While we see some of these changes as exciting, we often allow others to cast a cloud of worry over our lives. 

If you’re a woman in your 40s or 50s, menopause is probably something you’ve spent some time thinking about recently. While it can come with some changes and challenges, it’s time to recognize that it’s also an amazing opportunity to open up a new chapter in your life…

This article will cover what you need to know about menopause, including: 

1. What the menopause is 

2. My fascinating discoveries and how menopause has changed for women

3. The importance of creating your own story 

4. My personal experience with menopause

5. How to change the way you think about menopause

6. Reasons why you should embrace this new phase of your life

7. Practical tips on navigating menopause with ease

We have so much to get through—let’s get started!

What Is the Menopause?

Menopause is a natural process of the permanent cessation of menstruation, also referred to as “the change of life.”

It is different for every woman and typically starts around age 51. However, it can occur anywhere between the ages of 40 and 60.

While it can be accompanied by uncomfortable symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness, menopause is different for everyone. 

There are also many ways that you can ease symptoms and make the transition smooth and positive.

My Fascinating Discoveries About the Menopause

Menopause is such an interesting topic. I’ve done a lot of studies on it, and they all say the same thing—that, biologically, women had to stop being fertile when their daughters became fertile.

Imagine you were living in a primitive place where women had to work in the fields. While they did so, they depended on their mothers to look after their children. 

So nature decides that as our children reach fertile age, your fertility should end too. Enabling you to care for the next generation.

But as that no longer happens, and we live longer and longer, the whole menopause is changing… 

How menopause has changed for women

Since then, medical advances such as IVF treatments mean the reason we have menopause is kind of redundant. 

For example, you could have a daughter at 20 and have another daughter at 45 if you wanted to. Although our ovaries age and our eggs age, the womb is kind of ageless. 

It’s really not important why you have it or what it’s for. The most important thing is that you don’t have to suffer.

Menopause doesn’t have to be hot flashes, night sweats, weight gain, brain fog, and all the other symptoms we’re told to expect… 

You can transition through menopause symptom-free if you understand how to work with your body.

Therefore, it’s high time we learn to block outdated beliefs that no longer serve us…

Creating Your Own Menopause Story 

In my years of studying this topic, I’ve come to a solid conclusion—what you believe about menopause will affect your menopause.

I’ve had women come to me exclaiming, “My menopause was hell, it was a nightmare!”

“The night sweats, the mood swings…I just felt like a different person.”

“I hated it!”

While other people casually dismiss this time in their lives, stating, “I haven’t even had one.”

I’ve seen this discrepancy in those close to me too… 

For instance, my mother and grandmother had horrible menopause. 

Yet my aunt and friend’s mom said it was nothing, “You didn’t even notice it.”

Isn’t it interesting how different these experiences are?

One thing is clear: the way these women spoke about menopause was worlds apart. 

So what I want you to take away from this is that just because you’ve heard other women talk about how terrible it is and how much they struggled through their menopause, that doesn’t mean you will.

Remember, their story is not your story. 

Your menopause doesn’t compare yourself to anyone else. You are your own person with your own journey—and you get to decide what that will be. 

This was certainly something I considered as I entered this time in my own life…

My Personal Experience With Menopause

My story is very simple—I didn’t have one. I never went through any sort of menopausal experience. I didn’t have one hot flash, and I never had a night sweat—none of the usual symptoms or horror stories we’re told as you approach your 50s. 

I believe the determining factor in this was my studies into women in Japan and in tribes who go through menopause without even noticing it. From that moment on, I decided—I’m not going to have one.

In the same way, when I had a baby, I decided I would not have postnatal depression… 

A nurse came to me saying, “Well, you might have postnatal depression.” 

I replied, “Oh no, no, no. I’m having postnatal euphoria. I’ve already signed up for it.”

You see, thoughts are things. Every thought you think has a physical reaction and an emotional response.

Your thoughts control your feelings…

Your feelings control your actions…

Your actions control your events.

Every thought you think, and every word you say is a blueprint that your mind and body work to make real.

For example, if you think about migraines, colds, or sinus headaches and say things like, “I’ve got the flu and it’s so terrible.” The belief that it’s so terrible will make it terrible.

You are what you believe—so change your beliefs because it’s everything. 

So here’s what you can do about this…

Change the Way You Think About the Menopause

If you want to get through menopause quickly and carefree, the most important thing by far is to take a look at what you believe it is.

What do you personally believe it is?

What kind of word do you use to talk about menopause?

Are you dreading it?

Are you terrified of it?

Do you think that it’s out of your control, that there’s nothing you can do? 

Do you believe it’s something that unwillingly happens to you, and you’re simply at its mercy?

Or do you think, “Well, could I actually speed it up and go through it super fast?”

Have you ever asked yourself, “Could I go through and hardly notice it?”

Yes, you probably can.

Look at your beliefs and write them down. Write down every thought or belief about menopause, and then write the opposite.

For example…

If you think, “The menopause is going to be really difficult.” 

Instead, write, “Menopause will be such an easy transition. I won’t even notice it.” 

Rather than saying, “I’m going to put on weight.” 

Update your thoughts with positive statements like, “I’m going to use this as a wonderful opportunity to have a healthier diet and lifestyle, and I’m going to lose weight.”

Or if you’re telling yourself, “My sex life is going to go down the tubes.” 

Tell yourself exciting things, such as, “My sex life is actually going to get better.”

You see, it’s not what happens to you in menopause; it’s how you react and respond to what happens that makes all the difference. 

So look at your thoughts and change them if they’re not serving you well so you can welcome this new exciting phase of your life…

Embrace a New Phase of Your Life

Of course, updating your beliefs goes hand-in-hand with realizing that menopause can be a wonderful opportunity to embrace a new phase of your life.

This can be a time to focus on your health, try new hobbies, and create the life you want. Menopause doesn’t have to be a negative experience. With the right mindset, it can be positive and empowering.

The sexiest part of you is in your mind 

One of the most common concerns I hear from my clients is that they feel as though they are losing their femininity and sexiness.

They say, “Oh, I don’t feel feminine now I can’t make a baby.” 

“I can’t ovulate. My fertility is over. I’m not sexy.”

 But that’s just not true—sexual attraction is in your mind.

As you get older, sex can be so much more exciting. You take your time, and you know what works. You’ve taught your body how to respond and what to do, and you can also be super orgasmic after your periods have ended.

Many women have told me, “I’ve had the best sex of my life in my 40s.” 

They had their first orgasm at 42, 45, and 46—because they felt free to be themselves.  

These women explained, “I no longer thought about my body as something that’s here to make a baby.”

Some say, “I feel sexier, I don’t worry about getting pregnant.” 

“I don’t worry about being on my period, the mess, the inconvenience.”

“I’m free now.”

Therefore, menopause is the perfect time to accept that your body is here to experience pleasure.

The clitoris, by the way, is the only organ that is there entirely to receive pleasure. So that’s why it’s there, and menopause doesn’t change that. It doesn’t take away the hundreds of nerve endings in it.

So forget about all those old wives’ tales and misconceptions.

The only thing that can make you feel unattractive is your thoughts.

You can decide you’re an absolute goddess with a womb, without a womb, with periods, without them, with breasts that are high or low; it doesn’t matter.

You are female.

You are feminine.

You are sexy.

You are gorgeous. 

You are a goddess. 

So wherever you are, whatever you are, whoever you are, your womb does not make you more or less sexy. Likewise, your fertility does not make you more or less desirable—not unless you choose to believe that to be true.

Remember, your opinion is the only opinion that matters. When you hold this opinion and confidence radiates from you, others will pick up on that and reflect these beliefs back at you.

Desire, arousal, and libido all start in your mind. Your mind is the sexiest organ, and it never ages; it doesn’t go through menopause. So you can have a wild, passionate sex life in your 60s, in your 70s, in your 80s.

It’s up to you, so choose to reclaim your power…

How To Reclaim Your Power

Menopause doesn’t have to be a negative experience. There are things you can do to reclaim a positive sense of your sexuality and identity.

Here are a few tips:

Support yourself with supplements and vitamins 

There are so many natural supplements and vitamins you can take to help improve your overall health and well-being during this time.

Black cohosh has been used for centuries to help ease symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats. 

Dong quai is another herb that has been used to help with menopausal symptoms, as well as to support overall health. 

Capsaicin, found in chili peppers, has also been shown to be effective in helping to reduce hot flashes. 

Red clover is another supplement that is often taken to help with menopausal symptoms, as well as to support bone health. 

Finally, ginseng is a popular supplement that is often taken for its energy-boosting properties. 

There are many supplements and vitamins you can take—it’s just about finding the ones that work best for you. 

Take up yoga

Yoga is an excellent form of exercise for women going through menopause. 

It can help with the hot flashes, anxiety, depression, and everything that can come with menopause. As well as this, it’s also a great way to improve flexibility, muscle strength, and tone—all while helping to reduce stress levels.

There are a number of yoga poses that can be particularly beneficial for menopausal women… 

For example, the Triangle Pose can help to lengthen the spine and improve circulation. 

The Camel Pose can open up the chest and shoulders, relieving tension and helping to ensure deep breathing. 

The Half Camel Pose is also beneficial, as it helps to ease back pain and is said to be beneficial to those experiencing depression. 

Yoga can also help to improve sleep quality, which can be adversely affected by menopause. 

Overall, it’s a great activity to promote feelings of well-being and calm during this time of change.

Use visualization techniques

Visualization techniques help you go through menopause in the same way they are used in cancer hospitals, children’s hospitals, and fertility clinics to teach your body how to respond.

You can use them to glide through menopause so that you hardly notice it.

Visualize your body going through the process of menopause smoothly and easily. See yourself as healthy and vibrant, with no symptoms or problems. 

Try visualizing yourself surrounded by a bright white light. A light that represents clarity, peace, and calm. See that light filling your entire body, giving you strength and courage. 

Finally, visualize your future self—healthy, happy, and free from menopausal symptoms. Visualize yourself living life to the fullest, enjoying every moment. 

These visualization techniques can help to ease the transition through menopause and create a more positive outlook on this time of life. Try them and let me know what you think—it just might help you to feel better emotionally and physically.

Try breathing techniques

When you’re going through menopause, your body can be under a lot of stress. This can lead to shallow breathing, which can, in turn, cause dizziness, anxiety, and headaches. 

By focusing on deep breathing, you can help to relax your body and mind and ease some of the menopausal symptoms.

The first step is to breathe from your diaphragm rather than your chest. This will help you to take slow, deep breaths, which can promote relaxation. 

The next step is to focus on your breath and count each inhale and exhale. This will help to clear your mind and bring you into the present moment. 

