People who live with panic and anxiety disorders in their lives can habitually contend with getting to sleep and also staying asleep at night once they have dozed off.
Night-time is generally when your mind is absolutely racing which means it’s not uncommon for panic attacks to come on right before bed. This will undoubtedly make it tricky to rest well before the next day.
We’ve got some great advice here that you can use to help beat panic disorders and gain that much-wanted sound night’s sleep.
Make time to sleep
People don’t give themselves ample time for sleep
It sounds silly, but one thing that the Sleep Advisor website cites is that people just don’t leave themselves with ample time to get an effective night’s sleep these days.
Adults need, on average, to acquire 7-9 hours of sleep each night to remain healthy, stay happy and function normally.
A panic attack can be brought on by relentlessly clock-watching and subsequently realizing that you aren’t going to get the quantity of sleep needed to be in top form. Having the thoughts in your mind that you’ve missed the ‘good sleep train’ will create a negative mentality which will add to your apprehension.
Therefore, you need to go and clear the schedule in the runup to bedtime so that you can get the sleep you need.
Establish a nightly routine
Allow sufficient relaxation
Don’t rush to bed in a mad flurry or getting everything done at the last minute. This ties back nicely to the previous point but also highlights the fact that you will ideally want to establish a bedtime routine to enable sufficient relaxation before you slip off to bed.
A routine like this will signal to your brain and body that now is the time to take it down a notch. Try adding these activities to your nightly routine to help you get better-quality sleep and avoid unwanted panic setting in:
- Take a shower
- Brush your teeth
- Dim the lights in your rooms (particularly bedroom)
- Turn off all tech
Adopting these activities can aid in promoting a level of calm that will enable you to shift into a peaceful night’s sleep.
Have some preparation
Avoid stress by planning ahead
Again, this point links to the previous two, because by having some prep time in the evening to do what you need to in advance for the following day can stop you having a night full of anxiousness.
Reduce the stress by:
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- Having your clothes ready for the next day
- Having a list of to-dos’ written down
- Having your lunch packed and your breakfast laid out for the morning
Watch the caffeine intake
Avoid all caffeine before going to bed
Love a coffee? Enjoy a chocolaty snack pre-bedtime? The caffeine found in food and drink like this can put an instant halt to seamless slumber. By all means, drink coffee, but make sure you cut it out along with all other caffeinated foods and drinks 6-8 hours before you are planning to go to bed.
You can even try weening yourself off of the caffeine altogether. This will help you to keep your panic and anxiousness under control. You can throw alcohol and sugar in the same hat as caffeine too, so treat them as you plan to with your caffeine reductions.
The bedroom is a strict sleep sanctuary
Your bedroom should be for sleep only
Your bed is only for sleep, sex and nothing else. Forget the tech, forget TVs, work, clutter, reading magazines, etc., this is your very own sleep sanctuary. You can’t expect to sleep well in a room that your brain doesn’t naturally associate with a place of rest, so allow your mind and body to make this connection for panic-free nights of rest.
Make the room as cosy, comforting, dark and tranquil as possible and you will find that high-quality sleep is much easier to come by each evening.
Hi! My name’s Sarah Cummings. I’ve been involved in writing informative and helpful guides for the last five years now. Originally, my passion to help others was the overriding factor to become a writer, but now I feel like I’m learning more every day too!
My love of exercise has always been a big part of how I lead my life, and I find it helps with lots of things, including sleep. I’m an advocator of promoting sleep and how it can be the difference between living a good, fulfilled life and an unhappy one.
I have had the good fortune to have a long and spiritual background in yoga too, and I feel as though this pairs perfectly with my passion for healthy eating and leading an active lifestyle.
I enjoy learning and coming up with new ways to develop my writing so that I can help others to grow and learn too. When I have a spare morning, you can catch me gazing at sunrises from different places on the planet!
