Sleep on it

There are many reasons to list as to what keeps you up at night. Environmental factors, too much stress, over-exposure to screens, jet lag, heavy food, medicine, or uncomfortable conditions are among them.

Romanticists claim you lie awake because you appear in someone else’s dream.

But in essence, we can’t sleep because we subconsciously burden ourselves with too many thoughts. We won’t allow ourselves to let go of everything that troubles our brains during the day. Consequently, we can’t find that much required peace to relax, to breathe out and alleviate the pressure we exert on ourselves.

We need constructive outlets to enable our minds to wander. To stop thinking for a while. To simply get lost in the moment.

Some would suggest meditation, but that’s not as easy as it sounds, and it requires great effort.

A more feasible solution is a walk on the beach, or even a dive into the sea. Salty water helps in washing away the problems, which we often create ourselves. It will get us feeling refreshed, relaxed, and revived. An essential process in assisting us to gather the courage to face everything that is causing us the initial stress.

We need to find time to escape our worries, if we are to find the strength to effectively deal with them. We can’t sleep on the decisions we need to make, if we can’t fall asleep to begin with.

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11 thoughts that keep you awake at night

If you’re not one of those people who fall asleep as soon as their head hits a pillow, then you know what it’s like to toss and turn through the night wondering when you’ll finally fall asleep so you can stop thinking. In moments such as these, there are usually a million things cramped in your head. And it’s not just the sheep you are trying to count in the hope of dozing off.

Here are just eleven of the thoughts that may keep you up at night:

1. Did I turn off the lights/lock the door/shut the fridge door? (Yet always too lazy to get up and check)
2. Did I feed the dog/cat/fish?
3. Why hasn’t s/he called today?
4. What if s/he doesn’t want to talk to me/ isn’t thinking about me as much / doesn’t care?
5. Why didn’t I be more aggressive at the meeting this morning? Subtleness is only understood by intelligent people and that was clearly not the case.
6. Was I productive enough today? I should do more exercise.
7. What if I had taken that job in Hawaii two years ago?
8. I wondering what (ex) is doing now…
9. I’m tired. Maybe I should call (friend) for drinks tomorrow and a chat. I need people to talk to.
10. What am I going to wear tomorrow?
11. If I fall asleep right now I will get roughly four hours of sleep.

What keeps you up at night?