A couple exercises for those with trouble with ruminating thoughts and/or sleep

[Tam0630]

I was talking to my therapist not too long ago, about my troubles with sleep and thoughts/fears that wouldn't go away. It was like these thoughts and fears
would play in my mind like an old, tired movie and no matter how much I tried to push that "stop" button, the movie kept rolling. It was frustrating. Upon talking about it,
she encouraged me to try two exercises that seem to be helping not just with the ruminating, fear based thoughts, but they have helped me to try
to keep things positive instead of thinking worst-case scenario all the time.

Exercise One: Post-It Notes

Together we realized that I seem to deal best with my thoughts if I can physically see them. So I bought some Post-It Notes. For those that don't know what those
are, they're small pads of paper with some adhesive on the back of them so you can post them up on a wall or bulletin board, etc. What I started doing was
taking a single post-it note for every worry/care/concern/thought I had that was preventing me from sleeping, and writing one on it. I post that up on my wall, grab
another note and do the same thing. Sometimes my wall is littered with paper, but that's okay - it's a good thing.

After I am done getting my thoughts up there, I talk to myself - yes, talk to myself! And tell myself "Okay Tam, that worry/care/concern is over on your wall now, it's
beyond your touch/control,  time to sleep now - worry free."

It helps, believe me. It takes practice to reel your thoughts in, at first you'll feel like it's a futile exercise but the more you do it, the easier it becomes. I have PTSD from
past abuse, as well as other anxiety disorders, and I haven't had a PTSD related nightmare in months. It does work.

Exercise Two - Cue Cards

This exercise is good for any disorder. GAD, SA, depression, you name it. It is all about positive affirmation, starting your day off and continuing in a positive state of mind.
Negative thinking is such a problem for so many of us, no matter the disorder, so this is one of my favorite things to do first thing in the morning and throughout the day.
What I did was write a single positive affirmation, quote, lyric, quality about myself on a cue card and put it in a little box - can be anything, a shoe box even - and then
another, and another until that box is filled up with positivity. It's hard at times at first to think of much, but over time, the box fills up with good things to think about.

Now what I do, is first thing in the morning, instead of focusing on my anxiety or depression, because I often wake up with it, I pull out my "positivity box" and read a cue
card. Sometimes one, sometimes man, depends on the day. Then I'll go over it. I'll read it, out loud, over and over. Anything from "you are beautiful, you are smart, you
are a loving or caring person" to "your anxiety is something that while scary, cannot physically hurt you". When I'm in the shower, making breakfast, feeding the cat,
whatever I do upon waking, I will speak the affirmation to myself.

What this exercise does, is take those negative, scary, depressing thoughts I wake up with and replace them with something positive - it counters your negative,
defeatist thinking and counters it with the opposite. It doesn't mean you won't have a bad day or have any setbacks, but what it does is put something on your mind
that will allow you to better deal with the negative things that come your way. Sometimes I will pull that box out three or four times a day to keep filling myself with
positive affirmation.

Try it. Try both. Like I said, it takes practice, but being proactive with your anxiety and ruminating thoughts really does make a difference.

Good luck!

[camel]

nice post tam. I use both since I saw them in an anxiety book, and the methods really work well!!

[Tam0630]

Thanks Cam. Yes, they really do help. Like I said, no nightmares in months, I'm better in most situations at handling my anxiety symptoms and I've been able to get out more (I'm also agoraphobic). Seriously guys, try it.

[animal lover]

 ty very much tam im having troubles with all of the above except nightmares i will give it a try.

animal lover xx

[Tam0630]

You're very welcome animal lover. Good luck, I hope it works for you!

[Phantasos]

Thank you. I think that may have been the push I needed to start writing some. I'm not doing exactly like you but putting my fears on paper helped me differentiate and separate them.

[acethespace-bear]

oo! I've gotta try this. *runs around looking for post-it notes*

[Daisy131]

i like the positive affirmations- ihave a daily book of positive affirmations maybe i need to dig out!

[bagelmom]

A few years ago I started a book of things that make me happy, at the suggestion of my husband. I had been reading a book about things to be happy about and he said why don't you make your own? Smart man. I just dug it back out and put some positive thoughts in my head.  You've inspired me to write more in it, thank you!

[Annie7777]

Tam, thanks for these great ideas , Im going to try them too.

[Zachary Ó Robhacháin]

What helps me is basically the same as the post-it notes. I just use my reminder or note feature on my cell phone and put it in there so I can see it the next day and deal with it later instead of lying there for hours.

[joju8485]

I really enjoyed the bit about the positivity box (is that right?). I may start trying to do that..... It seems as though nothing works but i haven't tried that.

[mellabella]

When my MIL passed away we had to clean out her apartment. She had these notes all over the place. I do something similar, but since I am very private I do it in my phone or email. It helps sometimes.

[Rainbowlight]

Tam: Thank you for the wonderful suggestion! I hope it can help members cope with unhealthy anxiety.

I have heard about a variation to the post it notes, called a worry pad. With the worry pad, when a worry appears in our mind, we write the worry on our worry pad. We then "worry delay", that is, we think about the worries on the worry pad at a later time, usually in the evening. Interestingly, by evening, most of the worries on our worry pads become irrelevant and we have lost interest. This a useful technique for not letting worries interfere with our daily activities.

[deeferlynn]

Thank you for this. It's 3:10 in the morning here, and this has put my mind worries at ease. Hopefully sleepiness will set in. And in the morning, I must get myself some sticky notes. Thanks again!

[crazygirl1]

  Love the ideas Tam-thanks sooo much!
I can totally understand the post it notes-when I was in therapy or my panic/anxiety in the beginning this is what my therapist suggested I do: post it notes everywhere saying a panic attack never killed anyone. TA the time that was my biggest fear in teh world-that I was gonna spontaneously combust from my panic attacks lol. it worked. Now..how to do this with my current fears ( ca... )?? without everybody seeing it?  especially at work? lol

[Finding_hope]

Love that idea thanks for sharing

[sparechimby]

Just wanted to say thank you for sharing this. I'll have to give it a try in the morning.

[kelliewheeler]

I love the idea about writing the worries on post it notes!  So simple, and makes so much sense.  Makes me remember something a college professor told me... "The thing about fear is that it's like a shadow.. if you run away and try to deny it's existence, it only grows larger.  When you turn and face it, you'll find it disappear beneath your feet."

[Jason Craig]

Thanks a lot for these simple exercises for sleeplessness and positive thinking. I am going to try them tonight and see if they work :-)

Cheers, Tam 

[~justme~]

Tam always amazing ideas.. Thanks i will try any advice i can get.

[LindaRK]

Good post.  I've kept a tablet and pen at bedside for years because of ruminating thoughts.  Once I write them down, it's one less thing on my mind!

I also put post-it notes all over the house with positive sayings on them and I carry a list in my purse and car and read them pretty regularly.  Positive affirmations are wonderful.

[bluesky123]

Thanks for the great ideas.  Like someone else above stated, I too, put positive affirmations into the notes section of my cell phone so that I can take them anywhere with me.  It also helps if I'm on the bus or some other situation where I feel panicky,  I have quick access to the calming and comforting thoughts.

[smflower]

When I'm very anxious, it feels like my brain just won't shut off. What I have found, that works for me, is to keep an ipod by my bed stocked with "no words" music. Things like movie scores really work for me. It helps my brain focus on the music and not it's random ramblings. I have also found that trying to figure out what sound goes with what instrument gives my brain something constructive to do. As us anxious people know, the brain has to do something... it's never "off"