Countless people experience restless nights as their minds race with unwanted thoughts. Others have frightening or unnerving dreams that leave them feeling anxious when they awaken. However, if they understood that they could assert some control over their sleep, they would be empowered. They would be able to influence their minds in positive ways.
Stress
Insomnia can leave you feeling drained and lethargic. At the same time, tossing and turning all night when you would rather sleep is no fun. Have you ever stopped to ponder whether your anxiety-laden thoughts are contributing to a lack of sleep?
When you go over unhappy thoughts, the stress hormone cortisol floods your system producing a fight or flight response that makes you alert. Stop repeatedly going over what ails you, and distract your mind with positive thoughts, and you stand a better chance of nodding off.
Excitement
Excitement can be wonderful when it relates to happy emotions and takes place at the right time. However, when your mind is filled with eager anticipation as your head hits the hay, you are likely to stay wide awake. Combat mental overstimulation by concentrating on breathing deeply, listening to each breath in and out, and letting any thoughts drift away.
Expectations
If you imagine that you will not be able to sleep at night, you are probably right. As if by magic, your brain will respond to your thought by making it a reality. Sometimes, it can be hard to shift a stubborn belief such as the idea that you have permanent insomnia.
Challenge your mindset by mentally listing all the reasons why you might be able to sleep instead of listing reasons you cannot. Additionally, consider your beliefs about what helps people sleep. For instance, do you think that having a hot bath before bedtime and drinking warm milk makes people sleepy? Carry out the actions that you anticipate will result in a good night’s sleep and your mind will respond favorably to your expectations.
Problem-Solving Dreams
Your brain does not censor information as much when you are sleeping compared to when you are awake. Thus, its problem-solving capacity has the potential to be enhanced when you are in the land of Nod. If you face a challenge and need to think of ideas, focus on thinking about it before you turn out the light. Do not stress yourself out. Instead, tell yourself that you are going to create a problem-solving dream. Sleeping on it could be just what you need.
Creativity
Just as you can problem-solve during sleep, which is a creative endeavor, you might also be capable of thinking up great works of art, poetry or music. Focus on a blank page, canvas or music sheet and visualize words, paintings, or music notes in your mind as you become sleepy.
At the same time, place an order in your mind for what you want, whether it’s a visual representation in your head of a sculpture that you can create or the sound of notes strung together to form music.
Nightmares
Nightmares often stem from deep emotions. Hence, if you watch a horror movie before going to bed, and empathize with the victim of a psycho killer, you may not enjoy sweet dreams! Likewise, if there is an issue in your life about which you are fearful, your mind may produce a nightmare that relates to the matter.
If you are aware that you are influenced negatively by scary movies, refrain from watching them at nighttime. In addition, if an issue frightens or worries you, talk to someone you trust about your feelings. Often, just getting your fears out in the open, instead of keeping them hidden, means that your mind will not highlight them in your dreams.
Your thoughts can help you sleep and generate creative masterpieces, or give you insomnia or nightmares. Taking control of what you think about, particularly prior to bedtime, can help you get the slumber you desire.
