When something in your life isn’t going right and it’s keeping you up at night, there’s an abundance of truth and wisdom in the phrase “It’s not worth losing sleep over it.”  A good night’s sleep is critical to every facet of our lives including health, relationships, productivity and safety.

Of course, it’s no surprise that negative mood states can make getting a good night’s sleep difficult, if not impossible. But the harm doesn’t end there. Interrupted or insufficient sleep can lead to bouts of depression or anxiety. Regardless of which comes first, the end result is that negative moods and poor sleep are connected. 

Three signs your mood is affecting your sleep:

1. When you  climb in bed, you can’t “turn off” anxious or negative thoughts playing on and endless loop in your brain.

2. You’re “dragging” during the day. Daytime depression or anxiety creates fragmented sleep patterns resulting in daytime fatigue even if you’ve spent the required hours in bed.  Depression itself can be accompanied by low energy so it can be hard to determine whether daytime drowsiness is sleep or mood related.

3. Frequent bad dreams or nightmares are associated with depression and anxiety as well as poor sleeps quality that affects quality of life.

Tips to stop racing thoughts, calm anxiety

There is a simple breathing technique that can help banish negative moods as well a calm racing thoughts keeping you awake. It’s called 4-7-8 breathing. It works by engaging your parasympathetic nervous system which slows your heart rate and causes your body and mind to relax.  This also sends a signal to your sympathetic nervous system that tamps down your racing thoughts.  (I’ve used this technique myself when I can’t seem to “turn off” my mind/thoughts and go to sleep. I am always amazed that something so simple can put me to sleep in less than a minute.)

This breathing technique can be used “on demand” or as a daily practice to help balance moods. The calming effect it creates is helpful in many situations: when you want to relax, de-stress, or reduce anxiety or when someone pushes your buttons and you want to gather yourself before you say or do something you might regret later.

How to do the 4-7-8 Breathing Technique

This technique can be done standing, sitting or lying down. Just be sure you’re comfortable and your back is straight so you abdomen/belly is unrestricted. You will be taking deep belly breaths with this technique. This means that as you inhale deeply, your belly will expand. Then as you exhale, your belly will contract. (This may feel strange at first but it is actually what we were born doing—babies breathe this way! Overtime, we humans often become chest breathers)

Place the tip of your tongue against the inside gums of your upper front teeth and keep it there while you’re doing this technique.

1. Start by exhaling completely through your mouth by making a whoosh sound.

2. Close your mouth and inhale through your nose as you mentally count to FOUR.

3. Hold your breath for a count of SEVEN.

4. Exhale through your mouth for a count of EIGHT, making a whoosh sound as before.

5. This completes one breath. Repeat the 4-7-8 breath three more times for a total of four.

Practice Tips: The ratio of time spent on each step (inhaling, holding and exhaling) is important. So, if you find it difficult, count faster but maintain the 4-7-8 count ratio.

If you want to use this technique for stress management, anxiety or better focus, start with doing four breaths twice a day for the first month. Increase to eight breaths once you have mastered four, but do not do more than eight total.