Finally, try breathing through your nose, as this will help to filter out pollutants and improve the quality of your breath. 

If you are having a hot flash, put your hands in cold water and breathe out for longer than you breathe in. It will help stop the hot flash.

Try incorporating some breathing techniques into your daily routine, and see if they help you to feel calmer and in control during menopause. 

Adjust your diet

Eating a healthy diet is important at any age, but it becomes even more crucial during menopause. 

This means consuming plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats. It’s also important to limit and remove processed foods, very spicy food, sugar, and alcohol. All of which can dramatically change hot flashes and night sweats.

There are a few key nutrients that are especially important for menopausal women to include in their diets too. These include calcium, vitamin D, and omega-3 fatty acids. 

Calcium helps to keep bones healthy, while vitamin D helps the body to absorb calcium. 

Omega-3 fatty acids are anti-inflammatory and can help to reduce hot flashes. 

In addition to these nutrients, it is also important to eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. These healthy foods provide the body with the fiber it needs to function well and the vitamins and minerals that are essential for good health. 

Making these dietary changes can help you to flow through menopause with ease.

Make changes in your intimate routine

If you’re suffering from vaginal dryness, don’t use soap or a bubble bath. You don’t need any of those things.

If you feel that you’re too dry and sex is painful use lubricants. There’s nothing wrong with that, and there are so many exciting ones you can make part of sex.

Of course, kissing is very important. The mouth and the vagina are closely linked, and when the mouth is wet, the vagina is wet.

I know many women who give birth whose doctors have said, “If you keep your mouth wet, it helps the vagina to stretch more.” It helps with birth.

So kissing is exciting—create desire, explore, and enjoy lots of foreplay.

Get your libido back

If you don’t feel aroused and your libido has gone away. Again, you can take supplements and visualization, but even just playing the songs you played when you were first dating can activate that memory of being wildly in love and deeply aroused. 

A passionate desire for your partner and sex can come back.

You can reactivate, re-manifest, and regenerate all those feelings by remembering.

If sex is painful for you, then spend longer on foreplay. Talk to your partner, and explain that your body has changed, but you still love and desire them. 

Explain that you’re simply going to have to change your sex life a bit—and you can make that exciting by spending longer on foreplay and using creams, lotions, and oils.

Coconut oil is the very best thing to use as the sebum in it is very close to our own sebum. It also has no side effects or toxins, so it’s a great and highly recommended lubricant to use in your sex life.

It’s quite exciting.

It feels lovely and slippery.

But of course, there are so many more things you can do to embrace this new phase in your life. These are just a few examples of the wonderful opportunities, solutions, and avenues that are out there for you to explore and enjoy. 

It’s Time To Decide What Your Journey Will Be

By reading this article, I hope you’ve seen that there are so many amazing things you can do to help you go through menopause with ease.

I want to remind you that the most important element in empowering yourself during this transition all lies in updating your beliefs.

If you think menopause is difficult, it probably will be. But if you think menopause can be positive and empowering, it probably will be too!

So please choose the words you use to talk about menopause carefully. For example, instead of using negative words like “dread,” “fear,” and “suffering,” try using positive words like “embrace,” “reclaim,” and “positive.”

Think of different thoughts, and you can sail through menopause.

Sail through it, flow through it as women in Japan do—like women in many tribes do.

Tell yourself it’s nothing.

It’s what you decide it is, and your decisions are yours to make, change, alter, tune, correct, and adjust. 

To help you on this journey, check out my Health Vortex. It is a powerful hypnosis designed to help reset your body from top to bottom, inviting you to change the energy of your body and restore blissful balance using the incredible power of your mind.  

So you can reclaim your power today as a feminine, sexy, gorgeous goddess.

Perhaps you fall into this category? Or maybe you purchased home workout equipment or a new wardrobe of gym clothes instead but still find yourself procrastinating? 

Like you, many people have the best intentions and wish to become healthier, stronger, fitter, and leaner but lack the motivation necessary to get started on this journey. 

In this article, we will be unpacking why you don’t feel motivated to exercise and the four simple yet powerful steps to achieving a happier, healthier mind, body, and soul.

So that not only will exercising become what you do, it will become very much a part of who you are. 

Let’s get started on this exciting journey to discover your newfound love of exercising…

Why Can’t I Get Motivated to Exercise? 

Before we begin exploring how to take action towards our goal, it’s important to understand the real reason behind the common lack of motivation to exercise. So let’s take a look back before we begin to move forwards. 

As tribal people, our bodies were used how they were meant to be. We were hunter-gatherers, and our survival depended on our ability to move our bodies and be physically active so we could source food and water, and build shelters.

Today, our modern lifestyles in developed countries mean we no longer have these needs. Our TVs can entertain us from our couches, Amazon can deliver to our door, and we can order our food online and have it on our plate within the hour. 

So it’s clear that as our survival no longer relies on us remaining physically active, exercising now needs to be a much more conscious decision. 

But sometimes there are subconscious blocks that get in the way of making this decision. Often, we are not even aware of this. 

So to discover what this block is and also how to overcome it, we must look at what lies beneath…

The Real Truth Behind Why You Don’t Exercise 

I’ve been a therapist my whole adult life, and I’ve helped thousands of clients to overcome their intense lack of motivation to exercise and become healthy. 

These people dealt with destructive eating habits, lacked the drive to exercise, and let their bodies decline to an incredibly unhealthy state.

My clients felt as though no one understood why they were allowing themselves to be so overweight, and worse of all, they didn’t know either. 

They all felt alone, ashamed, and helpless about their ability to make a change. 

In reality, these people all shared the same issue—they all feared rejection.

Is the Fear of Rejection Stopping You From Exercising?

Remember the statistic I gave you at the start of this article? 25% of people who buy a gym membership never actually go. Well, there is a very clear reason for this…

It all comes down to the untrue belief, “I am not enough.” 

You may tell yourself you’re going to the gym in the morning, but you start to imagine what that will be like. You start to show your mind pictures you have imagined of the gym bunnies looking at you in disgust, laughing and snarling at you for entering their territory. 

When in reality, no one will be staring at you. People in the gym are far too concerned about what they are doing and their own insecurities and goals to judge you for yours. 

But you allow this fear of rejection to intensify until you no longer go to the gym. You never do. You tell yourself you aren’t good enough, fit enough, healthy enough, or attractive enough to attend the gym. 

Of course, it’s so easy to say you should have gone to the gym or that you could have gone for a run. That’s because it’s far less painful than actually doing the exercise and putting yourself at risk of rejection or working out for a day and seeing no results. In this way, the fear of rejection is really also a fear of failure. 

The fear of rejection is the most common fear on the planet, and it is extremely powerful. Luckily, it’s an issue that you can absolutely overcome… and come out thriving on the other side.  

This leads us to the first step in learning how to get and stay motivated to exercise. Let’s dive in…

Step 1: Overcome Your Fear of Rejection 

The first step in getting and staying motivated to exercise is to overcome your fear of rejection. To do this, you must learn something very important…

The only person who can truly reject you is you. 

This power lies solely with you. So start identifying the ways in which you are doing this. 

For example, lying on the sofa binge-watching Netflix while snacking on potato chips is actually you rejecting yourself. You’re denying your body regular physical activity that would give you the opportunity to become leaner, stronger, and healthier. 

Once you recognize this, you can tell yourself the truth—no one has the power to reject you but yourself. 

The next time you recognize that you are rejecting yourself, make a change. Choose to give yourself every opportunity to become happier and healthier. 

To help you implement this in your life, we have to learn how to use the incredible power of words. 

Step 2: Explore the Power of Words

The words we say and the words we tell our minds are extremely powerful, forming the blueprint for our lives. 

For example, if you say… 

“I would have a heart attack if I tried to run a mile.” 

“It would kill me to have to go to the gym in the morning before work.” 

“It would destroy me to exercise for a month and see no results.” 

Your mind receives these words, listens to them, and believes them. 

The result? Your mind tells you not to do it—it actively avoids it.

When you tell your mind you can’t be bothered to exercise, “It’s too tiring, it’s too hard, it’s too painful,” then your mind says, “Okay, rest more, watch more of your series, eat more snacks.”

Therefore, the secret is to tell yourself better things, and it will do better things for you. 

Tell your mind you are excited about exercising, that you love how it makes you feel, and that you can’t wait to do it more. 

Make your mind work for you, not against you. 

To do this, you must start to choose your words carefully to let your mind know what you want. From now on, tell yourself repeatedly…

“I want to exercise.”

“I can’t wait to exercise.”

“I choose to exercise.” 

“I want it, I want it, I want it.”

“I love exercising, it makes me feel amazing.”

“I have chosen to exercise, and I’ve chosen to love it.”

Your mind learns through repetition, so tell yourself these words repeatedly to wire in and fire in habits of success. Do this until they no longer are what you do, they become who you are.

Eventually, you will find yourself going to the gym. You will wake up motivated to stretch. You will go outside on your lunch break and walk around the park. 

And when you’re doing these things, tell yourself again. 

“I love this.”

“I want this.”

“I’ve chosen to do this, and I’ve chosen to feel great about it.” 

Because the truth is, your mind doesn’t know whether what you tell it’s right or wrong. It can’t decipher what is true or false. It can only listen to the words you tell it and the pictures you show it. 

By doing this, we can use the power of words to create a new, updated blueprint for our lives. One that leads you to love exercise and brings you immense feelings of joy, happiness, and pleasure. All because you know you are doing everything your body needs to become leaner, fitter, stronger, and healthier.

Once you’ve mastered your words, you can begin to reinforce them through this next handy mind hack…

Step 3: Delay Gratification 

As a kid, did your parent ever tell you if you did your chores, you could go outside and play?

It’s parenting 101 to teach our children that they will get rewarded for it if they do something good. But as we get older, this discipline often gets pushed aside and leads to overindulgence.

For example, we may think, “I need to exercise, but my favorite show is on.” 

You may then decide to watch your show and exercise later. But as your show ends and the hour has passed, you think, “Now I’m hungry. I’ll have to eat before I work out.” 

The point is, you never get around to exercising because you’ve already rewarded yourself. So now you have no motivation to get your gym clothes on because you have nothing to look forward to after. 

When you reward yourself first, you don’t feel as though you have earned it. So you lie to yourself and say you didn’t really enjoy that episode. Or you tell yourself your dinner wasn’t as tasty as usual. 

This is because you feel bad. Truthfully, you know you should have exercised—you should have done this first. 

Therefore, to overcome your lack of motivation to work out, you must put discipline back into your life and begin to delay gratification—it’s called the “carrot and stick” technique. 

You can still watch your favorite show, but tell yourself you’re going to earn it by doing half an hour of floor exercises first. 

