Site Meter Encouraging Health » Blog Archive » Note to Self: Schedule Time to Worry

Note to Self: Schedule Time to Worry

by

down-pillow.jpgUnpaid bills, overdue projects, groceries to get, and messes to clean . . . Worry pileups like these at the end of the day can make sleep as elusive as Bigfoot.

A better plan: Set aside time to worry about these things before you crawl under the covers. That way, the space between lying down and drifting off won’t be filled with sleepless fretting. Here’s how to make a date with your worries.

Make a Date with Paper
If nagging thoughts won’t let you nod off, give yourself 15 minutes before bedtime to grab some paper and a pen and jot down what’s on your mind, advise Paul Glovinsky, PhD, and Arthur Spielman, PhD, in their book The Insomina Answer.

suggest listing your concerns on the left page of a notebook and then brainstorming some solutions on the right side. And don’t shoot for perfect problem-solvers. Even temporary solutions should help you sleep.

Writing down what you’re thankful for is good for your health, too.
Are you in the habit of counting your blessings? Doing so could have emotional rewards.
In a recent study, people who recorded in a weekly or daily journal the things in their lives for which they were grateful experienced heightened feelings of well-being. The people who recorded hassles or neutral life events in their journals did not.

Keeping a journal also may help your memory. A study revealed that people who jotted down their concerns experienced improvement in their memories. Researchers speculate that jotting down worries may be a cathartic act. It gives people a designated place to deal with their concerns so that they can worry less at other times, thus freeing up cognitive resources for other things, such as remembering lists.

More Sleep-Better Strategies Keep a sleep diary.
Adopt healthy sleep habits.
Warm up your feet.
Start a walking routine.

Now that you have a primer on how to get to sleep, here’s a blog posting on 1o Reasons to Get Out of Bed

worry, stress, sleep, healthy lifestyle

, , ,


Posted in General on November 24th, 2007

Link to this Entry

Recent Posts

Related Posts

3 Responses to “Note to Self: Schedule Time to Worry”

  1. Sarah Says:
    November 24th, 2007 at 12:51 pm

    This link made me giggle. We’ll see if anyone else responds to “I have to pee! That made me get out of bed.” :)

  2. Brick ONeil Says:
    November 24th, 2007 at 12:54 pm

    Thx for responding, Sarah….loved the list, had to include it in today’s post ;)

  3. Boink Blogs Says:
    November 25th, 2007 at 8:15 pm

    [...] to Self: Schedule Time to Worry Brick ONeil added an interesting post today on Note to Self: Schedule Time to WorryHere’s a small [...]

Leave a Reply


About Encouraging Health

EncouragingHealth.com shows a wide variety of issues and concerns about our health we all should be aware. Only when we are aware will we be able to make the necessary changes.

Through EncouragingHealth.com will be the education to invite ourselves to see our Health Care Providers, ask the questions and expect helpful answers.

EncouragingHealth.com will cover a wide variety of issues, concerns and helpful hints to lead healthy lives.

Encouraging Health Author(s)

NAVIGATE

LINKS

CATEGORIES

TOP COMMENTERS

RECENT COMMENTS

SUBSCRIBE

ARCHIVES

Blogging Flair

 

Science & Health Channel Links

 

Science & Health Channel Posts

  • What The Heck Is Treatment Resistant Depression?
    This is a dreadfully named type of chronic depression. Please, someone in the medical community rename this thing. When you're depressed, you're always convinced that you cannot be cured or helped. [...]
  • Victoria's Secret? She's a Vegan!
    Victoria's Secret is no longer hiding in closet. The lingerie and beauty product brand is getting loud and proud about veganism. Pink Body is a new line of Victoria's Secret cosmetics - including [...]
  • I binged
    Yes. I am not all perfect and cured. I totally had a binge last night. It was my own fault. I had junk food lying around the house for the "future" and needless to say, I pounced on the food last [...]
  • Is Volumetrics for you?
    [caption id="attachment_756" align="alignnone" width="339" caption="Volumetrics "][/caption]"Free foods" are those that help you get more bang for your buck because they contain a lot of water, [...]
  • Psoriasis and Earache
    I'm going to be honest and beg the blogosphere for information of psoriasis and earache. I have psoriasis and now it seems to have spread to my right ear. It causes a dull ache, but not bad enough [...]
  • Dear Non-Vegans, Love Eccentric Vegan
    Eccentric Vegan compiled a great resource post, called "Dear Non-Vegans," all about why meat, eggs, all other animal products are not healthy, humane, or environmentally friendly on Vegan Soapbox. I [...]
  • Top Ten signs of Alzheimers Disease
    [caption id="attachment_1800" align="alignnone" width="67" caption="Alzheimers"][/caption]Memory loss that disrupts everyday life is not a normal part of aging. It may be a sign of Alzheimer's [...]
  • The best way to measure body fat
    [caption id="attachment_796" align="alignnone" width="104" caption="Tape Measure"][/caption]When does "putting on a few pounds" cross the line into needing to lose weight? Neither scale, BMI, pinch [...]
  • Exacts on how you too can run up expensive therapy bills for your children.
    Ok, so see, as I said, I’ve never been away from my children much.  And, I have missed not one, not two but on Saturday, I will have missed three of my son’s basketball games.  Never in [...]
  • Published Letter to the Editor
    My first letter to the editor was published this week in the Middle Tennessee State University student newspaper, Sidelines. Here's the published version of what I wrote in response to their article [...]

 

Hot Off The Press