What is sleep anxiety? Sleep anxiety is fear or worry about going to sleep. You may be apprehensive about not falling asleep or not being able to stay asleep. Some people also have a distinct phobia, or fear, about sleep called somniphobia.
Sleep anxiety occurs when you experience symptoms of worry, fear, or loss of control when the time comes to sleep. You may also have panic attacks at night or fear falling asleep. The combination of lack of sleep and heightened anxiety symptoms can cause adverse effects, both physically and mentally.
Sleep anxiety is worry or fear about going to bed, or about falling or staying asleep. It's kind of like stage fright, but for sleeping. And for some people, sleep anxiety can become so severe that it actually starts to get in the way of daily life. But here's the good news: Sleep anxiety is common and treatable.
Studies have shown a specific link to this specific sleep problem and OCD. Somniphobia: Somniphobia is the fear of falling asleep. People with OCD may have specific fears about bad things happening in their sleep such as nightmares or sleep paralysis, and avoid going to sleep.
Anxiety is frequently connected to sleeping problems. Excess worry and fear make it harder to fall asleep and stay asleep through the night. Sleep deprivation can worsen anxiety, spurring a negative cycle involving insomnia and anxiety disorders.
Fortunately, sleep anxiety is a treatable sleep disorder. With the right treatment methods, you can break the sleep anxiety cycle. Read on to learn more about sleep anxiety and how you can fall asleep faster and stay asleep at night.
Lying on your back with your limbs splayed out, otherwise known as the 'shooting star' position can also relieve anxiety.
According to Dr. Soltis, you should see a sleep specialist when sleep problems persist got more than about three months and are affecting your daily life. Maybe you're snoring a lot, waking up in the middle of the night, or struggling to stay awake when you're at work or while driving.
Find your optimal bedtime
Identify an ideal wake-up time that allows for a healthy 7-9 hours of sleep.
Anxiety disorders are the most common of mental disorders. They affect nearly 30% of adults at some point in their lives. However, anxiety disorders are treatable with a number of psychotherapeutic treatments.
Possible causes of anxiety can include genetics, stressful situations, previous traumas, medications, and physical health issues. Not all of the things that cause anxiety are obvious or observable in your daily life. Whatever the cause of your anxiety, know that support is available.
“Both OCD and anxiety are characterized by unwanted thoughts, however, in OCD, these unwanted thoughts lead to unwanted actions. Typically, if you only experience anxiety, you will not turn your thoughts into actions. You'll tend to overthink only.”
For people who have obsessive-compulsive disorder OCD, the anxiety of intrusive thoughts is what compels them toward compulsive rituals and/or avoidance. It often feels like they must do these things or else something bad will happen, which can lead to strong feelings of anxiety.
Antidepressants: Some antidepressant drugs, such as trazodone (Desyrel), are very good at treating sleeplessness and anxiety. Benzodiazepines: These older sleeping pills -- emazepam (Restoril), triazolam (Halcion), and others -- may be useful when you want an insomnia medication that stays in the system longer.
Sleep disturbances-particularly insomnia - are highly prevalent in anxiety disorders and complaints such as insomnia or nightmares have even been incorporated in some anxiety disorder definitions, such as generalized anxiety disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder.
In addition, it's been found that persistent anxiety can cause the amygdala to grow, intensifying the body's response to threatening or scary situations. Conversely, anxiety can cause the hippocampus to shrink. The hippocampus is an area of the brain that plays a major role in learning and memory.
Is It Safe To Take Sleeping Pills Every Night? Most experts agree that sleep aids should not be used long-term. Sleeping pills are best used for short-term stressors, jet lag, or similar sleep problems.
Common sleep issues with OCD
The most reported sleep problems in those with OCD include: having a hard time falling asleep (known as sleep latency) waking up multiple times in a night. lying in bed for hours without sleeping. not following a typical sleep schedule (often staying up late)
Focus on calming yourself down before bed
Instead of worrying about how much sleep you're going to get or whether your sleep will be of good quality, try to focus all your energy on calming yourself down.
The four levels of anxiety are mild anxiety, moderate anxiety, severe anxiety, and panic level anxiety, each of which is classified by the level of distress and impairment they cause. The four components of anxiety can also be influenced by the person's personality, coping strategies, life experiences, and gender.