Whatever is causing anxiety during the day usually shows up at night too. But, anxiety at night can interfere and disturb sleep. The sooner you can address and manage anxiety that keeps you awake as night, the better.
Sometimes, distracting yourself at night isn’t enough to quiet your mind. You need stronger measures to eliminate, or at least slow, unwanted and stress-producing worries. Perhaps a concern enters your mind during a pleasant evening with friends. Or maybe you are kept awake by thoughts racing in your head. You know that worrying is only making things worse, but how can you stop obsessing over your concerns?
Thought Stopping can temporarily kick stress-producing worries out of your mind and weaken those thoughts, making it less likely they will return. Here is a technique created by Allen Elkin, Ph.D. and steps to make it work for you:
- Notice your thoughts.
When a worrisome thought runs through your mind, mentally step back and recognize it is an unwanted thought. It may be a worry, a nagging concern or regret—anything you feel is not worth your stress.
- Obey the stop sign.
In your mind, picture a red and white hexagonal stop sign just like the signals on the street corner. Make your sign large and vivid.
- Yell, “Stop!”
In your head, silently shout the word “Stop” to yourself. Follow your orders.
- Do it again.
Every time the worrisome or unwanted thought reappears, notice that thought, imagine your stop sign, and then order yourself to stop!
- Find a replacement thought.
Find a thought or image to substitute for the distressing thought or image. It can be an image extracted from the “Using Imagery to Relax” exercise or another soothing thought.
Imagining the sign and mentally verbalizing “stop” will disrupt your thought sequence and temporarily put the unwanted, worrisome thought out of your mind. Be warned. The worry will probably return, and you may have to repeat this sequence again. If your stress-producing thought or image is very strong, it may take many repetitions of this technique to weaken or eliminate it. Stick with it.If you need help managing your anxiety contact us at Relationship Suite.
The Relationship Suite
We are a group of skilled therapists specializing in individual and couples counseling. Since Covid started we have been working with couples providing Online Counseling in New York, New York City including Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Staten Island, Long Island, South Hampton, East Hampton, Montauk. Schedule a complimentary consultation by clicking HERE.
Due to Covid we are also providing Virtual Counseling in New Jersey, Hoboken, Jersey City, Princeton, Chatham, Morris, Westfield, Union, Bergen County, Colts Neck, Tenafly. Schedule a complimentary consultation by clicking HERE.
