How Nick stopped his mind (and sleep) from controlling his life by letting go of the struggle with his mind (and sleep) (#41)
Insomnia Coach® PodcastShow Notes
Nick started experiencing insomnia in 2000 when he relocated and began a new job. His life was consumed with stress, anxiety, and uncertainty, and he found that trying to avoid or fight his thoughts only made them stronger. Nick felt helpless and didn't know how to improve his sleep or manage his difficult thoughts and emotions.
In this episode, Nick talks about how he adopted a new approach to dealing with all this difficult stuff. Rather than trying to control his thoughts and feelings, he learned to acknowledge and accept them. Instead of getting distracted by them, he redirected his attention towards actions that would help him move towards the life he wanted to live.
Nick started focusing on living a life that was aligned with his values, doing things that were important to him even on difficult nights when he experienced uncomfortable thoughts and emotions. He learned to bring his mind back to the present and notice and appreciate the things he was missing out on when he was lost in thought.
Today, Nick has a more workable relationship with sleep and the full range of thoughts and feelings that come with it. He no longer sees sleep as the sole focus of his life and is not haunted by it anymore.
Watch/listen to this episode
More from Insomnia Coach® Podcast
Morgan rarely thought about sleep until a concussion in 2023 changed everything. As she dealt with dizziness, nausea, ringing in her head, and disrupted sleep, she tried medication, supplements, detailed sleep tracking, and strict sleep rules.
After one sleepless night around his 17th birthday, Joey began to fear the next night. Soon, thoughts about sleep followed him through the day. He stopped going out, struggled to watch films, and sat inside with the curtains drawn.
Lu spent most of her life as a great sleeper. Then, six weeks after having her first baby, a painful mix of pressure, anxiety, and one sleepless night made sleep feel difficult for the first time.
Casaundra’s insomnia first showed up in college. From then on, it would come and go during periods of stress. After getting married, insomnia showed up and this time it didn’t go away. Before long, Casaundra would notice a feeling of anxiety as soon as her head hit the pillow. Nights started to feel like a battle.
Today, I’m talking with Farrukh — someone whose experience with insomnia slowly began to take over more and more of his life.