July 21, 2020 at 12:36 pm
The term insomnia means sleep disturbance, otherwise insomnia. There is an opinion among researchers that it is during the full moon that a person feels extraordinary excess energy. During this period, people easily take on difficult tasks and new ideal hypotheses are born. However, the downside to such a surge of strength is that a person does not have a deep, anxious sleep until the onset of prolonged sleep disturbance; lack of sleep increases anxiety, and exacerbation of chronic diseases occurs. Does the Moon really have such a powerful influence on people? What could cause them to have insomnia during the full moon?
Ancient ideas about the Moon: mysticism and the works of Hippocrates
Even in ancient times, people noticed that the gravitational forces of the Moon and the Sun powerfully influence the Earth in a special way. And from time immemorial, under their influence on our planet, every day there is a change of tides in the seas, and a global process, measured over centuries, of displacement of the crust of tectonic plates. Therefore, such a force acted magically on ancient people, acquiring mysticism.
In his treatise, Hippocrates (400 BC) wrote about a decrease in metabolism in the human body under the influence of the full Moon. In addition, he warned doctors not to perform operations during the last lunar phase due to increasing dangers to the patient's health. Hippocrates warned about possible bleeding, and indicated that the healing process would be delayed.
Insomnia with depression
Depression is a mental disorder in which three signs consistently appear: low mood, loss of positive thinking, impaired sobriety of perception (everything seems somewhat worse than it actually is), and stiffness in movements.
Insomnia is often a sure companion of depression. The human body is sensitive, therefore it immediately reacts to the mental state and its psycho-emotional background.
During an anxious state, insomnia is accompanied by early awakening, if you manage to fall asleep. The inability to “get enough sleep” for a few hours makes you angry. Usually waking up occurs from 4 to 6 o'clock. Repeated falling asleep can be combined with a light restless drowsiness.
Full moon phenomenon and insomnia
Human sleep directly depends on the influence of the Sun and its location relative to the horizon. Unlike predators, people sleep at night and are awake during the day. However, solar activity is not regular and depends on the alternation of seasons. To maintain a stable psyche, a person simply needs to systematically change the time of day.
At the stage of the new month, the force of gravitational action on the planet doubles. This is due to the fact that during the new moon our Sun and the Moon are located on one side of the globe, and their gravitational forces are summed up. It is as if the person is slightly flattened, reducing his weight, while the fluid pressure in the tissues drops, the regime is normalized, regardless of the season of the year.
The main causes of insomnia and its signs
When the full moon occurs, the Earth’s satellite stands opposite the Sun relative to our planet, and a powerful counteraction of their gravity occurs, which seem to cancel each other out. During this period, people practically do not feel the position of the Sun above the horizon. Hypertensive patients and those most sensitive to the effects of gravitational fields suffer especially greatly from insomnia.
In the fight against insomnia during the full moon, in order to give the body a good night's sleep and good rest, you must adhere to the following recommendations:
- Try to tightly cover the windows with thick curtains.
- Take the minimum dose of a sedative.
- Perform an intensive set of exercises every day until your muscles feel deeply tired, and finish all active physical activity at least 3 hours before bedtime.
- You need to tune your mind to neutral emotions, you can use the well-known mental “counting of sheep” or turn on quiet soothing music before bed.
What does anxiety want to tell us?
Anxiety is a normal feeling that everyone has, although it is not pleasant for anyone. Brief instructions for dealing with it may look like this. We ask: “Why did you come?” We are looking for an answer and taking the precautions that are possible. Then we will definitely let you go.
But what about those who can’t cope with anxiety, says clinical psychologist Natalia Matveeva.
Some people don’t care at all, but there are those who worry, worry, worry all the time. For some reason, it seems that those who are actively moving forward are great, and suspicious comrades are losers...
Everyone experiences anxiety in one way or another. For some it manifests itself more intensely, for others less. When you do everything quickly, go over your head, constantly work - this is also not very healthy, this is a neurotic tendency. Perhaps such people make rapid progress in everything, but their body and psyche suffer. They shouldn’t worry, they shouldn’t get sick, because they have a specific goal and they go towards it, no matter what.
