Put Anxiety to Bed

Quick show of hands: Who has spent a bleary night tossing and turning in the past month? You're in good (albeit cranky) company: According to the 2009 results of the National Sleep Foundation's annual Sleep in America poll, 64 percent of adults in the U.S. have trouble sleeping at least a few nights a week, and 41 percent say it's a nightly occurrence. What's more, the same survey found that women are 10 percent more likely than men to report insomnia.

So what's keeping you up? Unless you live next door to a 24-hour car-alarm testing facility, the likely cause is stress. Between job-security worries, your tanking 401(k), and the possibility that your next plane ride will turn into a river cruise, there's plenty to be tense about. But that chronic anxiety makes your adrenaline and cortisol spike, your heart race, and your blood pressure increase. The result: You feel as if you're hooked up to a nonstop caffeine drip.

"Stress shifts the brain and body into fifth gear, but you need to be in neutral to fall asleep," says Donna Arand, Ph.D., clinical director of the Kettering Medical Center Sleep Disorders Center in Dayton, Ohio. With that in mind, we asked the nation's leading sleep experts how you can put your anxieties to bed.

Sleep better—starting tonight—with this guide!

Sleep Stopper
Going directly from your desktop to your pillowtop

Solution
Create a routine that sets you up for snoozing

If you give your body cues that it's time for bed, you'll drift off faster once your head hits the pillow. "About 20 minutes before bedtime, step into a hot shower or bath," recommends Michael Breus, Ph.D., author of Beauty Sleep: Look Younger, Lose Weight and Feel Great Through Better Sleep. Warm water relieves muscle tension, and when you step out, the cool air dials down your inner thermostat, mimicking the way your body naturally cools itself during sleep.

Sleep Stopper
Watching financial doom and gloom on the 10 o'clock news

Solution
Laugh at reruns of Ross and Rachel flirting

The National Sleep Foundation poll found that 27 percent of respondents were kept awake by money worries. "Watching CNN before bed is like eating a spicy meal and then trying to nod off," says Rubin Naiman, Ph.D., a sleep specialist at Andrew Weil's Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. Old-school advice calls for switching off the tube, but new research suggests that sitcoms may be a better antidote. A 2008 review of scientific literature confirms that laughter results in decreases in heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure. (Just don't watch in bed, because the blue glow from the TV can keep you awake.)

Need to calm your mind from worries? Try this.

Sleep Stopper
Lying in bed mentally planning tomorrow's to-do list

Solution
Do a data dump after dinner

At least two hours before bedtime, write out tomorrow's to-do list and jot down a possible solution next to each item. "The only time most of us have a moment to ourselves is when we're trying to fall asleep," says Mark Mahowald, M.D., a neurologist and director of the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center. And we typically don't spend it calmly recalling last summer's vacation; we use it to worry about unfinished business, he says. Cycling through your thoughts earlier in the evening will desensitize you to them later on. "If you start thinking about a task on the list when you're trying to fall asleep, remind yourself that you have a plan," Arand says.

Sleep Stopper
Taking a trip down What-If Way

Solution
Balance your perspective

"People tend to catastrophize when they feel stressed," says Karen Reivich, Ph.D., a research associate at the University of Pennsylvania's Positive Psychology Center and co-author of The Resilience Factor. Next time a problem has you in bed wrapped up in what-ifs, follow Reivich's Rx: Draw a line down the middle of a sheet of paper. On one side, list all your worst-case scenarios until you come up dry ("...and then the virus will spread to my brain and kill me"). On the other side, write the best possible outcome for the same situation ("...my brain surgeon turns out to be McDreamy, who falls madly in love with me"). Balancing catastrophic scenarios against their best-case counterparts makes it clear that neither is likely to happen. So you can rest assured that the actual outcome will probably be somewhere in the middle and something you can handle.

Sleep Stopper
Downing a glass or three of chardonnay to take the edge off a rough day

Solution
Practice relaxation techniques that work

Try this bedtime yoga routine to relax you for sleep.

Alcohol suppresses the central nervous system, so drinking can help you doze off. But three or four hours later, once your body has broken down that half bottle of vino, it acts as a stimulant—meaning you're wide awake at 3 a.m. and unable to fall back asleep, Arand says. Next time, try these techniques to keep you snoozing through the night.

1. Ease your breathing "Your respiratory rate slows about 20 percent during sleep," says Breus. Inhale for a count of six, then exhale for a count of six.

2. Picture yourself on a warm beach. Visual imagery can replace stressful thoughts with soothing ones. Even mentally planning tomorrow's outfit may help you drift off faster (and cut down on morning prep time).

3. Flex, relax, repeat. Tense the muscles in your right foot for 10 seconds, then release. Repeat on the left side, then work the rest of the muscles in your body one by one. This exercise helps you relax and puts your focus back in the here and now.