The Sleeping Scaries
We came across this fabulous picture the other day on Instagram.
Courtesy of the lovely Ellen Niven. It made us laugh out loud and sob a little!
Because this is absolutely how it can be some nights, Ellen on her post invites her audience to add or substitute their own words and most of them are hilariously accurate and I found myself crying a little more.
Sounds a bit melodramatic but you know we’re all about sleep here and just ask any Mother of a newborn or any woman caring for her elderly parents or any student cramming in the last few bits of knowledge or …. I could go on and on! Sleep deprivation is horrible, absolutely dreadful and waking up in the night beset by anxieties one wouldn’t concern oneself with during daylight hours is EVEN worse!
Which is why I call this the Sleeping Scaries. What’s possibly worse is once you’ve finally put to bed, ‘scuse the pun here, the issue that’s woken you or springs into your mind upon waking. Once that is taken care of, what then takes over is the, oh so now I can’t sleep, syndrome. You find yourself worrying about falling back to sleep, should you look the phone and see what the time is, should you get up, should you drink a glass of warm milk – what should I do to fall back to sleep quickly!?!
I’ve written about this before and it is well documented finally how sleep is perhaps the most restorative thing one can do for oneself and yet these days it seems it’s becoming more and more elusive – hence the Sleeping Scaries.
Sadly there haven’t been any major breakthroughs in a definitive answer to sleep soundly. Below are the top five generally advised strategies that sleep experts recommend, although we’ve found some can work on some days and then not on others…….
- Deep, repetitive breathing techniques, total focus, seems to be the most successful
- Muscle stretching and tensing ie flexing and stretching your muscles beginning at your toes and slowly working up towards the neck and head
- Think about your happy place/scenario/person completely and totally
- Read, pick up the book if you often fall asleep whilst reading
- Listen to some soothing, low energy music whilst drinking some warm milk and honey (Moon Milk anyone?)
But if none of these work, get up, pop on your dressing gown (preferably your SoffiaB one) and write your to-do-list for the day – get rid of the worry, transfer it onto solid paper, don’t try and remember it all!
Once you’ve done that reassess how you are feeling, sleepy and relieved get under that duvet! Energized and awake, then begin your day.
Good luck lovelies keeping those Sleeping Scaries at bay!
Look Gorgeous, Feel Fabulous – Sophie