Anxious people listen too much to themselves, to others, doubt, and live only in their experiences. A person in an anxious state constantly thinks about danger, he expects it all the time. Now imagine that he lives in this state for a long time. He is always on alert: he buys masks, toilet paper and euros, but he doesn’t just buy, he waits: it’s about to start! How long can the body withstand such an onslaught? Anxiety develops into anxiety, and psychosomatic diseases are often associated. If you do not work with this condition, you can subsequently develop somatic diseases and, as a result, chronic diseases.
Natalia Matveeva, clinical psychologist, employee of the medical and social shelter "Ark", teacher at the St. Petersburg Institute of Psychological Counseling.
So what should we do? How to deal with anxiety?
The catch is that anxiety is not fear, fear is no less frightening, but at least it is a well-defined emotion. And what causes anxiety is not always clear. It would be good to figure out what anxiety wants to tell us, what to protect us from? There may be a very good reason for it. Try to understand what you can do to protect yourself? For example, if you are afraid of getting sick right before your vacation, start taking vitamins, sleep more and walk in the fresh air. In general, do everything that will help strengthen your immune system.
People are not born, as you say, brave or suspicious. Much depends on upbringing - anxiety is contagious. An anxious mother has anxious children, the child reads what and how in life should be assessed. So timid, shy, fearful people grow up who are very worried when someone else does something wrong.
How to filter out maternal anxiety as an adult in order to live more freely?
It’s difficult to give a short recommendation here; they come to a psychologist and sort it out. You need to seize the moment of prolonged anxiety. Try to understand when it formed, what the reasons were, and whether there are now grounds for this anxiety to continue. There is a lot of work, but the main thing is to keep track of it yourself. Try to catch it at the level of thought and awareness.
It is important that anxiety is an emotion of the future. Anxious people are encouraged to live in the present.
Affect kills intelligence. It is difficult for a person to make a decision - the so-called “affective load” is observed. If anxiety intensifies due to some triggers, another imbalance results - a person begins to make quick, rash decisions and then regret them. In 90% of cases, imaginary problems do not happen, but a person experiences no less torment - our brain does not care at all whether this actually happens or we are just thinking about it. He reacts accordingly: the owner needs to be saved!
Is it possible to track and diagnose your anxiety?
Certainly. All people know that they are anxious.
How does anxiety manifest itself physically?
If situational anxiety is not a disease, it is a certain negative state. A person does not find a place for himself. On a physical level, he can feel trembling in the body, pressure in the chest, weakness, rapid heartbeat, insomnia, and headache. In a state of anxiety, it is difficult for us to concentrate, our thoughts race, tension increases, and sometimes a depressive state occurs. The brain doesn’t care whether a dog bites him or whether he’s afraid that someone will bite him. The body reacts the same way.
Can I guarantee myself that if I go to the gym, eat well, and get enough sleep, I will not experience anxiety?
Anxiety is common to everyone. If a hypermarket announces that there has been a fire, you will most likely feel alarmed, and rightly so. But if after this event you keep thinking about what could happen, stop going to stores and start constantly fearing a fire, this is a bad signal. So this needs to be dealt with.
So you can use anxiety productively?
Certainly. Anxiety also has a positive quality. It can serve to adapt to difficult conditions and even save lives. If a person experiences stress, the body must react somehow - blood pressure rises, heart rate increases. As a living being, a person is ready to hide or run.
Where is the line between healthy anxiety and unhealthy anxiety?
Everything is very simple. If you can’t control your anxiety, it’s not good for you, it would be good to go to a specialist.
You can ask yourself: “What is happening to me? I'm afraid of getting coronavirus, for example. What can I do to prevent this from happening? “Wash your hands more often, they advise you to wash your face after returning home, and do not rub your eyes.” That is, you do what depends on you and move on with your life. But if you constantly think about it and can’t think about anything else, then addiction has already begun.
Many people like to give universal advice in one word: “Let go!” But as?
