'Tis the season... to feel so overwhelmed that you find yourself wide awake at 3am. As a busy working parent, that was me. A spiralling to-do list, quickly dwindling finances plus the anticipation of navigating tricky family dynamics over the holidays meant I was gripped with a feeling of impending doom when I should have been fast sleep.
I'm certainly not alone. A recent poll from the American Psychiatric Association (APA) estimates that 41% of adult Americans are stressed about the upcoming holidays, which is a 28% increase on last year. Finances and healthcare are among their biggest worries.
For help on how to ease my seasonal anxiety and get the rest I need for the upcoming holiday season, I reached out to Dr Lindsay Browning, a U.K.-based sleep expert, chartered psychologist and neuroscientist, for advice on how to sleep better this December. In the days following our conversation, Dr Browning's advice is already helping me sleep through the night — here's how.
Dr Lindsay Browning, BSc MSc (Oxon) CPsychol AFBPsS, is a chartered psychologist, neuroscientist, sleep expert and author of Navigating Sleeplessness. Dr Browning founded her sleep clinic, Trouble Sleeping, in 2006 to help people improve their sleep, and can be found on all social media @DrBrowningSleep.
What is Christmas overwhelm and how does it impact sleep?
Christmas can be a magical time of year. However, for some people the holidays can also be a trigger for poor sleep. End of year deadlines, endless to-do lists and financial pressures are just some reasons why you could have trouble sleeping during December.
"The Christmas period is like a perfect storm for sleeping issues — with increased alcohol consumption, rich foods, irregular bedtimes, often an increased level of stress and busier days with all of the Christmas planning and socialising," explains Dr. Browning.
The Christmas period is like a perfect storm for sleeping issues
Dr. Lindsay Browning, chartered psychologist and neuroscientist
Pressure can come from all angles — work, family, friends and finances. Is it any wonder that some of us then have trouble nodding off? For me, Christmas overwhelm results in going to bed when I'm tired, only to jolt wide awake mere minutes later and unable to fall back asleep.
"This is a classic sign of cognitive arousal, meaning your brain is in overdrive and your nervous system is on alert, trying to stay awake to get things done rather than relaxing enough to fall asleep," Dr. Browning tells me.
Thankfully, there is plenty you can do to help switch off tired and wired minds and get the sleep you need this Christmas.
The one simple fix that's helping me fall asleep fast
Despite being exhausted, ruminating over my endless Christmas to-do was keeping me awake. Instead of feeling tired, my heart was pounding with anxiety and the smallest of tasks felt insurmountable.
However, one piece of advice from Dr. Browning has made a big difference to my ability to fall asleep — jotting down my outstanding tasks and worries in a sleep journal.
It's crucial that you write in your sleep journal in a separate space from the one you sleep in, to avoid forming a negative association with your bedroom.
"Make some time earlier in the day to put the day to bed," says Dr. Browning. "This could mean writing down anything that you're worried about or preparing a to-do list for the next day. This helps to quieten the mind, reducing the urge to plan what you haven't done yet, allowing yourself permission to rest at night."
Journaling before bed is a science-backed way to help reduce nighttime anxiety. Laying bare my outstanding tasks, as well as earmarking when I plan to tackle them, has helped quieten my overactive mind, helping me to fall asleep.
It's crucial that you write in your sleep journal in a separate space from the one you sleep in, to avoid forming a negative association with your bedroom. Essentially, I'm getting all of my worrying out of the way before I go to bed, so that my bedroom remains a place of relaxation.
5 other tips to sleeping better this Christmas
While setting aside some time to jot down my to-do list before climbing into bed is working well for me, there's never one single silver bullet to sleeping better. The following are tips should all be taken into account if you're serious about making quality sleep a priority.
1. Don't be temped to tackle your to-do list at 2am
In the event that you still wake up with tasks running through your mind, you might be temped to get out of bed and crack on with your to-do list. Don't, urges Dr. Browning.
"Getting up in the middle of the night to get things done isn't helpful because you're almost teaching yourself that the night time is the right time to be doing things rather than sleeping, reinforcing wakefulness," Dr. Browning explains.
If you really can't sleep and want to get out of bed, try doing something relaxing and absorbing, such as reading a book or even doing a Christmas jigsaw, she advises.
2. Indulge... in moderation
Don't be fooled, alcohol might help you fall asleep quickly but it's a big disruptor of sleep quality.
"Alcohol affects sleep continuity and although you might find yourself falling asleep more quickly after a few glasses of mulled wine, you will likely find yourself waking up more frequently during the night with a poorer quality sleep," says Dr. Browning.
Plus, indulging in rich food — especially eaten late in the evening and close to bedtime — can cause indigestion or reflux, making falling and staying asleep harder, explains the neuroscientist.
"Being mindful of the effect that Christmas excesses (rich food, alcohol and caffeine) may have on sleep and trying to reduce these close to bedtime will help minimise their impact on sleep," says Dr. Browning.
3. Be consistent with your wake-ups
Party season is upon us, which means your bedtimes will likely be completely out of whack to your usual routine.
We usually recommend sticking to a consistent sleep schedule so your brain can release serotonin and melatonin, the wake and sleep hormones, at the right time.
However, Dr. Browning advises that we tweak that blanket rule for the holidays, sticking instead to just a consistent wake-up time.
"Trying to have a consistent wake up time can at least help to give your circadian rhythm some sense of stability, even if your bedtimes are irregular at this time of year," the neuroscientist explains.
4. Resist the urge to take a nap
Being unable to sleep means dragging yourself through the day in a fog of exhaustion — and I should know, as that's how I spent the first part of December. While a quick nap to restore energy levels ready for another buy day might feel like an attractive prospect, it could make falling asleep even harder.
"If you want to take a nap because you could not sleep at night and were lying awake tossing and turning with a busy mind, a nap isn't helpful," says Dr. Browning. "In this situation, daytime napping can reduce your sleep drive and make it harder to fall asleep the following night.
If you simply can't keep your eyes open, keep your nap to twenty minutes and make sure that it's around lunchtime. "[This] is important, as longer or later naps are more likely to interfere with night-time sleep," says Dr. Browning.
5. Lower your expectations
If striving for perfection is causing you to feel overwhelmed and stopping you from sleeping, be realistic about your expectations, urges Dr. Browning. "Christmas is a time for fun and not a time for perfection," she concludes.
"People don't need your house to be immaculate and for the Christmas dinner to be perfect, they want to spend time with you. Once you lower your expectations a little bit this will help to take away some of the Christmas overwhelm."
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