Getting good sleep in an age of anxiety

Having trouble sleeping? When your head hits the pillow, is it hard to turn your brain off? From David Sobel, former Regional Director of Health Education for TPMG, this video featuring Dr. Judson Brewer talking about getting good sleep in an age of anxiety. With all of the unsettling stimuli related to COVID-19, we need things that quiet our nervous systems, not jack them up. Here are some things to try today. 

Practice good sleep hygiene. Get in some exercise during the day. No large meals, caffeine, or alcohol before bed. No laptops, iPads, or smartphones in bed unless they are used to bathe you in soothing sounds or messages (see below). 

Don’t check the news before going to bed. That would be like watching Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds before vacationing in Bodega Bay. 

Practice doing a body scan in bed. Click here for a guided body scan from Dr. Brewer. Many patients like this better than medication. It’s free and has no side effects. Bring your awareness to the toes in your left foot. Are they warm or cold, moist or dry? Then invite your awareness to the bottom of your left foot (and so on). Do it for ten minutes or longer if necessary. It works well because you aren’t trying to force your mind not to think, or your body to calm down, which you can’t do anyway. Instead, this naturally draws your attention away from your worry thinking and grounds you in your body.