“When I’m worried and I can’t sleep, I count my blessings instead of sheep.”

“When I’m worried and I can’t sleep, I count my blessings instead of sheep.”

Counting sheep can be an effective way for some people to fall asleep. Typically, sheep do not have any emotional significance. They don’t prompt memories or feelings. As a result, focusing on a flock of random sheep can bring you into a mindful state, and allow you to be in the moment – calm and relaxed.

But some people struggle with over-thinking. They can’t focus on the sheep and their minds wander. They start counting sheep, but then drift to other thoughts. Counting sheep in such cases may actually delay the onset of sleep which leaves us feeling frustrated and still wide awake.

Insomnia is a very common problem in the US. The National Institutes of Health estimate that roughly 30 per cent of the population complains of some form of sleep disruption. One common cause of insomnia is anxious thoughts. At the end of the day, when we have left behind the stimulation and distractions of the day and try to go to sleep, for some of us, anxious thoughts creep in as our minds start to race.

Humans’ natural response in life is to see problems. It is our way of making sure we survive as a species (“fight-flight-freeze”). It is called the stress response. Historically, our negative experiences have more impact on us surviving than our positive ones. For example, you learn not to touch a hot stove because you were yelled at or were burned the first time you went to touch it.

An effective way to counter these worries is to focus on the positives. Gratitude has been proven to be an effective strategy in dealing with insomnia by calming / reducing our stress response. Gratitude shifts our perspective by acknowledging all the things that bring us joy, and helps us focus on the love and goodness around us. What are you grateful for? What brings you joy? What if you started to count your blessings instead of sheep?

If you are struggling with sleep, let me help.

Corey