcome their fears, embrace their unique strengths, and feel more content with who they are. I’m a Registered Doctoral Psychologist with a PhD in Counselling Psychology. I offer in-person counselling in Saskatoon and video counselling across Saskatchewan and Alberta.
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