Healing trauma: The power of sleep & rest.
I have worked with many clients over the years, coming to therapy to understand, manage and heal their trauma or mental health struggles - wanting relief from the wounds they walk with.
Living with trauma and mental health struggles can be MENTALLY and PHYSICALLY draining, and engaging in healing work takes energy, often when energy reserves are already low.
The effects of trauma and stress on the body
Experiences of harm to the mind and body, set off the internal alarm system and our survival responses, commonly known as fight-flight-freeze. Our survival responses include a cascade of changes throughout the body in order to help us stay safe and survive the threat - heart rate increases, breathing becomes rapid, and muscles tense. These responses are normal and healthy.
However, if the experiences of threats are ongoing, significant or not supported so the mind and body do not integrate the experience, then symptoms of trauma may arise - confusion, anxiety, hypervigilance, difficulty expressions emotion, fatigue, nightmares, sleep disorders, etc.
Experiences of trauma can have stress impacts on the body for years to come. The stress on the body from trauma is often compounded by other life experiences - relationships breakdowns, financial stress, the workload of parenting, managing a work/home balance, etc. Life can be exhausting!
Sleep issues are a common impact of traumatic experiences, with the body’s stress response contributing to:
insomnia,
difficulty falling asleep,
frequent waking,
distressing dreams and nightmares,
and an impact on the sleep cycles and stages.
Sleep… heal thy trauma!
There has been a good body of evidence that has shown that being able to sleep after a traumatic event can reduce intrusive memories and decrease distress; and targeting sleep issues early after trauma may reduce the risk of developing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Sleep also shows up as being one of the most effective interventions for reducing symptoms of poor mental health - there is a reason why so many medications target sedation / sleep!
Sleep helps to relieve stress, release trauma, boost immunity, augment hormones, and stabilise our emotions!
Finding quality sleep after trauma or when experiencing mental health conditions can be challenging. Here are some recommended strategies to improve sleep, and hopefully - trauma impacts:
Aim for the same wake and sleep times, even on weekends and limit napping.
Get sunlight on your face as early as you can in the morning, or extra time outside if you wake up late.
Avoid caffeine after midday, and any other substances
Avoid eating 2 hours before bed
Engage in some kind of movement throughout the day
Sleep where you feel safe
Ensure the sleep environment feels fresh - wash sheets, make bed - this will make it more inviting to relax into
Engage the bodies relaxation responses before bed time - baths, breathing, dim light, relaxation music or meditation
“Our light-viewing behavior has perhaps the strongest effect on our levels of alertness and our capacity to fall asleep and get a good night’s sleep. And this is because, at the fundamental layer of our biology, every cell in our body needs information about time of day.”
Rest comes in many forms
There are more ways to rest than sleeping or lying down. When we need or want some rest, this may be physically and/or mentally. I hear a lot of people lay down and go on the doom social media scroll (me too), and wonder why they still feel drained. And well - the body may be resting, but the mind is still being stimulated and the nervous system aroused by the content that is being consumed.
When engaging in rest… we need to think about how we also rest the mind. We need to find ways of resting that are RESTORATIVE, or at a minimum keep us from draining ourselves any further. We can tune into our inner wisdom to assess if the the rest needs to be physical, mental or both!
Here are some ideas for things to try when you need rest:
Schedule time for sleep where you do not have to wake up to an alarm
Have a warm bath, with Epsom salts and essential oils
Plan “white space” days or time slots in your week where you are "busy being not busy”.
Saying no to social offers, to prioritise time with yourself.
Engaging in art, colouring, paint that has no agenda other than presence and play
Have a no screens night in your home
Give yourself permission to get take away or have a simple dinner
As always - The Dawn is here to walk with you on your healing journey. Email admin@thedawntherapeuticservices.com to enquire about booking a session.
Please follow us:
Instagram: @thedawntherapeuticservices
Facebook: www.facebook.com/thedawntherapeuticservices
Written by Nicole Staats
Principal Counsellor - The Dawn