You can’t sleep at night, probably because relentless thoughts in your head refuse to let you rest.
Do your persistent sleepless nights leave you feeling tired during the day or frustrated and irritable?
It is time to end this sleep cycle.
Fortunately, you are not alone.
The National Sleep Foundation reported that about 25% of U.S. adults experience sleep deprivation.
In this article, you’ll learn the 5 major causes of poor sleep and proven strategies for improving your sleep.
5 major causes why you can’t sleep and their solutions
1 ) High-stress level
If you can’t sleep at night, stress is one of the common causes among working professionals and business owners.
I also had my own share of stress-induced insomnia in early 2023, and in my short web class, I highlighted the full details and how I overcame it.
Click the link below to watch the steps I took.
Click here to watch the short web class
If you are wondering, what is stress?
There are so many erroneous definitions of stress online.
Here is how stress is defined by renowned endocrinologist Hans Selye, who is known as the father of stress.
Stress is defined as a non-specific response of the body to any demand or event.
Causes of stress
The triggers of stress can be physical, emotional, or psychological.
I know you are aware of the common causes of stress. For example, work work demands, financial stress, etc.
But this is the truth…
The root cause of stress is your negative thoughts and how you perceive challenging times.
For instance, If you have a negative perception about an event, it will lead to a negative feeling, which in turn causes a negative emotion. Your body is designed to protect you, and when your brain senses that you have a distressing feeling about an event, it triggers the stress response.
For instance, if you notice a swelling on your body, and you allow yourself to sink into negative thoughts
about it, this will trigger the stress response.
What happens when you are stressed?
When you are stressed, your brain signals the adrenal glands on your kidneys to release a stress hormone called cortisol.
Cortisol hormone alters the normal functions of various organs and tissues in the body.
If its level continues to rise, it leads to various “wear and tear” in the body that damages internal organs.
Cortisol hormone also affects your sleep in a variety of ways.
Cortisol primarily alters your body’s internal clock, called circadian rhythm, which controls when you sleep and wake up.
Also, cortisol increases your alertness and reduces the secretion of sleep-producing hormone.
So, how do you deal with stress?
First, awareness is key.
Most people are not aware of their stress level.
I have designed a stress quiz that will help you determine your stress levels.
Click here to check out the stress quiz
Remember, I said stress starts mainly in your thoughts and emotions, so here are some inside-out solutions:
1) Manage your Thoughts
Here are the 3 C’s of managing your thoughts:
a) Catch: Catch your negative thoughts early by being aware of how you feel regularly
b) Capture: Capture your thoughts by using a journal.
In your journal, answer these key questions to understand your thoughts:
- What am I feeling?
- Why am I feeling this way?
c) Challenge: Challenge your thoughts using these prompts.
- Are these thoughts true?
- How should I choose to respond?
2) Manage your Emotions
Practice gratitude journaling to help you keep your thoughts and emotions focused on the positive.
Also, Answer these key gratitude prompt :
- What am I grateful for? List at least 10 things to be grateful for.
I discussed how to cope and conquer stress in a healthy way in great depth at my online lifestyle wellness summit with over 15 wellness experts.
You can still watch those interviews at your pace using the link below.
Watch expert interviews at Holistic Lifestyle Wellness and Resilience Secrets
Here are some proven stress-coping techniques that can help you:
- Relaxation techniques like breath control can be helpful.
- Mindfulness Practices like meditation
- Mindful movement exercises
You will learn exactly how to practice these techniques from the experts I interviewed during my summit.
2) Sleep Anxiety
Sleep anxiety refers to the experience of feeling anxious about falling or staying asleep, which can lead to
difficulties in achieving restful sleep.
Anxiety affects your brain’s sleep system and mechanisms and stimulates the wakefulness cycle.
In a story I read on a subreddit forum about insomnia, Mary (real name withheld) shared how her
thoughts and worry about not sleeping worsened her sleep anxiety.
She emphasized the need to manage our thoughts about sleep and not worry about it.
This small mental shift was the beginning of her breakthrough with sleep anxiety.
In addition to shifting your thoughts about sleep, here are some practical steps to overcome sleep anxiety:
- Establish a Bedtime Routine: It strengthens your internal clock rhythm that controls sleep.When you sleep and wake up at the same time daily, you will stabilize your body clock, and this puts you to sleep easily without the anxiety associated with forcing sleep.
- Pre-bedtime sleep journaling: Practise journaling just before you sleep. It will help you empty your mind of fears, worries, and other negative emotions that can affect your sleep.
- Practice Relaxation Techniques: Deep breathing exercises like 4-7-8 breathing techniques can help. Breathe in for 4 minutes, hold your breathe for 7 seconds and breathe out slowly for 8 seconds.
- Engage in exercise: Simple exercises like walking have been shown to stabilize mood and trigger the body’s sleep-drive system.
- Seek Professional Help: Seek the help of a qualified medical professional if sleep anxiety persists after implementing these behavioral changes for some time.
3) Sleep Behaviors
Most times, if you can’t sleep at night, examine your sleep behaviors.
There are some sleep-harming behaviors that you may not be aware of.
Here are some examples:
- Watching TV in your bedroom.
- Using your bedroom to work
- Having prolonged conversations with your partner on your bed
And lots more.
These behaviors keep your brain alert and inhibit the sleep cycle.
If you can’t sleep, your priority is to train your brain to associate your bed, and bedroom environment with sleep.
There are a couple of sleep hygiene behaviors out there but here’s how to keep it simple.
Practice 3-2-1 sleep.
This means…
- 3 hours before bed time- No food
- 2 hours before bedtime- No work
- 1 hour before bedtime- Switch off all electronic devices
If you need help to reset these harmful sleep behaviours, my virtual wellness practice can help you.
I will provide the support, motivation, accountability, and confidence to enable you
to reset these harmful sleep behaviors and create new, lasting sleep habits.
Click the link in the description below to book a no-obligation free sleep behavior reset coaching call.
4) Medical disorders
Apart from wrong thoughts and behaviors, some medical conditions can affect sleep.
These conditions can affect sleep directly or indirectly. Some medical conditions can affect your
hormones or cause distressing symptoms such as pain, which disturbs sleep.
Chronic pain is one of the common causes of sleep deprivation. In my interview with Dr.
Andrea, a chronic pain specialist, she emphasized how to manage pain through lifestyle changes.
To get the full interview with Dr Andrea, click the link below:
How to conquer chronic pain with lifestyle changes only
Here’s a list of other common medical disorders that can cause pain:
- Sleep apnea
- Restless Leg syndrome
- Obesity
- Gastric reflux disease
- Anxiety and depression.
If you suspect you have any of these disorders, get a professional help for medical screening and evaluation.
5) Medication
This might come as a surprise to some, but some medications can affect your sleep.
Some medications can disrupt your brain chemicals or hormones that control the sleep-wake cycle.
There are so many medications that can affect sleep. Some common ones are antidepressants, corticosteroids, beta-blockers, stimulants, and thyroid hormones.
If you are on any of these medications, it is not ideal to stop the intake suddenly.
Discuss with your doctor for alternatives.
Can’t sleep at night, and you need help?
I am an ACE-certified health coach and behavior change expert and I offer health and wellness coaching services holistic sleep health and behavior reset coaching that helps clients to create the right sleep behaviors and habits to overcome sleep deprivation.
Click the link below to book a no-sales obligations call for a free coaching strategy:
Book a free sleep behavior coaching call now
Which of these causes of poor sleep can you relate with?
Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.
Feel free to share this article with friends in your network.
Remember, Own your health daily.