Or, if you are looking forward to having a delicious dinner, make that your reward for going to the gym. 

Tell yourself…

“I want to exercise and earn my reward.” 

“I love exercising before I enjoy my reward.” 

“I choose to exercise first and reward myself second, and I’ve chosen to feel great about it.” 

Then, when you’ve done the work, reward yourself. 

When you watch your show, you will enjoy it so much more. 

When you sit down to eat your food, it will taste so much more delicious. 

We’re all wired to work for rewards, so when we delay gratification and earn what we enjoy, we thrive off the amazing sense of accomplishment we gain. 

Step 4: Harness the Power of Self-Hypnosis

The above steps are all really effective ways of making exercise a part of your life. But sometimes we need a little extra help to remove the blocks that remain deep within us. 

As the founder of Rapid Transformational Therapy® (RTT®), I know the true impact self-hypnosis can have on updating and reshaping what lies beneath. 

This is why I created this exciting Stay Motivated to Exercise self-hypnosis audio using RTT® techniques to tune out your conscious mind and focus your subconscious. 

Once you are in a state of deep awareness, this audio helps you update your beliefs around your relationship with exercise, nurturing a mindset where you choose to exercise and you choose to love it.  

The mind learns by repetition, and so, as you listen to these words, they will stop becoming what you do and they soon become who you are. 

Make time to listen to this audio undisturbed and invest in your health and happiness by reprogramming your current beliefs around exercising for potentially life-changing results. 

Welcome a New, Healthier and Happier You 

Ready to become the best version of yourself you can possibly be? 

Imagine feeling full of energy, your skin glowing, your muscles lean and healthy. 

That could be your reality when you put in motion these four simple steps.  

Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, find time, make time, set aside time to exercise. Each day, as it becomes more familiar to you and part of your routine, you will become excited and look forward to exercising. 

As you move towards your goal of feeling happy, amazing, fit, strong, lean, and healthy, that goal will simultaneously start to move towards you too. 

Do this one wonderful thing for your body and witness how your body thanks you. Because when you take care of your body, your body takes care of you. 

Download my Stay Motivated to Exercise self-hypnosis audio and start making exercise a part of your life today. 

Living with anxiety can be an incredibly hard challenge that many of us may experience in our lifetimes. We may suffer from anxiety ourselves or love somebody who is trying to cope with it. Anxiety can be very isolating, especially if you or the person you love who is suffering feels alone.

These anxiety podcasts, picked by world-renowned therapist Marisa Peer, are a fantastic way to learn about the condition and develop the tools and techniques to manage it effectively. And, most importantly, if you are struggling, you will learn that you are not alone and that whatever your situation, somebody has tackled it before and come out on the other side.

Anxiety Podcast – The Top Ten Countdown

Let’s get the countdown kicked off with our very top pick of anxiety podcasts.

1. The Anxiety Coaches Podcast With Gina Ryan

Taking the top spot is The Anxiety Coaches Podcast with Gina Ryan. With a huge variety of episodes and boasting over 12 million downloads, this podcast is one of the best in the market for helping its listeners learn how to handle anxiety. Two new episodes are released every week, so there is no shortage of helpful advice, funny anecdotes, and insightful discussions about everything in life that an anxiety disorder can impact. There are also actionable tips and guidance to help you in your day-to-day life.

You can listen to The Anxiety Coaches on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. 

2. The Anxiety Podcast

The Anxiety Podcast by Tim JP Collins is another series that has proved to be extraordinarily popular with its listeners. Each week, Tim interviews someone who has experienced and lived with anxiety themselves. The result is a series that is both uplifting and hard-hitting with its raw, open, and honest discussions about a topic that is sometimes considered taboo. Tim also provides coping strategies, so not only will you understand that you are not in this alone, but you will also receive guidance in how to beat your anxiety.

You can listen to The Anxiety Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

3. Master Your Mind With Marisa

Our very own Marisa Peer takes the next spot with her podcast Master Your Mind with Marisa. She has spent three decades working with celebrities, CEOs, and royals, helping them overcome anxiety. She brings this extensive experience to her new podcast, where she discusses topics with her guest speakers with a frank and open honesty that has cemented her popularity and made her a figurehead for mental health improvement. With her popular podcast, you really will learn how to “Master Your Mind” as you discover what the root cause of anxiety is and learn how to begin to tackle it at its source.

You can listen to Master Your Mind with Marisa on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

4. The Overwhelmed Brain

Next up on the list is The Overwhelmed Brain with Paul Colaianni. This highly-rated podcast tackles a new topic each week, focusing on opening up the discussion and examining a huge range of emotional issues that can affect anyone. Deep-diving into the conscious and subconscious processes behind good mental health and wellness, you can become more knowledgeable about various issues, access your emotional strength, and improve your life in positive, healthy ways. 

You can listen to The Overwhelmed Brain on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

5. Your Anxiety Toolkit

Described by one reviewer as “a big virtual hug,” Your Anxiety Toolkit with Kimberley Quinlan is on a mission to provide all of its listeners with solid, actionable advice and steps for those currently experiencing anxiety concerns. With plenty of episodes and an extraordinarily high rating from hundreds of happy reviewers, if you listen to this podcast, you will come away with all the tools and helpful guidance you need to help you cope with your anxiety in whatever way it might manifest.

You can listen to Your Anxiety Toolkit on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

6. The Anxious Achiever

Hosted by the Harvard Business Review, The Anxious Achiever with Morra Aarons-Mele aims to tackle how we think, feel, and discuss mental health and its place within working environments. With interviews conducted with a range of professionals, this podcast gives a fantastic insight into the taboo of mental health and its relation to work, breaking down the preconceptions that those who suffer from mental illnesses can’t succeed as much as neurotypical people within their professional capacities.

You can listen to The Anxious Achiever on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

7. The Anxiety Guy Podcast

The Anxiety Guy Podcast with Dennis Simsek boasts a huge number of episodes and a very respectable rating. Your host aims to help you lessen and eventually take control of your anxiety by interviewing those who have already managed to do so. Listen to the tips and tricks provided by people who have experienced anxiety and come out of the other side, so you can take control and liberate yourself from the concerns that have been holding you back.

You can listen to The Anxiety Guy Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

8. Social Anxiety Solutions

With a complete focus on social anxiety, Social Anxiety Solutions with Sebastiaan van der Schrier aims to show you that you don’t have to accept your social anxiety. You don’t have to live with it forever. With interviews conducted with both experts and those who have overcome social anxiety themselves, this podcast can “shortcut your journey to social confidence.” Expect plenty of topics covered, including fear of rejection, loneliness, and self-acceptance, and expect the inspiration and motivation to start taking steps to tackle your own social anxiety.  

You can listen to Social Anxiety Solutions on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

9. The Calmer You Podcast

The Calmer You Podcast with Chloe Brotheridge has plenty of episodes on offer, with a very high rating from its loyal listeners. Chloe herself is a hypnotherapist and author of several books that have helped readers overcome their anxiety and stress, and she has now brought her teachings to her podcasts. Covering a huge variety of topics, Chloe teaches you how to stay calm in typically stress-inducing situations and casts light on the issues with interviews with other experts in the field. So get ready to become calmer, more centered, and ready to tackle your days.

You can listen to The Calmer You Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

10. Relaxation Hypnosis

The Relaxation Hypnosis for Stress, Anxiety and Panic Attacks podcast, hosted by Jason Newland, takes the last spot on our top ten countdown. In a change of pace from the other podcasts listed here, this one aims to relax you completely. With a mix of relaxation techniques, hypnotic suggestions, and insightful discussions about the host’s own experiences, you can expect a new, calmer you after regularly listening to this podcast.

You can listen to Relaxation Hypnosis on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Want More Than A Podcast To Help Manage Anxiety?

If you are just starting your journey to learning how to manage your anxiety, then you have chosen a great place to begin by reading through a top therapist’s picks of the best anxiety podcasts. However, if you find you are suffering and podcasts aren’t enough, there are more options to consider. 

As well as being a therapist to the stars, motivational speaker, and best-selling author, Marisa Peer has also spread her teachings far and wide through her own school for hypnotherapists. Her Rapid Transformational Therapy® (RTT®) school produces cutting-edge and empathetic therapists who are available to contact today to help you overcome your anxiety.

Sessions can be conducted in person if you prefer face-to-face therapy or online, so you don’t have to worry about time and travel limitations. You can use our Find A Therapist Tool by clicking the banner below to find your perfect match and start seeking the help you deserve.

You don’t have to face anything alone. Get in touch today.

Closing Thoughts

We hope you have enjoyed the top ten countdown to Marisa’s anxiety podcast picks. If you want to see more suggestions, you can check out her list of the top ten mental health podcasts, as well as her top picks for self-help podcasts. And remember, if you want to receive even more wisdom from Marisa direct to your inbox, make sure you enter your email below to sign-up for her regular newsletters.

Working late, shift work, international travel, or just life in general can lead to your sleep routine being disrupted. Sunset and sunrise remain consistent, yet we vary wildly. Also, we’re often caught flipping from too little to too much sleep to “catch up”—something shown not to work effectively.

Whether that means our job is keeping our minds up late or our bodies, disrupted sleep schedules come in many forms. We’re continually told that sleep is important, but what impact does it have on us, and can we fix it?

Well, the answer to both questions is a lot. 

Let’s go over the importance of sleep and fixing your sleep schedule, and then we’ll introduce five ways to sleep better and 25 actionable tips to get you there.

The Importance of Sleep

Sleep can help you maintain a healthy weight, lower your risks of serious diseases like diabetes and heart disease, perform better at work or school, and have better relationships. 

While these are just some of the benefits a good night’s sleep can bring, the opposite is also true. Poor sleep schedules can have a disastrous impact on our lives. 

Disrupted sleep doesn’t just make you feel grumpy and leave you with low energy, it has serious effects on cognition, immunity, and metabolism—and, when chronic, can have severe implications for your health and wellbeing.

I used to feel the effects constantly, even a single night’s upset used to have a profound impact on my ability to perform the next day.

Redressing the Balance

As we’ll see, everything comes down to balance and finding our own unique way to align body and mind as we prepare to sleep. Before looking at the actions we can take today, let’s understand the reasons for our poor sleep schedule so we don’t fall back into old habits. In this article, we’ll look at the following:

• Why is my sleep schedule so bad?
• The importance of having a good night routine.
• Circadian rhythm: what it is and its importance. 
• How to fix your sleep schedule.
• How long does it take to adjust to a new sleep schedule?
• Final thoughts.

By the end of this article, you’ll understand the reasons why fixing your sleep schedule is so important and how you can take control with immediate action.

Why Is My Sleep Schedule So Bad?

