How I Conquered My Insomnia

When I first moved to the bay area, I suffered from severe insomnia. Work anxiety and the stress of adapting to a new living environment were keeping me up at night, and on top of that my poor sleeping habits from university were finally catching up to me. I knew how important sleep was for my mental/physical health and my performance at work, and that only made it worse: the more I wanted to sleep, the more I couldn’t. There would be consecutive nights where I wouldn’t be able to sleep a single wink. It sucked.

I did a ton of research online, and I talked to numerous doctors, therapists, and sleep specialists (thank God for Facebook health insurance). Over time, I’ve been able to observe drastic improvements: nowadays, I get 8-9 hours of sleep a night, and I can usually fall asleep within minutes of my head hitting the pillow. It was not an easy journey, and there is no quick fix. In this article I want to share what I learned, and what worked for me, in case I can help any of you who may be in similar situations. And hey, even if you aren’t an insomniac, there are always areas of improvement when it comes to getting the sleep we need.

Consistent Schedule

This is the advice I got from every single professional I talked to. Try to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. Back in university I used to sleep at 4 or 5am on nights when I went out, and sleep in until noon the next day. And then, when I had to wake up at 7am for a morning class I couldn’t skip, I tried to sleep at 11pm the night before. I couldn’t do it. Your body gets confused if you have an inconsistent schedule, and if you screw up your sleep schedule over the weekend, you’re not going to be able to wake up for work on Monday which you can’t skip.

Nowadays I always sleep and wake up within an hour range, every single day. I never cheat, not even on weekends or special occasions. If you didn’t sleep very well the previous night, often it’s better to just get up and take a nap later instead of sleeping in, just so you can keep that consistent schedule. It was also recommended to me to go outside and get some sunlight within 30 minutes of waking up, which helps to reinforce that circadian rhythm.

Wind Down Routine

If you go to bed immediately after doing something intense or upsetting, you’re probably not going to be able to sleep. It’s good to have a routine that involves doing something relaxing, and if you do it every single day, then it becomes a way for your body to know that you’re planning to sleep soon and to get tired accordingly. My routine involves putting on my pajamas, reading a book for a bit, and then listening to a sleep story on the Calm app (which I highly recommend).

Anything that involves computer or phone screens is probably not a good wind down routine, because blue light has been proven to be harmful to sleep. If you must, f.lux and blue light filtering glasses help, but I’ve found that it’s best to leave the screens outside of the bedroom.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

This term gets thrown around a lot in relation to insomnia, but what it basically means is that you want your brain to associate your bedroom and bed with rest and relaxation instead of anxiety. A good way to do this is to only be in your bed when you are tired and ready to sleep. A bad way to do this would be to do stressful school work in your bed.

When I wake up in the morning, I get dressed immediately and leave my bedroom. I don’t lie around in bed browsing my phone; in fact, I don’t enter the bedroom again until it’s time to start my wind down routine in the evening. I always do work and gaming in the living room. Another thing that therapists recommend, which I’ve tried to some success, is that when you are in bed and can’t fall asleep, get up and do something else instead of lying there. That way you don’t associate the frustration and anxiety of trying to fall asleep with your sleep environment.

Meditation

This might seem like it has nothing to do with insomnia, but I’ve actually found it very useful. I realized that throughout the day I was always consuming some sort of entertainment: listening to music during transit, listening to podcasts at the gym, even watching Youtube videos while doing the dishes and brushing my teeth. I rarely had the chance to be alone with my own thoughts, and that was a problem when I was trying to fall asleep. Meditation can help to reduce anxiety levels overall and also to silence that voice inside your head at night. I really like using the Calm and Headspace apps for this purpose.

Light, Noise, and Temperature

This is less important compared to the other items I listed, but it can help to have a consistent sleep environment that actually promotes sleep. Specialists usually recommend a dark, quiet, and slightly cold environment. I bought a white noise machine from Amazon and I use it every night: once you get used to it, it can really help with the consistency of your sleep quality, especially if you have roommates or noisy neighbors. I also have earplugs and an eye mask that I use, and these have the added benefit of signalling to yourself that you are ready for sleep.

Medications?

I have tried many over-the-counter sleeping aids, and they don’t really work for me. They make me tired but they don’t address the underlying issues, which include unresolved anxiety and poor habits. Most aids also have negative side effects and create dependence if used too often. I think that if the underlying problems are addressed, sleeping aids should not be necessary. The only thing I take is a small dosage of melatonin at night. Most doctors say that melatonin has no long term side effects, but it’s always better to take nothing if you can.

Conclusion

Poor sleeping habits are not something that can be fixed in one day (or in one night); it requires time and discipline. But the good news is that if you persist, your sleep can be improved, and I think I am proof of that. I hope that this has been helpful, and if you have any specific questions don’t be afraid to message me.