Psychogenic Tips to Combat Insomnia
Men's Health Clinic
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Insomnia is one of the most widespread diseases, affecting up to 30% of the population worldwide. It’s also tricky, as some may strictly adhere to good sleep hygiene guidelines yet still struggle to fall asleep. Recently, research has uncovered just how crucial mental health is for sleep quality. This article discusses the psychological causes of poor sleep and the psychogenic strategies that men can employ to fight insomnia.
Psychological Factors that Disrupt Sleep
The state of your mental health can severely impact the quantity and quality of your sleep. So, if you’ve tried the usual tips and have already ruled out other health factors, chances are your insomnia is due to a psychological reason. Here are the possible psychogenic causes of your insomnia:
Sleeping is a habit, even though people usually don’t see it as such. One way a habit gets broken is if we’ve become inconsistent with it. Waking up and sleeping whenever we want interferes with our mental programming around sleep. Another way we unknowingly give ourselves contradicting mental signals is by using the bed for anything other than sleep and sex. This is why it’s not a good idea to scroll on social media and you shouldn’t work while in bed.
Contrary to how it was decades ago, we no longer have as much idle time or rote tasks. Our technological advancements have led to us becoming constantly mentally engaged. Our brains don’t get enough downtime to process our ‘feelings’ for the day (or any other emotions that we’ve ignored). So, what happens when we’re about to sleep? The brain finally has a chance to tackle our emotions. This keeps us from sleeping, and the emotional flooding that we get may cause us to seek distractions that delay sleep further.
People often see cortisol in a negative light because it’s the “stress” hormone, but it actually plays a role in our body clock. Your cortisol levels naturally rise in the morning to tell your body to wake up. The problem is when cortisol is high at a time when it shouldn’t be. Nowadays, we are perpetually connected to the internet, so we may find ourselves working even at times when we’re supposed to be resting. Naturally, our stress would spike and inhibit sleep. And if that’s before bedtime, then you may have trouble falling asleep.
Even if you’re not doing anything stressful, you may still find yourself with high cortisol as you’re about to sleep, like when you’re dreading the struggle of falling asleep. This is called sleep anxiety. Another way sleep anxiety happens is when you start counting the hours you have left to fall asleep. This prevents you from sleeping even more. By the time you exhaust yourself from the mental strain of sleep anxiety, you’re already bound to be sleep-deprived.
The hormonal imbalances and poor coping mechanisms caused by mental disorders can interfere with your melatonin production. Mood disorders add to the emotional flooding that can happen when you’re about to sleep. In this case, medication and therapy would usually alleviate the symptoms of the mental disorder. But some of us who have no access to treatment are usually stuck with poor sleep, falsely believing that it’s because they’re not disciplined enough.
How to Set Yourself Up for Successful Sleep
Solving insomnia that’s rooted in poor mental health will be a combination of addressing the psychogenic reasons previously mentioned and incorporating activities that stimulate your brain to induce sleep. Here are eight psychological hacks to repel insomnia:
1. Don’t be Productive in Bed
The bed should only be reserved for sleeping and sex (optional). If you’re working remotely, it’s best that you sit on a chair or get one of those standing tables. You should also avoid mentally stimulating activities like playing a video game or watching an exciting film in the bedroom. The only exception to the rule is when you engage in activities that are meant to relax you. This means that it may be fine to read a book (light-hearted story) or listen to ASMR while lying in bed.
2. Do Enough Work
Our brain is an amazing taskmaster. It keeps track of all your responsibilities and projects that you have yet to do, 24/7. That’s why sometimes you remember pending tasks unexpectedly. But this also means that your brain will nag you or behave like an alarm clock that you keep putting on snooze if you don’t complete your tasks. You don’t need to get everything done; you just need to complete tasks with urgent deadlines. Research shows that procrastinators have a shorter and poorer sleep.
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3. Take a Walk
Apart from doubling as exercise (which also helps with sleep), taking a walk will give you the chance to think freely. Remember, emotional flooding and intrusive thoughts happen at bedtime because you haven’t given yourself time to process them. An hour-long walk or even just 30 minutes should be enough for you to sort yourself out internally. A bonus is that you get to meet the 150-minute weekly target for exercise while stimulating your creativity and enhancing your focus afterwards.
4. Journal Your Thoughts
Another way to process your thoughts is to write them down. Unlike walking, journaling can be cathartic. When you express yourself, you simultaneously accept whatever it is you’ve thought about while ‘releasing’ it. In a way, journaling is like when you open up to a friend about a problem. Your brain also won’t have to focus on remembering your thoughts because you’ve already stored the information elsewhere. Some people journal to reduce overthinking and anxiety before trying to sleep.
5. Meditate Mindfully
Another way to regulate your emotions is to practise meditation. The difference with meditation is that it may be more relaxing than walking and journaling. This is because deep breathing is also a part of meditation sessions. Some people may get so relaxed that they end up falling asleep during meditation (this is why we recommend doing this at night). You can also combine exercise and meditation in the form of yoga. Some people also drink tea while meditating. Chamomile tea is your best bet for improving sleep.
6. Avoid Psychoactive Substances
Psychoactive substances are anything that messes with your brain chemistry and hormones. The common psychoactive substances people consume are caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, and recreational drugs. Except caffeine, it’s better to quit all psychoactive substances unless they’re for a medical procedure. This is because alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs ruin the quality of your sleep. As for caffeine, you may continue to consume it but time it right. Don’t consume it from the afternoon onwards to preserve your body clock.
7. Learn New Things
One of the functions of sleep is to consolidate information. This is why sleep is critical for long-term memory retention. Notice that when you don’t get enough sleep, you can’t remember the previous day properly. You may have noticed that when you study or bombard your brain with information, you start to get sleepy. This is because the brain wants to store the data, which means you can use studying as a sleep hack. Not only will you help yourself fall asleep, but you’ll also get to learn new things that could improve your life.
8. See a Therapist
If you’re still struggling with emotions even after trying all of these, it’s time to speak to a specialist. You could have an undiagnosed mental disorder that requires medication for you to function (e.g., ADHD), or you may have so much pent-up trauma that trying to process it triggers a breakdown. A therapist would be able to guide you through regulating your emotions and tackling unresolved issues you may be subconsciously grappling with. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), a therapeutic approach focusing on reframing thoughts, can also be used to facilitate sleep.
Bonus Tip: Have Bedtime Sex
Sex is a wonderful way to naturally fall asleep. You get to mildly exercise, boost your happy hormones, and spike your melatonin without suffering from the possible side effects of sleeping pills. If you’re in a committed relationship, you also enhance your intimacy, which is critical for male mental health. However, make sure you do it before your bedtime, so you don’t reduce your sleeping hours.
Final Thoughts
Sleep is critical for productivity and our overall wellness. Even with our best efforts to follow the standard sleep hygiene practices, curbing insomnia could continue to be a struggle. To combat hidden sleep obstacles like overthinking and pent-up emotions, make sure to follow our psychogenic sleep tips.
While we know that sex is an amazing tool for sleep, not all men may have equal access to it because of sexual dysfunctions. To learn more about sexual dysfunctions, head over to our website or book an appointment with us if ED/PE is getting in the way of sex. Our experts would love to help restore your confidence and rekindle intimacy with your partner!