Firstly, you’re not alone. Nearly 48 percent of adults have disturbed sleep three or more nights per week, and one in three, according to the Sleep Health Foundation, have at least mild insomnia.

We all have times of bad sleep when the stress of life weighs on our mind or we find our body and mind out of sync—wanting sleep but feeling like it’s out of reach. 

The problem is it’s become normal. But it shouldn’t be.

Our modern lifestyle doesn’t allow for the concept of regular, peaceful sleep, but the alternative can have a silent yet serious impact on our health.

Optimal health and wellbeing come through our body’s careful balance of biological processes that can be thrown off by just a single bad night. Unfortunately, many of us don’t just get one bad night. 

One major habit is, unfortunately, allowing stress to take hold of our minds. Stress, worry, racing thoughts, lamenting the past; they all put the mind in a state incongruent with sleep. But these are not the only reasons. Bad habits we adopt as they suit our lifestyles are also impacting our sleep, such as using cellphones at bedtime.

The good news is that we can redress the balance, rewire habits, and begin to fix our sleep schedules today.

The Importance of Having a Good Night Routine 

Most of these issues come from our body not being able to rest, recover, and repair. Our minds need downtime, just like any other machine or system; otherwise, they become clunky and unable to function, which can have serious consequences.

You may have heard of REM sleep, the fourth stage of a cycle we move through—from light sleep to REM and back again—numerous times each night. Or at least we should do. With each cycle, our mind spends increasingly more time in REM sleep and less time in the lighter stages of sleep. During REM sleep, our minds process emotions and consolidate memories and dreams.

If the sleep cycle process is interrupted, such as when we’re woken up during the night, the process starts over again. As a result, when you experience interrupted sleep, you miss out on REM sleep most of all. Without sufficient REM sleep, your cognitive performance and emotional wellbeing suffer.

New evidence is even showing that the brain’s inability to repair effectively can increase risk factors for dementia, obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, poor mental health, and early death.

Sluggish, foggy, slow. These feelings associated with a poor sleep schedule are just the beginning as the downstream effects of a disturbed sleep schedule continue to be discovered and the importance of a good sleep schedule are highlighted.

To ensure our sleep isn’t interrupted and that we maximize our REM sleep time, we need to make sure that we prepare our bodies and minds in the hours before heading to bed. 

Not only will creating a sleep schedule help prevent you from falling into previous bad habits, but you’ll also replace them with positive behaviors that make you feel better. With the right preparation, you’ll look forward to bedtime as your body and mind wind down together, edging you closer and closer to a comforting, dream-filled sleep.

Before we look at what to adapt, let’s understand more about the cyclical, repeating processes that impact our sleep.

Circadian Rhythm: What It Is and Its Importance

There are four biological rhythms which help regulate optimal bodily function throughout the various environments of the day. The most important with regards to sleep is the circadian rhythm. This plays a physical, mental, and behavioral role, responding to light and dark at different phases throughout the day and night. As well as sleep, it helps regulate appetite, body temperature, daily performance, blood pressure, and alertness, among other things.

Interestingly, according to the National Sleep Foundation, many people report that “a lack of sleep is linked to overeating, again, controlled by an internal hormonal balance.” This is just one example of how sleep impacts our bodies without us noticing.

Keeping these clocks running in harmony with each other and with our external environment ensures our bodies run optimally—we feel our best and can perform our best, resetting our internal clocks. 

As you increasingly become tired throughout the day, this sleep drive, also known as “sleep-wake homeostasis,” is affected by numerous internal processes.

Light is one example. The brain monitors exposure to natural or artificial light and responds accordingly, assuming this relates to day or night, and prepares the body for rest or action. As the light fades, the brain stimulates the release of melatonin, a hormone that induces drowsiness. As the sun rises, the body releases the hormone cortisol, promoting energy and alertness. 

Our circadian rhythm synchronizes our internal clock and external environment. By resetting our internal clock, we can harmonize with our environment, feel calmer, and be more attuned to our inner selves.

How To Fix Your Sleep Schedule

Now we know why fixing our sleep schedule is important and how our bodies respond to our actions, we can plan specific actions to reset our sleep.

There are five key areas of focus that ensure a sound sleep, and Marisa Peer, a world-renowned therapist, uses the acronym of “SLEEP” to help us move into action. “SLEEP” stands for schedule, light, eating, exercise, and preparation.

Marisa suggests you use this list as a resource.

Schedule

Create a sleep schedule. We’ve discussed our body’s 24-hour circadian rhythm, so we need to align with that.

1. Sync with light and dark—Reset your sleep schedule to be as close to the natural light cycle of the day, mimicking it where possible.
2. Ensure seven to nine hours’ sleep—Even if you think you can get by on five hours, slowly increase to seven to nine. Don’t expect to increase your sleep time overnight, be patient.
3. Set rigid sleep times—Structured times lead to better sleep, so set a time to get in bed and a time to start getting ready for the day. Set an alarm with a single, short snooze time and use that time for mindfulness. Don’t change it at the weekend as you’ll always be playing catch-up.
4. Do not sleep in—It might feel good to grab an extra couple of hours after a tough day, but that won’t help you in the long run.
5. Don’t rely on “catch up” sleep—Similar to sleeping in, it’s counterintuitive, but it doesn’t help.

Light

Limit light. Light exposure, as we’ve found, is essential in regulating our sleep, but you don’t need to sit in a dark room for hours. Just consciously be aware of the light exposure and type near bedtime.

1. Set light reminders—Create alarms a couple of hours before bed to change the mood of your house to reflect your evening state.
2. Minimize brightness—Try using a dimmer or low-wattage lamp for indoor lighting or, even better, switch to blue light bulbs.
3. Turn off electronic devices—Your mind needs to take a break at least 30 minutes before bedtime. In fact, leave them in another room. Also limit blue light filters one to two hours before bedtime.
4. Sleep in total darkness—Consider blackout blinds or an eye mask.
5. Wake up bright—Get some light, preferably natural, as soon as you wake up.

TIP: If you’re more of the DIY type, you also can buy a smart bulb (like Philips Hue, Emberlight, Stack Lighting, Lifx, or WeMo) that you can connect to your phone or fitness tracker to create a sunrise alarm.

Exercise

Get moving. The effects of aerobic exercise on sleep appear to be similar to those of sleeping pills.

Our bodies are made to move, yet our lifestyles often counter this natural drive. 

1. Fit exercise into your morning—If your goal is fat burning, get moving early.
2. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise—You may see a difference in sleep quality that same night.
3. Stretch—Especially 30 minutes to an hour before bed.
4. Consider exercising with friends or new groups—It could help you stick with it easier.
5. Keep at it—Regular exercise is key to results, both physically and mentally.

Eating

Limit eating. Eating and drinking stimulates hormones which, as we’ve learned, impact the fine balance within our bodies.

1. Avoid caffeine—People have different tolerances to coffee, which means we all take different amounts of time to process it and for the stimulant to wear off. Find your cut-off, starting with five hours before bedtime, and add it in your sleep schedule.
2. Avoid alcohol—Similar to caffeine, find what works for you, but remember, alcohol disrupts your sleep schedule, it doesn’t enhance it.
3. Avoid food two to three hours before bed—If you eat, your body responds excitedly; we’re trying to calm down the body and mind.
4. Eat healthily—The better our internal clocks can work, the better the body can function.
5. Consider aids—Such as camomile, kiwis, or almonds.

Preparation

Having a sleep routine really helps take the thought out of your day. As we near bedtime, we should habitually be changing our environment and our state of being to prepare our bodies and minds.

1. Practice mindfulness before bed—Plan your “bedtime” 30 minutes early and just spend that time in peaceful silence.
2. Make an inviting sleeping environment:
   1. Quiet. 
   2. Cool, temperate. – link
   3. Dark.
   4. Clean, tidy.
3. Relax—Include a relaxing activity before bed, such as reading or taking a warm bath;.
4. Write what you need to remember/do the next day in a journal—This removes the spinning thoughts that can dominate at night and improves sleep.
5. Write down your new sleep schedule—And stick to a daily routine, including as many of the above which apply to your situation.

How Long Does It Take To Adjust to a New Sleep Schedule? 

The time needed to fix your sleep schedule will depend on the extent of your misaligned sleep and the underlying causes. For more extreme cases, more time will be needed, yet studies have shown that even for the worst chronic insomnia, simply including exercise can have dramatic effects in four weeks.

All the solutions laid out above are implementable today. Select a few and try them out. 

Depending on how bad your current sleep schedule is, you could start to see improvements tonight and begin resetting your circadian rhythm.

Final Thoughts

Living with sleep issues can wreak havoc on our lives, but you’re not alone. Nor are you helpless.

These five methods will help you reset your sleep schedule, restore your circadian rhythm, regain your inner balance, and live a joyful life.

Finding the root cause and changing the habits associated with your sleep patterns will move you from frustrated and underachieving to feeling confident and energized enough to conquer any day.

References:

Get Enough Sleep: The Basics: Health Benefits

Mutual influence of sleep and circadian clocks on physiology and cognition

Sleep disturbances linked to abnormal deposits of certain proteins in the brain

Sleep and Chronic Disease

Exercising for Better Sleep

Or perhaps you tend to catastrophize or imagine a worst-case scenario whenever you’re faced with uncertainty? 

If these sound familiar to you, then you may have a fear of the unknown. 

To some degree, we all fear what we don’t know. It’s human nature. 

However, there are times when fear of the unknown is so intense that it makes you anxious and keeps you in a cycle of excessive worry, anticipation, and panic.

Even worse, a fear of the unknown can paralyze you and prevent you from living out your true potential. You may be unwilling to take risks or impose artificial limits on yourself just to avoid being in unfamiliar situations. 

If you feel like you may have an extreme fear of the unknown, don’t worry. I’ll explain what this fear really is, why it happens, and how you can deal with it and manage it effectively. 

Read on to learn:

• What fear of the unknown is. 
• The symptoms and what it looks like.
• What causes fear of the unknown.
• Who is most likely to be affected.
• Three effective strategies to overcome fear of the unknown.

What Exactly Is a Fear of the Unknown?

Fear of the unknown can be described as the fear of something you have no information about and no control over. 

An example of this is fear of the future. None of us know what our future looks like, but most of us don’t let this get in our way. We plan and strive for the future we want without letting the uncertainty hold us back. 

However, for some people, not knowing what the future holds is downright terrifying. The uncertainty frightens them and puts them in a state of hyperarousal, which is a fear state that continues to build up. 

This fear overwhelms them to the point where they prefer to remain in their comfort zone and not take any risks that might change their life—even for the better. 

When you think about it, those with a fear of the future aren’t afraid of the actual passing of time—what they’re terrified of is not knowing whether their life will turn out the way they want it to. 

