> Action mode focuses on surviving a danger right now. This is the fight or flight mechanism that our brain when it is in an adverse situation. The response is driven by the sympathetic nervous system. It drives up your heart rate, raises blood pressure, dilates your pupil among other things.
It also affects the way we think, and make decisions.
When we are in "action mode," our thinking becomes fairly "binary," and extreme (eg. "Good|Bad", "Fight|Flight", "Hate|Love").
It also focuses on short-term results, and is biased towards assured results, as opposed to "possible" ones.
That's why I find I need to back away from the computer, when I find myself in a stressball. I make bad decisions.
Managers, politicians, and demagogues of all stripes, have used this for centuries, to get people to support their agendas.
To point 1, this almost feels like catch-22. While sleep may be a way to recover from stress, stress is probably the single thing that impacts my sleep the most (aside from alcohol consumption, which is much easier to control).
I had a year-long stretch averaging 4 hours of sleep daily that was extremely difficult.
Tried all of the regular remedies: diet, exercise, reading, prayer, habit changes. My doctor prescribed a medicine to help me calm down at night. That was the first thing that actually helped.
That kept going until I left a very stressful job and landed in a healthy environment with a different employer. I was able to stop the medicine after a couple of months.
All that to say, there are many methods that work for different people and situations. Don't discount speaking with a doctor or therapist, and don't continue through life with bad sleep. It's a really rough way to go.
If you can identify the thing(s) keeping you up at night, and if they're things in your control, consider making changes. Living without good sleep sucks. Do whatever it takes to get good sleep, even if it means big changes.
I've found with time that the easiest way to fall asleep is to try to meditate. Sit there or lay there in a quiet room and just watch your breath going in and out, not chastising yourself or getting frustrated when your mind inevitably wanders. Simply acknowledge that you've gone off track and come back to your breath. Normally in meditation, the goal isn't to fall asleep, but it is definitely something that you can let happen if you want to.
Yes. when you go to sleep don't put any pressure on yourself that you need to sleep X number of hrs or whatever. Just go to bed on regular schedule and be thankful for the amount of sleep you get, actual amount is irrelevant.
What helps me: write down a list of all the things going on, preferably pen on paper.. Allow yourself to do turn on the lights again and write additional stuff on it... Repeat until there's nothing more to write down.
You need to make a conscious effort to become better at managing your stress. When you notice your stress is peaking, try different techniques to relax yourself. Find out what works then you can make that a daily habit to reduce overall stress. Also need to train your mind to flip off the stress switch when it’s time to go to sleep.
It depends on what is your main problem. Falling asleep? staying asleep? For the former using melatonin might help (I never use more than 0.5mg a night). I also find that podcasts help me fall asleep once I focus on listening. There are also specific meds that can help with stress which you can take when things are bad (e.g., lorazepam). Just having them by your side can help with your sleep since you know it's there in case you need it. Then of course, sport and meditation are great tools have better quality of life, not just better sleep.
What has helped me a lot: get plenty of sunlight; especially in the morning (very important to our biological clock), started taking probiotics once a day before a meal, I try to eat complex carbohydrates in the morning (fruits, vegetables, beans, seeds); which promotes good gut bacteria and more stable blood glucose levels, exercise every day, no caffeine 8 hours before bed, nothing but water 2-3 hours before bed and I take 10mg of Melatonin most nights before bed (sometimes 20mg).
If you do hard physical exercise (weight lifting, forget running), until you are dead tired, and stop drinking stimulants (coffee et al) then you will have good sleep. So simple.
Exercise and make it easy to do. I got a peloton bike and just made it a habit in the morning. I then eased into yoga at night.
When Covid hit, 4 kids home/remote job/divorce all hit at once. I have to do something hard enough that my brain can shut off worrying about the thing. Lizard brain has to be active enough to think threat is gone and shut off.
The hardest days for me are intentional rest days/weeks where I have to be mindful of not having that same release.
I find melatonin really useful, if that's something available where you live (its regulation varies radically between the US and Europe). I find it's best about 30 minutes before bed.
4. Find more money so you aren't so stressed about paying the bills that you can sleep well at night so that you have energy to exercise and can afford to eat well.
Hey, I tend to have problems falling asleep because of a busy mind.
What helps me is reading a book. Sometimes have to switch to a more boring book.
In recent years started using Kindle with a very low light setting, going lower every few minutes, even having to enlarge font at the end, to make it readable with such low light.
Regarding number 3. I've developed some GI issues the last year and was diagnosed with celiac disease. My stress and anxiety are higher than ever. I've often reflected on whether the GI issues are causing my stress or just making me more aware of the stress that has always been there.
It emphasizes accepting and allowing feelings of anxiety instead of actively resisting them, breaking the cycle in which worry about worsening anxiety only leads to its intensification.
To add to that, if you have developed panic attacks, sometimes (e.g. at 7/10 anxiety) it’s easier to just escalate it so all the pressure explodes rather than hissing indefinitely.
The most important thing I’ve learned about anxiety in the past year is that the conscious/cognitive part of your brain is not effective at calming down the stress response. I recommend this book to anyone who struggles with anxiety: https://amzn.to/3B3muZ9
> Talking to people is an underrated technique to stop worrying
For me this is really true. I'm more of an introvert, and I don't usually reach out to others very often. It can be in the form of talk therapy in a formal setting with an actual psychologist. It can also just be catching up with a friend, or chatting with a neighbor about something totally unrelated. Anything that can get me outside of my own mind helps. Looking for opportunities to help or become involved in someone else's life is really helpful.
As a fellow introvert, this sounds insurmountably painful. How did you have something to talk about every night? How did you even find that many people to fit into a rotation like that without feeling like you were annoying them? I have so many questions. If you do write that blog post, I'd love to read it. Especially the "how."
I'm reading this book, "Why We Sleep" by Matthew Walker, and it says the half-life of caffeine is like up to 8 hours ... so having a 3pm coffee means going to bed at midnight with half of it still active.
I've cut coffee out of my diet after noon lunchtime, and I think it's helping ... tough to be sure but as long as I believe it, it's pretty good
I don't think that book is generally considered scientific. It contains a bunch of opinions, but it is not peer reviewed article and not everything in it is backed by good studies.
I have noticed the same effect as well. There is a noticeable difference to the quality of my sleep on the days I have consumed caffeine and the days that I have skipped it. The quality of your sleep likely has effects on your mood, energy levels and over all stress levels.
However, I was referring to the direct effects of caffeine on your stress and anxiety levels. I would go so far as to say that if you are taking steps to reduce your stress and anxiety levels, quitting caffiene should be on the list of some of the first things you try. (Alongside the usual advice of good sleep, exercise, meditation and diet)
"After adjusting for additional dietary, demographic, and lifestyle covariates, positive associations between total weekly caffeine intake and anxiety and depression remained significant"
"Caffeine also increases anxiety in PD patients as well as among healthy adults at these doses although the exact relationship between caffeine-induced anxiety and panic attacks remains uncertain. The results suggest that caffeine targets important mechanisms related to the pathophysiology of PD."
This is close, but misses a major issue: self honesty in one's self conversation. Address that, and the majority of one's stress and anxiety evaporate. The majority of one's stress and anxiety is in the form of negative forecasting unknown future events - essentially fantasizing failure. Address that, and a personal revolution takes place, with the simple but not easy task of self honesty.
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It also affects the way we think, and make decisions.
When we are in "action mode," our thinking becomes fairly "binary," and extreme (eg. "Good|Bad", "Fight|Flight", "Hate|Love").
It also focuses on short-term results, and is biased towards assured results, as opposed to "possible" ones.
That's why I find I need to back away from the computer, when I find myself in a stressball. I make bad decisions.
Managers, politicians, and demagogues of all stripes, have used this for centuries, to get people to support their agendas.
> It also focuses on short-term results, and is biased towards assured results, as opposed to "possible" ones.
What's interesting to me is that this type of thinking also overlaps with, or is found in, a variety of circumstances/ways of being, like:
- Unskilled (despite experience level)
- Beginner
- Under-trained
- Unsupported or under-supported role or assignment
- Self-centered (egoic-hero model)
- Little-picture Thinker
- Fearful attitude
... It's helpful to be able to refer to these other lenses in turn, as a way of finding helpful solutions.
eg., “stressed.”
