“What happens when you go to bed at night?” I ask.
“I panic,” he says. “All I can think about is how miserable I am having another sleepless night.”
Ken tells me about his job and how much he loves it.
Ken is a team lead at a high-tech company. He is the youngest team lead. He is super motivated, goal-oriented and is the centre of attention everywhere he goes.
Ken had to take a leave of absence from work after noticing that a day had passed, and all he had done was drink coffee and gaze at his laptop screen.
Ken also tells me that he is a terrible sleeper. He hasn’t had a good night’s sleep in the past 20 years or so. It started when he was a teenager. His parents were worried, but his doctor said it was okay, and they haven’t thought about it since.
Ken managed through high school, college, university and the ten years he has been in the work world.
But lately, the lack of sleep has become unmanageable. Ken can’t focus at work or have a conversation with his wife. He doesn’t have the energy or the motivation to meet friends, go out. or play sports, even though he loves running and playing soccer.
What Happened?
A year ago, Ken and his wife bought a house in one of the most expensive cities in North America. They became homeowners and started paying a mortgage. Ken and his wife want to start a family, and they are talking about his wife transitioning to part-time work once the baby is born.
About eight months ago, Ken was promoted and is now looking after a bigger team in a new department. Ken’s team needs to deliver a massive chunk of work weekly, and to keep up with the demanding requirements, Ken works longer hours.
The additional stress accumulated not-so-slowly and very surely.
Ken started to worry more. He didn’t share his thoughts with his wife because he didn’t want to her to worry.
And so he was lying in bed awake, thoughts running through his mind, and he couldn’t calm himself down to fall asleep.
The Cycle of Dread
While Ken’s thoughts and worries fully consumed him, adrenaline released in his system, causing him to feel even more alert, which pushed his sleep even further away.
Now he wasn’t thinking just about work, finances and his wife, he was worrying about not being able to fall asleep and how fatigued he would be the next morning. Adrenaline mounted.
Ken’s fight or flight state was well established now – his nervous system was on high alert, his thoughts and worries raced through his brain, and he couldn’t fall asleep. Ken feels stuck, angry, and hopeless.
How To Break The Cycle Of Dread And Drift to Sleep
- There are a few aspects to consider regarding breaking this cycle of dread and allowing ourselves to drift to sleep
- Take a holistic, mind-body approach.
Training our mind and body to work together harmoniously supports us when our thoughts are racing and our nervous system is on high-alert. - Use hypnotic tools during waking hours to create mind-body harmony and incorporate more of the “rest and digest” state (rather than “flight or flight”).
- Identify triggers and stressors to view them from a new perspective and neutralize them.
- Use breath and meditation to elicit a mentally, emotionally, and physically calm state.
- Use hypnosis and self-hypnosis to cultivate resiliency and reach your sleeping goals faster.
Interested in learning more?
Click here to book a 1-hour consultation with Miri.
Miri is a hypnotherapist and integrative sleep coach who supports her clients to improve their sleep and their lives.
Miri works with clients locally from her office in Vancouver, BC and online with clients worldwide from the comfort of their homes.
She incorporates various modalities to empower her clients.
Miri focuses on creating mind-body harmony and balance and supports her clients in finding their inner resources to make sustainable shifts in their lives.
Individuals who practice these principles feel empowered in many aspects of their lives and improve their overall well-being.
For more information and to contact Miri Malkin @ Miri Malkin Hypnosis For Top Performance click below:
