We’ve all been there. Circumstance of life are creeping into our quiet moments and disrupting peace and thus, our sleep. There are thousands of recommendations about how to deal with anxiety, restlessness, and sleep struggles. Here’s another strategy. One I’ve lived and developed for myself out of necessity during the recent and perhaps most challenging season of my life. Try it and let me know what you discover.
Drug + Dig
Most people are either/or people—dualistic in their view. They either drug themselves or they dig and discover and do the hard work of therapy and self-examination.
I propose a both/and strategy. Hear me out.
1. Drug sparingly. Start with essential oils. If you need to go stronger, take it easy. I used Zzzquill during a few weeks of high anxiety and uncertainty, but not every night—two nights on, one night off. Two nights on, so I could sleep 6 to 8 hours and have energy for the next day to engage with as much passion and clarity that I could muster. My wife and I have three young kids that are up at 6am whether I’m feeling good or not, so too many days of sleepless nights destroy any hope I would have of being an engaged husband and father, not to mention giving my best to working on myself to discover WHY I’m actually feeling anxious.
2. Dig into mind, heart, and soul. Those are the factors impacting the body, causing sleep struggles. The mind is spinning because the heart is fearful. The heart is fearful because our view of ourselves (and our God) is too small. The soul—the real self—is captive to a false image of ourselves that we see and believe. God wants to set us free. A little more today… a little more tomorrow… to be the person He’s designed you and me to be. These temporary struggles are about our freedom, not our failure.
So get the support you need. For me, that looked like several older men who have done more living and were willing to support and guide me on this path. It meant a wise sage-like therapist who could guide me internally to explore the depths of my fears and false views of myself. And it meant expressing and sharing more with my wife and close friends—a challenge for many men, especially me. But day by day, night by night, it got better. I got better. Peace was like an ocean tide, rising on the shores of my circumstances. God’s mercies are new every morning and His faithfulness can be counted on.
Bonus: Workout hard. Exhaust yourself physically every day, if possible. Don’t just take a cute little walk or have a pleasant workout. Go hard.
This has two really help effects…
A) As you push your body your mind falls into a focused rhythmic zone, helpful for drawing out fresh ideas and underlying issues that your frantic mind might be blocking.
B) Pushing your body wears you out and makes a natural night sleep more attainable.
It’s not either/or. It’s both/and. Embrace the season you’re in, but don’t stay there or settle for it. Help yourself sleep tonight, but create a plan to dig deeper into the things you’re believing and fearful of that aren’t serving you.
Freedom is possible. But it is usually incremental. Don’t give up, and don’t put yourself on an unhealthy path that makes it worse.
Drug sparingly… AND… Dig into your internal life.
This too shall pass. And not only pass, but help you tap into your soul—your real self—that’s being refined, expanded, and strengthened for the journey ahead. This isn’t happening to you. It’s happening FOR YOU… because there’s more IN YOU than you realize.