Insomnia due to stress: what are its symptoms and how to fight it?
Insomnia due to stress is one of the main health problems that many people face in their day to day. It is a type of sleep disturbance that has a direct impact on both the wear and tear of the body and the risk of being wrong and being exposed to risk during the day to day, and this situation, in turn, can increase stress, which worsens the situation.
In this article we will see both advice on how to combat stress insomnia and the typical symptoms of this disorder.
- Related article: "The 12 types of insomnia (according to their duration, severity and symptoms)"
Insomnia due to stress: how does it appear?
At the time of going to sleep and falling asleep, our perception of the possible dangers or problems that lie in wait for us it's very important. If there is something that makes us think we are in a vulnerable situation, the nervous system will tend to stay alert, as this makes it more likely that we will seek a solution immediately.
Unfortunately, in Western societies the problems usually do not have to do with exploring the environment in search of nearby resources or safe places to turn to, but they have to do with more abstract purposes and with many intermediate steps. For example, pass an exam next week, or reconcile with a person who lives far away.
So, at the time of going to bed it is not always practical to feel that restlessness, and The only thing you can do is try to fall asleep . It is in these cases that the least malleable face of this mechanism of adaptation to the environment appears: insomnia due to stress.
- Maybe you're interested: "The 7 main sleep disorders"
symptom
The main symptoms of insomnia due to stress are the appearance of intrusive thoughts and mental images that arise in our consciousness again and again, the difficulties to find a position in which we feel comfortable, the impossibility of disengaging our focus from a specific topic , and in extreme cases, tremors due to causes other than temperature.
In other cases, insomnia due to stress not only manifests itself when trying to get to sleep, but also makes us wake up in the middle of the night without feeling especially sleepy and not wanting to stay in bed.
Of course, these signs should not be related to an illness or the fact of having gone to sleep at odd hours, since these are factors that have a clear impact on how we sleep in the short term.
What to do to get back to sleep?
These are several tips you can follow to start having quality sleep and, in general, to feel better .
1. Give yourself a margin
It is important to assess one's health and not make it appear that lack of sleep is something circumstantial or a simple source of discomfort. Failing to face the problem makes it easier for it to get worse and get bigger day after day.
So, momentarily breaks with those responsibilities that are not clearly urgent and devotes a single day to re-enter the dynamics of sleeping well. This involves losing several things on the first day, but in return we create the right situations to give the maximum of ourselves during the weeks that will come. Once the stress insomnia does not exist, we will be much more efficient dedicating ourselves to our tasks and we will lose less time.
2. Avoid using screens at nightfall
During the hours before going to sleep, try to avoid exposing yourself to strong lights and screens. In this way, your nervous system it will not stay activated as it would happen in the hours of more natural light .
3. Do sport during the morning
Sport is a good way to discharge part of the stress, and in that sense it is good to use it as a resource. However, avoid at all costs practice it a few hours before dinner, or after. Otherwise, your body will still be very active when you try to fall asleep.
4. Do not take stimulants
No matter what happens, avoid taking any substance that significantly activates your nervous system, like coffee .
5. Practice relaxation exercises
By resorting to these simple exercises from time to time, you will help your stress levels do not rise too much. In them, you will work especially with your focus of attention and breathing patterns. This last it will serve to oxygenate you better with less effort , so that you will be giving reasons so that your nervous system does not stay alert.
- Maybe you're interested: "6 easy relaxation techniques to combat stress"
6. Make sure your bed is comfortable
It seems obvious, but many times we worsen sleep problems by pretending to fall asleep in a bed that is not prepared properly, or in a place that is not even designed to sleep on it.
So, make sure the place is big enough to stretch out well on it, that the sheets adapt to the temperature it makes, and that there are no objects that limit your mobility , taking into account that while you sleep you will change position many times.
