5 Remedies to Combat Nighttime Anxiety

Anxiety is a crippling condition that can affect a person’s daily activities. People can only function throughout the day after a good night’s rest. However, racing thoughts, overthinking, and processing pain can occur at night when the brain receives no stimuli from other sources. A person who is experiencing nighttime anxiety, even if there’s no reason for the anxiety, can experience a host of other health issues.

A racing heart, racing thoughts, and a constant sense of the fight or flight response while in bed are abnormal and need to be remedied. These symptoms can indicate that your body is under a lot of physical stress, which causes emotional stress.

Remedies for nighttime anxiety

Although nighttime anxiety can be challenging, especially for people who work or have other activities throughout the day, there are specific strategies that a person can use to not only combat the anxiety at night but also keep it from coming back during the day. Here are five nighttime remedies to combat nighttime anxiety:

Deep breathing

Deep breathing is an excellent exercise at night because you don’t need to be involved in any other activity. Your mind is relatively clear enabling you to focus on your breathing. Inhale deeply for ten seconds. Allow your lungs and diaphragm to fill fully. Hold your breath for ten seconds. Then, slowly exhale, allowing your lungs and diaphragm to empty. Repeat this for ten minutes.

Clear your mind so you can focus on nothing else but your breathing. A person who’s struggling with extreme anxiety may need to do this for up to sixty minutes. This exercise can be good because you are still getting some rest even though your body and brain are not physically getting the REM sleep. It can also naturally reduce your cortisol levels.

Elevated cortisol levels in the body cause anxiety. Deep breathing allows your mind to focus on something other than emotional issues, and your physical body can still get some rest as the body is not physically moving and the brain is not taking in any other stimuli. Lowering cortisol levels not only reduces anxiety but also keeps the body from experiencing additional emotional or physical damage, which over time can be irreparable.

Not only does deep breathing aid in anxiety, but it also helps with mindfulness, a practice that involves keeping your mind on the present moment, instead of catastrophizing the future or lamenting the past.

Deep breathing is an exercise that can be practiced anywhere, anytime. A person with anxiety can practice this at work, during a fun activity, or in another stressful situation. Having an easy and practical exercise to use in a pinch can help prevent future panic attacks from occurring.

Count your blessings

Counting your blessings is another excellent exercise, especially for people who think negatively. Thinking about your blessings helps rewire the brain to think more positively. Take a moment and think about how God blessed you that day. It could be as simple as your favorite food, a conversation with a friend, or an encouraging text.

Keep going until you can count at least ten. Push yourself to think of 25-50. This activity will naturally rewire your mind to think positively. It will allow you to shift your perspective and change your worldview from discontentment to contentment and gratitude.

If you have trouble staying in bed and want to get up, you can go to a quiet space and journal about your blessings. Make a separate gratitude journal from any other journal you use. Write down ten things for which you are grateful. Think of all the ways God has blessed you and take the time to pray and thank God for the gifts he has given you.

Journal

If you’re counting your blessings, but it’s too much because you’re dealing with too many issues, simply take a journal and write out your feelings. Journaling is a great way to take your mind off all the things that are bothering you. Write down all your feelings and big emotions. Feel free to say whatever you need to say.

Your journal is a safe space to write down everything you think and feel. If you need to, process what led to the racing thoughts or negative feelings. Write out prayers and ask God to help you forgive any person or issue hindering your emotional freedom. Take it one step further and resolve to make amends with any person you may need to forgive or ask for forgiveness to restore your relationship.

Be specific and tell them exactly why you are sorry and what you’ve done to create a rift in their relationship. Even if you get rejected by the person or peace is never achieved, you can take comfort in knowing you did what was best and honored the command to be a peacemaker.

If you believe you’ve done nothing wrong, take the step, reach out to the person, and let them know how you’re feeling. If that person has deeply hurt you, express it. They may take responsibility, or they may not.

However, allowing them to become aware of their responsibility in the relationship will enable them to seek repentance and forgiveness. It doesn’t help anyone to keep it at bay, ignore it, and pretend it doesn’t exist. Romans 12:18 says, “As long as it depends on you, live at peace with all men.” You cannot live at peace with another person if they are unaware of their part in this situation.

Sleep aid

If all else fails, take an over-the-counter sleep aid to help you sleep. Not everyone can deal with all the emotional issues in their lives. It is best to take a sleep aid and allow yourself to get the rest you need to deal with the next day’s problems.

Jesus promised we would have trouble in this life, but we must develop healthy habits like good rest to deal with daily issues. Check with your doctor and ensure that an over-the-counter sleep aid is appropriate for you at nighttime, given your health status.

Take the time to journal, count your blessings, and deep breathe throughout the day. These might still help to naturally reduce the cortisol levels in your body so that you can get to the root of the anxiety.

Seek help

Bearing anxiety is to the point where it’s affecting your nighttime routine; it may be best to seek some professional help. Having a professional help you process whatever issues keep you up at night may benefit your physical and emotional health. Professionals may also be able to prescribe or refer you to someone who can prescribe medication if anxiety is becoming an issue.

There’s no shame in taking medication for a mental health issue. Anxiety, if untreated, can cause a host of other mental health issues that may affect your life and the lives of others. Anxiety can also morph into depression if not checked.

It is essential to seek the help of professionals to get help to determine whether medication is appropriate or not. A professional can also give you practical tips and strategies to naturally keep anxiety at bay throughout the day and at night.

Next steps

Anxiety is a complex disorder that can affect many aspects of a person’s life. Take active steps to naturally reduce cortisol levels by following the suggestions above. If the above suggestions do not help the anxiety issue, seek the help of a professional and get the help you need. Anxiety is more common than people realize. By helping resolve your anxiety, you are helping your physical health and improving your relationships.