In its extreme form, fear of the unknown is also called “xenophobia.” Though the word has evolved in modern times to mean the fear of strangers or foreigners, its original meaning was a fear of anything or anyone unfamiliar or unknown. 

What Does Fear of the Unknown Look Like?

For most of us, being wary of unknown objects, people, and situations is entirely normal. It’s natural to feel anxious at a new job or when talking to a stranger. 

However, if you have an intense fear of the unknown, day-to-day life can be incredibly stressful because of your constant fear. You may find it difficult to function whenever you encounter something or someone unfamiliar. 

You may also experience one or more of these symptoms:

• Rapid heart rate or palpitations.
• Dry mouth or shallow breathing.
• Panic attacks at the thought of the unknown.
• Tense muscles.
• Anxiety and a tendency to run away or avoid situations that force you to change your routine or face strangers.

If you also tend to catastrophize or imagine worst-case scenarios whenever you face an unpredictable situation, it could be a sign that you have a fear of the unknown. 

What Causes a Fear of the Unknown?

Many things can cause a fear of the unknown, but from her 30 years of experience as a therapist, Marisa Peer observed that our fear of the unknown usually stems from previous trauma.

One of Marisa’s “Rules of the Mind” is that the mind does what it thinks you want it to do. Your subconscious records your previous experiences and guides you to do what it believes to be in your best interest. 

So, for example, if you had ventured into an unfamiliar situation before and experienced a traumatic and distressing event, your mind starts to associate the unknown with danger.

It sounds elementary, but the fact is that our subconscious is designed to do one thing, which is to seek pleasure and avoid pain. It’s not very good in being objective about what’s beneficial for you in the long run. 

Your fear of the unknown could simply be your subconscious mind’s way of protecting you from reliving your previous hurts. 

Who’s More Likely To Suffer From a Fear of the Unknown?

Anyone who’s suffered from trauma can develop a fear of the unknown, although modern research has shown that this fear is more likely among certain groups.

Sufferers of anxiety and fear disorders

A recent study discovered that people with social anxiety disorder and those with specific phobias might have a heightened fear of the unknown. 

Researchers tested the startle reflex of 160 adults to unpredictable sounds and shocks, andhey discovered that those with social anxiety disorder and specific phobias blinked more intensely and more often when anticipating an unknown, unpleasant experience.

Researchers concluded that these individuals had a higher sensitivity to anxiety about the unknown. Children with anxiety disorders were also particularly vulnerable to this type of fear. 

Major depression

Some experts have speculated that sufferers of major depression experience anxiety, which exacerbates fear of the unknown. 

While the connection isn’t clear, researchers have found a link between sufferers of major depression with an intolerance of uncertainty. 

Eating disorders

A 2017 study discovered that people with eating disorders felt anxious when thinking about the uncertainty of the future. 

This anxiety was more pronounced in sufferers of eating disorders who were more introverted and less secure in connecting to others. 

Alcohol abuse

Studies have shown a link between alcohol abuse and fear of the unknown. Researchers carried out an experiment using predictable and unpredictable electric shocks on study participants and discovered that those with alcohol use disorder were extra sensitive to uncertainty. 

Experts theorized that these people might be using alcohol to cope with their fear of uncertainty. 

How To Overcome Your Fear of the Unknown

The good news is that overcoming the fear of the unknown is just like overcoming any other phobia—it is possible, and you have the power to overcome it. 

Recognize that your fear of the unknown is an acquired trait, which means that just like how you learned this behavior, you can also reprogram your mind to unlearn it. 

Marisa Peer has worked with thousands of clients around the globe who suffered from the same fear, and she uses these powerful strategies to help them free their minds from fear and live more courageously.  

Develop a greater awareness 

Whenever you start to feel anxious, worried, or stressed over an unfamiliar situation, listen to your self-talk. What are the words that you’re saying to yourself whenever you experience this fear?

It probably sounds something like this:

“I just know the absolute worst thing is going to come out of this.”

“What if I don’t find another job? What if I end up homeless and begging for money?”

“If I have to do it, I’m going to die for sure.”

Listen to these thoughts and write them down. It may also be helpful to note which situations trigger this fear and if there’s a pattern to this mindset and behavior.

You’ll realize that from the words you use, you’re indirectly telling your subconscious to be afraid. You’re painting an image in your mind that’s terrifying, and your subconscious responds to it. 

Marisa recalls one particular client: “He was a lovely client who had cancer but could not go in the hospital scanner. He said, ‘Every time I go in it, I feel like I’m in my coffin and I’m going to die. I have to press the button and come out because I’m so claustrophobic, I can’t do it.’ 

“The hospital said that he had to go in the scanner to see if his cancer treatment was working. He said, ‘I can’t. I’ve tried, but the minute that drawer goes in, I tell myself I’m in my coffin, it’s like a premonition, I’m going to die of cancer, and I have to get out.’ 

“Notice what he was doing with the pictures and words he was using. He was saying, ‘I can’t,’ and linking it to dying. He was indirectly telling his mind to fear the scanner.

“The same effect applies to you as well. Pay attention to the words you use to talk to yourself. They have a tremendous effect on how you react to a situation.”

Change the words you use to describe your fear 

Once you have better clarity and awareness of your self-talk, it’s time to change it to something more empowering. 

Marisa advises changing the words you use to address your fear of the unknown. Instead of catastrophizing or imagining a worst-case scenario, try to imagine a more favorable outcome instead.

So rather than say, “I’m going to die if I do this,” change it to, “This is going to be an interesting experience!”

You’ll be surprised how differently your mind and body react when you change the words you use to address your fear. 

Here’s the solution Marisa gave to her client who was afraid to go into the scanner: 

“I told him, ‘You are going to get in that scanner and go, “Wow, how lovely, I’ve got 30 minutes to relax.” Imagine you are in bed. Tell yourself, “I’m super chilled. This is so relaxing. I’m just going to lie here and do nothing, it is wonderful, and I can easily do it. I am choosing to lie in this scanner and tell my brain this is just like being in bed. When I’m in my bed at home, I lie still, I relax, stress drains away.”’

“When he went into a hospital and did it, the whole medical team gave him a standing ovation. He said that meant more to him than all of his businesses.”

Make this new belief familiar

Once you’ve changed the way you talk and react to your fear of the unknown, the next step is to normalize it.

Life is full of uncertainties, and your fear of the unknown is bound to pop up again and again. The trick is to learn to be comfortable with some degree of uncertainty. 

Whenever an unfamiliar situation pops up and you begin to feel anxious, make it a habit to analyze your self-talk and change it to something more empowering. 

Rather than imagine the worst possible outcome of an unfamiliar situation, consider the best possible outcome instead. This can result in a dramatic change in your attitude. 

Although you won’t always get the outcome you desire, you’ll notice that things are rarely as bad as you imagine them to be. 

Continue repeating this until it becomes second nature to you. You’ll realize those unfamiliar situations rarely turn out to be the worst-case scenario you imagined, and your fear of the unknown will be much more manageable.

The Most Effective Way To Overcome Your Fear of the Unknown

The above techniques will work with discipline, patience, and consistency. However, if you’d like to overcome your fear of the unknown once and for all, the quickest and most effective way is by working directly with your subconscious mind. 

Rapid Transformational Therapy® (RTT®) is a revolutionary therapy program Marisa Peer developed after 30 years of working with clients from all over the world and from all walks of life.

It combines the most powerful aspects of hypnosis, psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and more to help you release your fears and start living fully and more courageously.

What makes this program special is that it helps you go deep into your subconscious mind. It accesses the root causes of issues you have been struggling with and helps to change the stories, words, and pictures in your mind.

RTT® can help you to overcome your fear of the unknown in three simple steps:

1. Hypnosis is used to guide you into a deeply relaxed state to help you explore where your fear of the unknown comes from.
2. Reframing the pictures and words your mind associates with the unknown and replacing them with empowering ones.
3. Making the new pictures and words familiar to your mind by repeating them to yourself every day and taking action. As a result, you will perceive things differently in your everyday life. 

With the guidance of a certified RTT® therapist, you can replace negative pictures and words associated with the unknown with ones that bring positive emotions such as happiness and fulfillment related to achieving your goals. 

This way, your subconscious mind will start associating unfamiliar situations with excitement and opportunity rather than fear and negative outcomes. 

Join the 21-Day Unstoppable Confidence Challenge

When you are looking to overcome your fear of the unknown, it pays to make sure you have an active role in the process, and invest your time in making productive steps to overcoming your phobia.

One fantastic way to do this is to join Marisa Peer’s 21-Day Unstoppable Confidence Challenge. Fear of the unknown can be rooted in low self-esteem and confidence, as you may worried that you won’t be able to handle whatever is thrown at you.

This challenge is designed to help you overcome whatever is holding you back, and build yourself up into the confident person you deserve to be, so you can face the unknown bravely, and with the unshakeable belief that you can handle anything.

Click the banner below to find out more about the training included with the challenge, and make sure you secure your spot today.

The Key Takeaway

Being able to step outside your comfort zone is key to growth and fulfilling your potential. Fear of the unknown can be debilitating, preventing you from taking risks and improving your life for the better. 

Once you understand how the mind works, you can reprogram it to embrace uncertainty and step outside your comfort zone with confidence and a sense of adventure. 

By following the tips above and working with a certified RTT® therapist, you can step into your ideal life and enjoy everything it has to offer. 

Do you wake up feeling tired, groggy, and irritable?

Chances are you are not getting the sleep you need, and there could be several reasons for this. If we do not get enough sleep, especially deep sleep, this will affect our physical and mental health.

In this article, you will learn:

• What deep sleep is
• What the stages of sleep are
• Why deep sleep is important
• How much deep sleep you need
• How to get more deep sleep
• Tips on how to get the most out of your sleep

What Is Deep Sleep?

Sleep is a natural state of relaxation in living organisms, where voluntary movements decrease and there is a change in the state of consciousness.

Scientists have classified our sleep into repetitive cycles, broken up into four stages. This classification is based on many factors, including brain wave frequencies, breathing, eye movement, muscle movement, and heart rate.

Deep sleep is one of the four stages of sleep, where our entire bodies, and, most importantly, our brains, do most of the recuperating and our cells regenerate. 

Deep sleep is vital for improving our overall physical and mental health, and is key to waking up feeling refreshed, energized, and ready to start our day. Not getting the right amount of deep sleep, however, can have serious implications for our wellbeing.

What Are the Stages of Sleep?

There are two basic types of sleep: rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-REM sleep. The first three stages of sleep are characterized as non-REM sleep, while the fourth stage is REM sleep. Each is linked to specific brain waves and neuronal activity.

Not all cycles are the same length, and you go through all stages of non-REM and REM sleep several times during a typical night, they also tend to become longer as the night progresses. 

Each cycle lasts about 90 minutes on average, and people generally go through four to six cycles in a normal night. However, this can vary depending on the person, their age, and recent sleep patterns.

• First sleep stage: Lasts about one to five minutes. It’s the transition from wakefulness to sleep, where our brain waves, heartbeat, and eye movement begin to slow down, and our muscles gradually relax. Breathing occurs at a regular rate, and the sleeper can be easily awakened.
• Second sleep stage: We move into light sleep, and it can range from about 10 to 60 minutes. Our eyes stop moving, our body temperature drops, and our brain activity, heart rate, and breathing slow down even further. Here, our body is preparing to enter the deepest stage of sleep.
• Third sleep stage: This is when deep sleep, also known as low-wave sleep or delta sleep, occurs. This stage lasts 20 to 40 minutes.

Studies show that brain wave frequencies from an electroencephalogram (EEG)—a test of brain activity—taken from patients in the deep sleep stage are much slower, while amplitude signals (delta waves) are higher.

Most of our deep sleep occurs in the first half of the night, while the second half is more REM-based (fourth stage of sleep).

• Fourth sleep stage: Lasts between 10 to 60 minutes and is mostly associated with the more vivid dreaming parts of our sleep. 

Lots of activity occurs during this time. Although we are unconscious and our muscles are atonic (we have no muscle control), our EEG levels are similar to when we are awake. In this stage, our heart rate also increases, and our breathing becomes more irregular.

Each sleep stage plays a crucial part in allowing the body and the brain to recover, grow, and develop.

World-renowned therapist Marisa Peer says, “You can learn how to fall asleep easily by treating the underlying cause beneath your sleep problems, so you can usually get better with simple yet effective techniques you can do yourself at home.” That way, you can turn your sleepless nights into rejuvenating ones and wake up refreshed and full of enthusiasm. 

She also says having a good sleeping pattern is essential to being healthy and happy.

How Important Is Deep Sleep?

Scientists are still trying to figure out exactly what deep sleep does and how it functions, but we do know that it is one of the most important stages of sleep because it is critical for restoration.

When we enter delta wave sleep (deep sleep), it allows our brain and body to recharge and restores them to healthy states after the strenuous activity they endure during our waking hours.  

Tasks and activities that require mental effort cause increased rates of glucose metabolism in the brain, so it is important to give your brain time to rest from its daily activeness. 

Moreover, secretion of growth hormones is linked to deep sleep stages, and the highest rates of production occur at this stage. 

Slow-wave sleep also increases parasympathetic neural activity in the brain, which is responsible for relaxation. 

In short, deep sleep helps bolster our immune systems, rejuvenate our cells, increase blood flow to our muscles, grow and repair tissues and bones, as well as other essential bodily processes.

Findings also show that deep sleep is vital for consolidating memories, and that the body may struggle to make new memories or even retain information without enough sleep.

How Much Deep Sleep Do You Need?

Research shows we spend about a third of our life sleeping if we get between seven to nine hours of sleep a night. 

As we get older, we spend less time in slow-wave sleep and more time in stage two sleep, or light sleep, as we do not need as much deep sleep.

Experts say healthy adults spend around 13 to 23 percent of their sleep in deep sleep—that is roughly between 62 to 110 minutes per night. 

There is no preferred minimum time spent on REM sleep, but healthy adults spend 20 to 25 percent of their sleep in this stage and around 75 percent on non-REM sleep.

On average, healthy teenagers need about eight to ten hours of sleep, while adults aged 26-64 require seven to nine hours.

However, frequent lack of deep sleep and sleep deprivation can cause weight loss or gain, diabetes, stroke, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s disease, and can be dangerous due to impaired reactions and attention lapses. 

According to the National Sleep Foundation, “A lack of sleep is linked to overeating—especially the overconsumption of junk food—which can lead to weight gain.

Two hormones that help regulate hunger—ghrelin and leptin—are affected by sleep: Ghrelin stimulates appetite, while leptin decreases it. When the body is sleep-deprived, the level of ghrelin spikes, while the level of leptin falls, leading to an increase in hunger.”

How To Improve Your Deep Sleep

Having helped thousands of people overcome their sleep-related issues throughout her 30 years of experience as a hypnotherapist, Marisa Peer has developed an audio download to help you dramatically improve your sleep. The powerful audio is designed to help you avoid tossing and turning in bed, so you wake up more rested and energized for your day. 

Download Perfect Deep Unbroken Sleep and listen to the relaxing, hypnotic script as part of your bedtime routine for 21 days to get the most benefit, and fall asleep easily and effortlessly as you begin to rewire your mind to fall asleep easier.

Deep sleep is vital to our health; it is important to think about the quality of sleep we are getting and whether the time spent sleeping is restorative rather than about the quantity of sleep.

1. To increase our amount of deep sleep, we must allow ourselves enough total sleep time every night. 
2. A healthy diet is also an important factor. Studies have shown that low-carbohydrate and healthy fats diets helps promote deep sleep.
3. Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine. Marisa says, “Drinking caffeinated drinks and eating heavy meals before bedtime can affect sleep. Drinking alcohol also negatively impacts sleep as it reduces REM, which is essential for brain activity. The nicotine from tobacco acts as a stimulant and can make it harder to fall asleep.”

4. Exercising at the right time can help extend slow-wave sleep, and experts recommend around 30 minutes a day. Try to avoid exercise before bedtime so as not to interfere with your downtime and your sleep. 

Doing vigorous exercise—like running or swimming—during the day can increase deep sleep.

5. Generating body heat has also been shown to prolong deep sleep—like taking a hot bath or shower, or warming up in a sauna or hot tub. But, sleeping in a hot room or with heavy blankets will make it harder to slumber, and the room should be cool.

6. Try mindfulness exercises (where you practice being intensely aware of your feelings), meditation, breathing, or relaxing yoga before bed. There are many deep sleep meditation and nightly relaxation techniques available. Try this great recovery and replenishment guided meditation by Marisa Peer.
7. Remove bright lights and disruptive noises from your bedroom. Bear in mind that bad sleeping partners and snorers will distract you from getting the proper sleep you need.
8. If you suffer from any sleep disorders, such as insomnia or narcolepsy (a long-term condition that causes people to suddenly fall asleep at inappropriate times), it is best to consult a physician, depending on your case and symptoms. 

You can read more about the symptoms and effects of insomnia in this useful blog post: The Symptoms of Insomnia.

Alternative ways to help improve your sleep

Hypnotherapist Marisa Peer says various therapies can also help you fall asleep, such as her award-winning and highly effective method of hypnosis, Rapid Transformational Therapyp® (RTT®). 

The UK’s National Health Service (NHS) also recommends “a regular bedtime routine to help you wind down and prepare for bed. Your routine depends on what works for you, but the most important thing is working out a routine and sticking to it.”

Keep regular sleeping hours as this programs the brain and internal body clock to get used to a set routine.

Keep a sleep diary

It can be a good idea to keep a sleep diary. It may uncover lifestyle habits or daily activities that contribute to your sleeplessness. A sleep diary can also reveal underlying conditions.

Final Thoughts

Sleep and its stages can differ and depend on our age, home environment, work, and social lifestyles. Try out different tips and see which one best suits you. 

Marisa says it takes at least 21 days to completely let go of an old belief and create a new one. You need to train your body and mind to release old habits and replace them with new, positive behaviors.

That is why if you can find a bedtime routine, it is usually the best and more stable option to ensure that you wake up feeling refreshed, re-energized, and alert every day.

She says we have to remember that our minds are wired to keep us alive. So, enough sleep is not only key to our overall wellbeing, but also those around us as well!

Maybe your partner or roommate has noticed you chatting in your sleep frequently, and you are curious as to why this might be happening.

In this article, we are going to answer some of the questions that you might have about talking in your sleep. We will dive into:

• What Is Sleep Talking?
• What Are the Consequences of Sleep Talking to Our Health?
• Why Do People Talk in Their Sleep?
• What Are the Symptoms of Sleep Talking?
• Sleep Talking and Sleeping Stages
• Why Do People Scream in Their Sleep?
• How To Stop Sleep Talking

So, let’s get straight to it. 

What Is Sleep Talking?

When someone talks in their sleep, it may range from full sentences to complete gibberish. You might even take on a different voice or speak in a different language.

All in all, it is usually quite harmless, except perhaps for the sleep deprivation that your partner or significant other might experience due to your frequent chatter.

Technically, sleep talking is a parasomnia. Parasomnias are any abnormal behaviors that occur as you sleep or move between sleep stages, including sleep talking, head banging, sleepwalking, and more. 

What Are the Consequences of Sleep Talking on Our Health?

Usually, sleep talking is harmless, not having any major impact on a person’s sleep. Additionally, it often doesn’t occur frequently enough to cause any major sleep deprivation.

At the same time, there are some scenarios where talking in your sleep can pose some problems, such as:

• Disrupting your partner’s sleep, leaving them sleep-deprived during the day.
• Revealing embarrassing information that leads to interpersonal conflict.
• When it occurs alongside other parasomnias, such as sleepwalking. If this happens, it may indicate that you are experiencing a sleep disorder. In this case, it is really important to get checked out by your doctor.

Why Do People Talk in Their Sleep?

So, what does it mean when you talk in your sleep? What causes sleep talking?

The answer to the question, “Why do people talk in their sleep?” is much more vague than many would like. The truth is that experts are not really sure why this happens in most cases.

Some evidence connects sleep talking to dream reenactments, which occur during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. However, sleep talking may happen during REM and non-REM sleep stages. 

Other research suggests that a genetic component may be involved. This means that if your mother or father is a sleep talker, you are more likely to be one as well. 

Overall, sleep experts seem to agree that sleep talking is more frequent in those with mental health conditions or with those experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).  

If snoring is associated with sleep talking, it may further be related to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which requires a specialist to observe your sleep in a lab for proper diagnosis.

What Are the Symptoms of Sleep Talking?

The main symptom of sleep talking is audible expression as you sleep. Research indicates that half the time, this sleep talking is gibberish, mumbling, and incomprehensible. Sleep talking that is comprehensible resembles conversational speech.

Typically, sleep talking only lasts for a short period of time as a person sleeps, such as a few minutes or on and off. 

Sleep Talking and Sleeping Stages

Interestingly, talking in your sleep is most comprehensible during the REM stage of sleep. Gibberish and other mumblings typically occur during deep, non-REM sleep.

Sleep talking can also occur, as previously mentioned, during sleepwalking or even during a nocturnal-related eating disorder.

Why Do People Scream in Their Sleep?

Screaming in sleep is less common. If you are yelling in sleep, this is usually a sign of a REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) or sleep terrors. 

In particular, during sleep terrors, yelling in sleep might coincide with thrashing or kicking. In these situations, it can be difficult to wake someone up. These situations are also most common in children.

Screaming in sleep is also found during the dreams and may involve shouting, grunting, and violent movements.

How To Stop Sleep Talking

By now, you might be wondering how to stop sleep talking. The following sleep talking treatments may help:

• Lifestyle changes—this may mean avoiding alcohol, caffeine, and heavy meals before bed. It may further involve setting up a regular sleep schedule, exposing yourself to sunlight during the day, and following good sleep hygiene, such as ensuring your bedroom is dark, cool, and quiet.
• Sleep hypnosis—if you are having difficulty sleeping and experiencing random sleep talking events, sleep hypnosis might help both you and your partner obtain a relaxing night’s rest.
• Consider therapy—for mental disorders, stress, anxiety, and more, a professional can help you find proactive and healthy ways to cope that do not interrupt your sleep.
• Stress management—find ways to minimize your stress, such as through meditation, mindfulness, and relaxation techniques.

Mastering Your Sleep Is a Sure-Fire Way to a Better and Happier Life

Talking in your sleep is typically nothing to worry about, unless it happens often and along with other disturbances. Assess your sleep patterns and determine if talking in your sleep is interrupting your beauty rest. From there, you can find ways to address the problem and tackle it once and for all.
If you want to start doing that right here and right now, purchase the Perfect Deep Unbroken Sleep audio course from globally acclaimed hypnotherapist Marisa Peer. Help yourself find optimal rest so you can lead an optimal life.

Do you have trouble sleeping? If the answer’s yes, then you’re not alone. In fact, 40% of the world’s population has been suffering from sleep problems during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

If you’re looking to get a restful night’s sleep, creating a good night routine is a simple lifestyle change that can tremendously improve your sleep quality. 

By changing what you do before bed—also known as “sleep hygiene”—you can eliminate sleep issues, get better quality rest, and feel more refreshed and energized in the morning. 

But what exactly is a healthy night routine, and how do you cultivate it? I’ll share some of the most effective techniques to help you improve your sleep hygiene and sleep better each night.

What Is a Night Routine?

Simply put, a night routine is the sequence of activities that you do before bed each night. 

If you’re having trouble sleeping, it may be because you don’t have a consistent routine, or your current routine is negatively affecting the quality of your sleep. 

Having a healthy night routine means cultivating habits before bed that help you destress and improve your sleep quality. 

Having worked with thousands of clients who have had trouble sleeping, I know that having a relaxing routine before bedtime and going to bed at the same time each night is key to sleeping like a baby.

Why Is It Important to Establish a Night Routine?

When you follow a set routine every night, you’re establishing a pattern that helps your mind recognize that it’s time to sleep. 

This pattern cues the release of hormones that make you feel sleepy and helps your body rejuvenate itself during sleep. 

Having a night routine also helps you fall asleep at the same time each night, which is just as important as getting sufficient sleep. 

Studies have shown that having regular sleep patterns helps reduce your risk for cardiovascular diseases.

Having a healthy night routine isn’t just beneficial for adults either; setting a consistent sleep pattern with your baby helps them sleep throughout the night without interruptions. Eventually, they develop their circadian rhythm so that they can fall asleep by themselves.

How Do I Develop a Healthy Night Routine?

These tips will help you develop a night routine that regulates your bedtime and ensures that you consistently get a good night’s sleep. 

Take a warm bath before bed

Research has shown that taking a warm bath 60-90 minutes before bed can help you sleep better. 

After a bath, the evaporated water decreases your body temperature and signals your brain to release melatonin, which is a sleep hormone.

On top of helping you feel cleaner and more refreshed, bathing also enables you to unplug your mind from the day (since you’re not distracted by the TV or your phone) and allows you to ease into a more restful sleep. 

Have a light snack one hour before bed

Some experts suggest that eating a light snack, especially those rich in carbohydrates, could help you sleep better. 

As it turns out, low insulin levels negatively affect sleep. Eating a carbohydrate-rich snack before bed promotes insulin secretion and contributes to a healthy circadian rhythm. 

Ideally, your snack should also have some proteins mixed in. Proteins provide an amino acid called tryptophan, which helps your body produce melatonin.  

Avoid going to bed hungry as it may cause you stress and discomfort, making it harder to fall asleep. Hunger may also cause you to wake up earlier than intended or, in extreme cases, may even keep you awake.

Read a book before bed

Reading a book (paper, not digital) is an excellent habit to include in your night routine. 

Reading helps unplug your mind from your day, reduces stress, and makes it easier for you to fall asleep.

One study found that just six minutes of reading could reduce your stress by up to 28%. 

The best part is that it doesn’t matter whether you read fiction or nonfiction—as long as you’re lying still in a cool, dark environment, you’re allowing your body to power down and get ready for sleep.

Prepare your to-do list for tomorrow

If you find that you’re having trouble sleeping because you’re worried about your tasks for the next day, take about five to ten minutes to prepare your to-do list.

Randomly thinking of everything you need to do in your head is a recipe for stress. Instead, organize your tasks by writing them down and sorting them in order of priority. 

Being organized helps mentally affirm that your day is over and clarifies which goals you need to focus on, helping you better manage that stress.

Prep your bedroom for a good night’s sleep

If you want quality sleep, make sure you have the right environment. Studies show that the best sleep environment is in a cool, quiet, and dark place. 

Set the thermostat to a cool temperature, dim the lights, and pull the blackout curtains closed to keep light disruption at a minimum. 

Having a quiet environment is also essential; if your room has outside noise beyond your control, a white noise machine may help drown it out.

Gratitude journaling

I believe that gratitude is crucial to our overall health and wellbeing. Make it a habit to write down what you’re grateful for each day.

Studies have shown that gratitude doesn’t just strengthen your immune system and lower stress levels, but it also helps cultivate a positive mindset. 

Sleep meditation

One of the biggest mistakes people often make when trying to go to bed is that they tell their minds to fall asleep. 

Forcing your mind to do something is stressful to your body, which makes it harder for you to fall asleep. The key is to allow sleep to come to you by rephrasing the words you use to speak to yourself. 

After working with thousands of clients who have insomnia, I’ve learned that sleep meditation is one of the most effective ways to aid falling into a deep, restful sleep.

If you’re interested in trying sleep meditation, I’ve prepared a free Deep Sleep meditation which you can find here. Many of my clients have come back and told me how much it’s helped improve their sleep! 

What to Avoid In Your Night Routine

Cultivating these healthy habits can certainly help regulate your sleep and improve your sleep quality. However, a healthy night routine isn’t just about what you should do, it’s also about what you shouldn’t do.

Here are some activities you should avoid before bedtime. These activities disrupt your body functions, make you feel more alert, and may prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep.

Blue light

Reading on your Kindle or browsing any electronic devices while in bed exposes you to blue light, which blocks melatonin production and keeps you awake.

Stick to reading paper books in dim light for a healthier night routine. 

Strenuous exercise

You may have heard that exercise is good for sleep, but experts recommend no strenuous activity at least an hour before bedtime. 

Intense workout sessions increase your heart rate and body temperature, which makes it harder to fall asleep and may even reduce your sleep duration.

Heavy meals

Avoid heavy meals, sugary snacks, caffeine, and alcohol up to three hours before your bedtime. 

Consuming these before bed may fire up your metabolism and make it difficult to fall asleep or sleep soundly.

Lying awake in bed

If you find yourself tossing and turning in bed for hours on end, it’s much better to move to another room and do something else instead.

You want to associate your room with relaxing activities and sleep only. Staying awake in bed will teach your body to resist sleep even when you’re lying down, ultimately prolonging the time you take to fall asleep.

Sleeping for too long

Pay attention to how much you sleep too. Research has shown that adults who sleep for less than six hours or more than eight hours a night could be more at risk of premature death.  

Set your alarm to wake up in a timely manner so that you’ll avoid throwing off your internal clock, even if it’s on a long weekend.

Still Having Trouble Sleeping? Consider Hypnotherapy

If you’re still having trouble sleeping, you may be interested in trying sleep hypnosis. Sleep hypnosis is a powerful therapy method I’ve used to help thousands of my clients suffering from sleep problems. 

Hypnotherapy works by directly addressing your subconscious mind and helping you release the stress and mental blocks that make it difficult for you to fall asleep.

After helping thousands of clients around the globe, I know how important sleep is to your overall quality of life. That’s why I’ve put together a specific program to help you achieve deep, unbroken sleep.

Using the latest techniques in hypnotherapy, I’ve designed my audio hypnosis course to guide you into a calm and relaxed state of mind so you can easily drift off into a restful sleep.  

You’ll be able to fall asleep more easily at night without having unhealthy night routines like being glued to your screen or tossing and turning in bed. 

The result is that you wake up each morning more rested and more energized during the day.

Click here to listen to an audio sample of the course.

Some of my clients who have tried this course swear by it, claiming that it has improved their night routine and allowed them to experience a deeper, more restful sleep. I cannot wait to hear about your experience. 

Final Thoughts

Just as your morning routine can affect your health and productivity throughout your day, your night routine has a huge impact on your sleep.

Cultivating good sleep hygiene and combining it with sleep hypnosis will help you have consistent, high-quality sleep. 

The result is you feeling energized, rejuvenated, and refreshed every day!

It is also one of the most critical types of sleep. We need paradoxical sleep for our wellbeing. Not getting enough REM sleep could leave us physically and mentally exhausted.

This article will explain everything you need to know about paradoxical sleep:

• What it is and what is paradoxical about paradoxical sleep
• What happens during paradoxical sleep
• What paradoxical insomnia is
• What a paradoxical intention is

What Is Paradoxical Sleep?

Paradoxical sleep is the phase of sleep in which our eyes move in a rapid pattern, that is, the REM stage of sleep. It is different in many ways from the non-REM sleep phases, as you will discover shortly.

In the 1950s, researchers at the University of Chicago started exploring what was to become one of the major topics of sleep study today—REM sleep.

An exciting finding shows how much we truly need paradoxical sleep. When we are REM-deprived (when our sleep is interrupted at the REM stage), we should expect a REM rebound. This means that we will have a longer REM phase the next night to compensate for the loss.

In other words, we need to dream. We release our emotions, process stressful events, and incorporate new experiences into our minds. Dreams are vital for your body and soul.

What is paradoxical about paradoxical sleep?

REM sleep is also called paradoxical sleep because our brains are in a state that resembles being awake. On the other hand, we are particularly resilient to waking up.

Our body is limp because our muscles lose their tension. In other words, our bodies lie still. We are in a remarkably deep stage of the sleep cycle. We tend to be unaffected by noise, light, or touch.

The paradox, therefore, lies in the contrast between our mind’s high activity levels and the deeply relaxed body.

What Happens During Paradoxical Sleep?

As we said before, there are two types of sleep—non-REM and REM, or paradoxical, sleep. 

Non-REM sleep has three different stages. Therefore, as the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke explains, there are four stages of sleep.

This cycle is repeated every 90 minutes or so:

1. The first stage lasts for a few minutes. It is a transition from wakefulness to sleep.
2. You spend most of your sleeping time in stage two, which is a phase of light sleep. Your body is relaxed, your body temperature drops, and brain waves slow down.
3. The third stage is deep sleep, usually lasting for 20-40 minutes. You need perfect unbroken deep sleep so that you feel sufficiently refreshed in the morning.
4. After these three non-REM stages, paradoxical REM sleep comes in. Your muscles are almost paralyzed so that you do not act out your dreams. Your brain waves, however, resemble those of a waking state. Similarly, your breathing becomes faster and more irregular. Your heart rate and blood pressure increase to near waking levels. Memory consolidation also most likely requires REM sleep.

Every phase of sleep is vital for your health. Sleep deprivation of any kind will put you at increased risk of severe health problems, including diabetes, heart diseases, and cancer. You are more prone to depression and anxiety and could also lose your libido and become disinterested in activities you usually enjoy.

What about paradoxical sleep deprivation? Research reveals that we need enough REM sleep to function optimally, both on physical and mental levels.

Suppose you are deprived of the REM phase. In that case, according to an extensive review, your mental and physical wellbeing can be jeopardized. You may become aggressive, irritable, or anxious. Focusing on a task could become extremely challenging. Your appetite and eating habits could change. Overall, you would not be your best self.

What Is Paradoxical Insomnia

Paradoxical insomnia, previously called “sleep state misperception” and “subjective insomnia,” is a subtype of insomnia. It is a type that is difficult to assess and treat using standard clinical methods.

People who have paradoxical insomnia underestimate the time and quality of their sleep. Objectively, there is no evidence of sleep deprivation. However, those affected feel as if they have severe insomnia. They would say that they slept much less than they did in reality.

Two common causes of paradoxical insomnia are stress and anxiety. These issues probably cause the person to be overly vigilant. In a way, distress prevents you from enjoying the benefits of restorative sleep.

This is why Marisa Peer’s Deep Sleep meditation could help you. It will guide you into a deep and restorative sleep. This meditation has been helping people around the world who struggle with insomnia or poor sleep quality achieve a sound, restful night’s sleep.

Listening to Marisa’s voice, your mind will release its alert or anxious energy. You will invite restorative sleep to come to you.Another of Marisa’s powerful products, Sound Sleeper, will help you get to the bottom of the cause of your insomnia. With insightful videos and practical activities, you will start to create a change in your thinking and, consequently, your sleep patterns. Over seven days, Marisa will walk you through every step you need to take to enjoy a solid and restful night’s sleep.

What Is Paradoxical Intervention?

Paradoxical intervention is a psychotherapeutic technique developed by Austrian psychiatrist and psychotherapist Victor Frankl. In paradoxical intervention, the client is asked to magnify and intentionally wish for the symptom or issue they struggle with.

For example, if you fear blushing when you speak to someone, you would be asked to blush as much as possible—intentionally. The paradoxical and humorous nature of such an attempt usually does the trick to liberate the client from their symptoms. Research supported the claims of its effectiveness in treating a range of psychological issues.

Paradoxical intervention is widely used in treating insomnia.  According to scientific reviews, it is efficient and effective.

When you have insomnia and are trying hard to fall asleep, the opposite usually happens. The paradoxical intervention means trying NOT to fall asleep, and—you guessed it—the opposite tends to happen.

Ensure Great Sleep Quality for Wellbeing

Good sleep quality means sufficient paradoxical sleep. You need to dream in order for your mind and body to recuperate. In paradoxical sleep, your mind processes daily events and ongoing stresses.

Marisa Peer’s work provides you with fantastic tools to ensure excellent sleep quality, so you don’t need to wait any longer to begin your journey to better, restful sleep. Find the product that fits your needs best, and make the first step towards optimal health and wellbeing.

So, what does it mean when you cry in your sleep? The truth is that if you wake up crying, this could indicate various physical or psychological issues, which I am going to explore in more detail in this article. 

I will dive into:

• Why do I cry in my sleep?
• What does it mean when you cry in your sleep?
• Who is more likely to cry during sleep?
• How to stop crying during your sleep.

Let’s get straight to it.

Why Do I Cry in My Sleep?

When babies cry in their sleep, this is usually as they transition from one sleep stage to another, such as from a deep stage to a lighter sleep stage. However, if you are waking up crying in your sleep as an adult, this could indicate a psychological disorder or deep-rooted trauma. 

Before now, you may have thought, “Can you cry in your sleep?” but now you know it’s possible, you may be wondering why it’s happening. Below, I have listed the various common causes to help you get a better idea of why this is happening in your life.

1. You are experiencing nightmares

When waking up crying, psychological disorders or conditions might be the first thing that comes to mind. Yet, scary dreams that emerge in your mind as you sleep could just as easily be to blame. 

While nightmares tend to occur more at a younger age, they can also impact adults. Usually, this tends to happen during stressful times. Sometimes, the brain presents these nightmares as a way to help you process or work through difficult situations. While unpleasant, you can avoid these by actively finding ways to reduce the stress in your day-to-day life.

2. You are having night terrors

Night terrors are usually marked by thrashing or sleepwalking. However, crying in your sleep may also occur. These episodes typically last a few seconds to a few minutes.

Similar to nightmares, children experience night terrors more often than adults. At the same time, it is possible to experience these episodes at any age.

3. You are grieving

Grief is a tricky thing, and these emotions can quickly become buried due to the hustle and bustle involved in your daily life. Thus, these emotions may end up releasing as you sleep. You might wake up with tears running down your face and immense feelings of sadness. 

This is okay. Grieving is a natural part of losing someone and your mind will seek ways to process these emotions in one way or another, such as crying in your sleep.

However, if this is a recurring issue, I recommend seeking out help if you need it. Buried or blocked grief can eventually lead to anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions.

4. You are depressed

While grief is often temporary and has a clear cause, such as the death of a family member or friend, depression lasts much longer and sometimes does not have a definitive cause. 

Symptoms of depression may manifest as changes in your eating or sleeping patterns, as well as unexplained crying. This may also involve crying in your sleep. 
Additionally, there are certain types of depression, such as diurnal mood variation, that may impact your mood more in the morning or at night. Typically, these types are associated with irregularities with your circadian rhythm, also known as your sleep-wake cycle.

5. You have parasomnia

Parasomnia is a condition where a person behaves abnormally in their sleep. Sometimes this may mean they become aggressive or upset, which may cause crying. This condition usually has genetic links. Thus, if someone in your family suffers from it, you are more likely to experience it too.

6. You are stressed

Feeling stressed or anxious and having no outlet to manage or process these complex emotions can lead to waking up crying. This often coincides with crying bouts during the day.

7. You have a physical medical condition

Crying in your sleep is not always a psychological problem. Breathing disorders, such as acid reflux or asthma, may lead babies to wake up crying more than usual. Chronic back pain or any other physical ailment in adults may also lead to waking up crying.

What Does It Mean When You Cry in Your Sleep?

For most people, crying in their sleep is a one-off occasion. If this sounds like you, it is likely due to a bad dream or nightmare and is not anything to worry about. 

If you find crying in your sleep is a regular occurrence, something else might be at play, such as a serious disorder or condition. If this is the case, book an appointment with your doctor. They know you and your situation best and can help you determine a plan of action.

Who Is More Likely to Cry During Sleep?

Babies are more likely to cry during sleep. As previously mentioned above, this usually happens when moving from a deep sleep stage to a lighter deep stage. Additionally, crying is a baby’s main form of communication, which may cause them to cry during their sleep or upon waking. 

Generally, older children and adults should seek out a sleep specialist or doctor if they find themselves frequently waking up crying. Doing so may indicate a disorder that requires medical and expert intervention.

Is it normal to cry in your sleep?

Crying in your sleep is not uncommon. At the same time, it is not something you should ignore or put to the side, especially if it is a frequent occurrence. You may have deep-rooted trauma or grief that you might need help with processing.

At which sleeping stage are people more likely to cry?

Most people tend to cry during their sleep when transitioning between sleep stages. This often means going from a deeper sleep stage to a lighter sleep stage, where movement is more likely to occur.

How To Stop Crying During Your Sleep

Crying in the middle of the night is very disruptive. You might struggle to fall back asleep and you might experience fatigue and exhaustion as you go about your day.

Luckily, there are things you can do about it. In my 30 years of experience as a therapist, I have found the following activities help individuals overcome sleep troubles, such as crying when sleeping.

1. Meditation

Meditation is a wonderful mindfulness practice to include in your day or during the night. It can help to calm the mind as you begin to fall asleep, allowing you to fall into a more peaceful rest and avoid waking up crying. 

There are many guided meditations available for sleep. Listen to the video below for a restorative sleep meditation I put together to help people just like you.

2. Stress management activities

Stress is a natural part of human life. Technically, it is an innate survival mechanism that alerts the body to any threats. While actual life-threatening situations are less common in today’s modern era, this mechanism still remains. You might feel stressed during major life changes, such as the loss of a loved one, moving house, or starting a new job. 

It is important to find ways to manage your stress and there are many different stress management activities you can try. Some popular and effective ones include deep breathing techniques or talking to a trusted friend or loved one about it.

3. Sleep hypnosis

Via a recorded session or in-person, sleep hypnosis may help you fall into a peaceful sleep. Being hypnotized puts your mind in a heightened state of suggestibility. This means that you are more likely to respond to cues such as, “Relax,” or, “Let go,” which can help you drift into a deep sleep for the night where you don’t wake up crying.

4. Seek out professional help

If crying in your sleep has become a frequent occurrence, book an appointment with your doctor. They may recommend further testing for certain disorders or they may refer you to a mental health professional to help you overcome any deep-rooted trauma.

Sleep Peacefully, Without Crying Waking You Up

Sleep is essential for optimal human health and fulfillment. Without it, it can negatively impact many mental and physical processes. You are left functioning at only a small percentage of your full capacity. 
However, by finding ways to overcome crying in your sleep, you can achieve greater fulfillment, health, and happiness in your life. Harnessing the power of your mind and gaining back control is an excellent place to start. Take the first step today and try my course, Perfect Deep Unbroken Sleep.