One way to do that is to change the way you think about sleep and rest. Researchers tell us that rest, lying relaxed in bed, does as much good for us as sleep. Losing a few hours of sleep is not life threatening. Even those who participate in sleep deprivation experiments are back to normal after one night’s sleep.
Think of insomnia as an opportunity! Learn to enjoy the silence and quiet available in the middle of the night. Make this a peaceful, time to be with yourself and to commune with God. Get out of bed and find a comfortable spot away from other family members. Use this time to meditate, think or pray about whatever comes to mind. Allow feelings to emerge about your life and about events of the previous day. Accept your feelings and thoughts and learn from them. We are usually restless for reasons. Begin noticing minor irritations each day. Talk about them to someone or write about them in a journal.
Examine your life thoroughly. What losses do you need to grieve about? Who has hurt you? Who do you need to forgive? In what ways are you unhappy with your self or with your life? We often compromise our ideals without realizing how troubling this is to us inside. We settle for less than we want in life out of fear of taking risks or because we don’t want to do what we know is right. All of these issues can stir inside us when we relax our day time defenses to go to sleep.
To learn more about approaching wakefulness as a time to enjoy and as an opportunity to grow read Insomnia: Insomnia: God's Night School by Connie Soth.
“Come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
Blessings, Dottie
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