3 Steps For Insomnia - Self-development

Tired of counting sheep before bed? We offer to master a technique that will help not only fall asleep quickly, but also cope with anxiety, fears, and find inner peace.

Three steps to tranquility

• 1. Breathe in your belly. Watch how your stomach rises and falls as you breathe.
• 2. Concentrate on the movement of your abdomen. You can put your hand on your stomach and record the movement of your hand.
• 3. We breathe more slowly than usual, exhalation is longer than inhalation. In this case, it is advisable to sit in a comfortable position with your eyes closed. Standing with open ones is also possible, some of them succeed even while walking. You can say to yourself “I am here in my body”, thereby strengthening the connection between the sensation of “I” and the body.

If intrusive thoughts prevent you from concentrating on your breathing, imagine that your thoughts are clouds and they fly by you. Just notice that the thought has appeared, do not spin it, let it go. If the stream of consciousness nevertheless takes possession of you, notice this and again, with an effort of will, return to focusing on the breath. Over and over again, your concentration will be better, and your thoughts will be less distracting.

Concentrate on slow breathing in the morning and evening for 10 minutes, as well as at the first symptoms of anxiety, anxiety, or panic attack. You can do breathing sessions more often and / or longer. Or, on the contrary, breathe for a minute and switch to something else.

When you need it

• 1. With anxiety, anxiety, hyperexcitation, fears, excitement, stress. At the first sign of these conditions, start concentrating on your breathing, and after a few minutes you will feel more relaxed.
• 2. At the first sign of a panic attack. Those who breathe deeply and slowly with their belly will not have an attack. So, you feel the attack - use the method until all signs of a panic attack have disappeared.
• 3. If you cannot sleep. As you lie in bed with disturbing thoughts in your head, shift your focus to slow abdominal breathing. And hold until you calm down. Even if you cannot fall asleep, the body and nervous system will receive maximum rest and relaxation.

Why does it work?

With the help of abdominal breathing, we activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for sleep, relaxation and rest. In a calm state, a person's breathing is involuntarily slower, and the exhalation is longer than the inhalation. On the other hand, with fear, breathing quickens. Thus, with this technique, we return calm functioning to the body and psyche.

Concentration of attention brings us back to the sense of "I". In a panic, we do not feel support, but with active movements and thoughts, we unconsciously try to "grab onto" something. With the help of slow breathing, we psychologically "ground", we begin to feel support in the body and in ourselves. Saying “I am here in my body” further enhances this effect.

In case of sleep disorders, it is wrong to concentrate on the desired result (“when I fall asleep, I again cannot fall asleep, the day will be ruined tomorrow, I need to fall asleep!”), This only interferes with falling asleep. Instead, you need to focus on the process, the content of the task. We cannot 100% control the result, but by focusing on the content we increase the likelihood of achieving it. The content in this case is the maximum relaxation of the body and psyche. The more you relax, the sooner you fall asleep. And breathing will help with this.

Photo: © Syda Productions / Photobank Lori