Sort of like the classic “Lucy and the Chocolate Factory” routine[0].
I’d also suggest a management deficit, if those cases are too severe.
[0] https://youtu.be/NkQ58I53mjk
2. Exercise daily. Movement is how the body puts the stress hormones to work.
3. Eat well. The gut-brain connection drives how we feel as we digest.
Does anyone have any help or tips here?
Tried all of the regular remedies: diet, exercise, reading, prayer, habit changes. My doctor prescribed a medicine to help me calm down at night. That was the first thing that actually helped.
That kept going until I left a very stressful job and landed in a healthy environment with a different employer. I was able to stop the medicine after a couple of months.
All that to say, there are many methods that work for different people and situations. Don't discount speaking with a doctor or therapist, and don't continue through life with bad sleep. It's a really rough way to go.
If you can identify the thing(s) keeping you up at night, and if they're things in your control, consider making changes. Living without good sleep sucks. Do whatever it takes to get good sleep, even if it means big changes.
Yes. when you go to sleep don't put any pressure on yourself that you need to sleep X number of hrs or whatever. Just go to bed on regular schedule and be thankful for the amount of sleep you get, actual amount is irrelevant.
When Covid hit, 4 kids home/remote job/divorce all hit at once. I have to do something hard enough that my brain can shut off worrying about the thing. Lizard brain has to be active enough to think threat is gone and shut off.
The hardest days for me are intentional rest days/weeks where I have to be mindful of not having that same release.
Even during the most stressful of times, that evening workout helped reset my mood.
Reading in bed helps immensely as well.
Deleted Comment
What helps me is reading a book. Sometimes have to switch to a more boring book.
In recent years started using Kindle with a very low light setting, going lower every few minutes, even having to enlarge font at the end, to make it readable with such low light.
It emphasizes accepting and allowing feelings of anxiety instead of actively resisting them, breaking the cycle in which worry about worsening anxiety only leads to its intensification.
Mindfulness meditation can increase the connection between your prefrontal cortex and your amyglada
For me this is really true. I'm more of an introvert, and I don't usually reach out to others very often. It can be in the form of talk therapy in a formal setting with an actual psychologist. It can also just be catching up with a friend, or chatting with a neighbor about something totally unrelated. Anything that can get me outside of my own mind helps. Looking for opportunities to help or become involved in someone else's life is really helpful.
Has helped me in forming deep friendships, make new friends, and overcoming my shyness.
Recommend 10/10
Here is a short essay I wrote recently. Will probably write a blog post soon too.
https://twitter.com/prashanttgs/status/1616815440667480071
I've cut coffee out of my diet after noon lunchtime, and I think it's helping ... tough to be sure but as long as I believe it, it's pretty good
However, I was referring to the direct effects of caffeine on your stress and anxiety levels. I would go so far as to say that if you are taking steps to reduce your stress and anxiety levels, quitting caffiene should be on the list of some of the first things you try. (Alongside the usual advice of good sleep, exercise, meditation and diet)
Some reading for those who are interested:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4668773/
"After adjusting for additional dietary, demographic, and lifestyle covariates, positive associations between total weekly caffeine intake and anxiety and depression remained significant"
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34871964/
"Caffeine also increases anxiety in PD patients as well as among healthy adults at these doses although the exact relationship between caffeine-induced anxiety and panic attacks remains uncertain. The results suggest that caffeine targets important mechanisms related to the pathophysiology of PD."
https://web.archive.org/web/20200130090750/https://www.psych...
"Regular consumption of high levels of caffeine can lead to a condition known as 'caffeinitis'" which is characterized by chronic subjective anxiety"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeine-induced_anxiety_disor...
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/anxiety-and-caffei...
To successfully do all the recommended steps and have them be fulfilling and not just another task, you need to be honest with yourself.
The fact that this is an unpopular option may be why so many people are stuck in their anxiety loops.
souce: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z25f6qy361Y&ab_channel=MEDsp...