The Anxiety Hour:

DAY 18:

For me this is the moment I wake up in the middle of the night, usually sometime between 2am - 4am. I’m fortunate, this doesn’t happen to me every night, perhaps a handful over the course of a month unless three is something particularly churning in my unconscious. For some though this is a frequent occurrence and sleeping has become a battle of uncertainty.

Usually by the morning we wake up and feel a welcomed consciousness again, one that enables us to rationalise the feeling of anxiety from the night. There is something about the middle of the night, when we are closer to our dream state, that brings our fears to a new level of intensity. Eventually something snaps, often translated through our dreams and this shakes us from our sleep. Repeat this over a number of nights, weeks, months and we find ourselves a completely different person.

These are some of the effects of sleep deprivation:

• Mood disorders: risk of depression and anxiety, with insomnia being a significant predictor of these conditions.

• Cognitive function: Men may experience difficulty concentrating, making decisions, and retaining information.

• Emotional regulation: Makes it harder to regulate emotions, leading to mood swings and increased irritability.

• Existing conditions: Can exacerbate the symptoms of existing mental health conditions like anxiety, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.   

• Risk-taking: Associated with higher levels of risky behaviour.

• Decreased quality of life: Reduces our ability to engage in daily activities, leading to a cycle of poor sleep and lower life satisfaction. 

All of these have a negative effect on our day to day wellness and often it is much more damaging than we think.

Solutions: Still working on it but there is lots of great advice out there. Personally I have found that if I do wake up in the middle of the night and can’t get back to sleep. I get up for 30 - 40 mins, read or watch something calming on TV, nothing too dramatic or action packed, something life affirming, a nature or culture programme or feel good flick.

Often this helps to shake off my nighttime anxieties and begin to feel a more relaxed form of tiredness, enabling me to fall asleep again.