The question is - why does a person hold on to this? For example, there are no relationships, but there are thoughts about them - how can I let them go? Often people cannot let go because they do not want to let go or they have some kind of unprocessed trauma. We need a specific example.
Let's take this: a person is afraid to quit, afraid that he won't find a job, afraid to be left without a livelihood. Such long disturbing chains.
Being afraid is a choice. But there are things you can change. What don't you like? Salary? You can go to your boss and say this directly before looking for another job. But another thing happens: the person does nothing, does not resolve the problem, conflicts arise and continue with employees. In fact, he doesn’t want to change anything, he just talks about it, but anxiety gives him some bonuses. Which ones exactly need to be understood, but even in therapy this information is most often rejected by the patient.
Women sometimes fuss a lot, worry about things being clean and food being prepared, and when we look into family history, it turns out that in childhood there was a very anxious mother, with a certain view of other people, with a fear of being wrong. What, they say, are these careless dragonflies, other stupid women, and if you are a bad housewife, your husband will leave you. The daughter of such a mother risks repeating this scenario.
But there is also a fundamentally different point.
A really difficult situation is happening - the death of a loved one, divorce, betrayal. Feeling anxious during this time is a normal reaction.
It’s another matter if the situation remains unlived, unprocessed, and the person simply switches to something else. He says: I don’t want to think about it, I work, I take care of others. He switches, but the emotion doesn’t go away. He ran away. He failed. And, of course, there is a feeling of anxiety and a whole complex of other things.
It seems that if you calculate everything carefully, you definitely won’t go wrong. Does being thoughtful cure anxiety? Or is this one of its types?
If it helps, yes. I thought, did everything I could, and let go. But if it doesn’t work out, something needs to be changed. The problem lies in psychosomatic manifestations. In a stressed state, the body cannot work for a long time. So then you think: “Was the thought worth it that the person is now lying in a hospital bed?”
But what if you are worried about something that has nothing to do with you? Epidemics, for example, and similar troubles?
Determine for yourself: “When a real problem appears, then I will solve it.” If you think: “What? What if?”, all your energy goes into worry, and you live unproductively.
For those areas that we cannot control, there is a prayer that I know as the prayer of Karl Friedrich Ettinger:
“Lord, give me the peace to accept what I cannot change. Give me the courage to change what I can change. And give me wisdom to distinguish one from another."
There are things that are beyond our competence. This is not our area of responsibility, but it takes so much effort and energy that we could spend on important, useful, interesting things.
Fortunately, positive emotions can override anxiety. The opportunity to talk with loved ones, with friends, with loved ones is a great resource. Moreover, in this conversation it is important not to hush up the problem. Anxious people do not know how to live in the here and now. Therefore, you just need to say what is happening around you: “It’s raining, the cafe is warm and smells of coffee, I feel good and pleasant with you.”
Emphasis on feelings and emotions helps. Is there another way to resuscitate a return to reality?
It's a good exercise. You can do it every day, in sessions we do it once a week. The point is to talk about not what did not happen to you, but what happened, what is happening now. It is necessary to teach a person to live in reality; people with anxiety, as a rule, do not remember anything, everything passes by them. At the end of the day, you can write down what you felt, what you experienced, what you saw, what you did - preferably in a positive way.
How to plan for the future if it is vague and it seems that the end is near?
Take and plan. In anxiety there is no alignment, no plan. It's important to really notice what's happening. In the end, here is a simple example that you can use. There are people who are afraid to use the elevator. You need to take a sheet of paper and divide it into three columns. In one write: “I’m afraid: if I get into the elevator, it will stop, I’ll die of fear, and then... etc.” In the second column: “When I get into the elevator, I will take my phone, water, pills with me...” And the third will be called: “What can I do, even if.” And prescribe there the course of action for all kinds of situations. Well, and in the end the report: “I got into the elevator, my armpits were sweating, my hair was standing on end, but I got to the 9th floor - thank God, everything is fine.” There is no need to dive into the pool right away. You can only travel one floor, but this experience will be very important.
Returning to reality is actually useful. In fact, it’s the only thing that exists at the moment.
The difficulty you fear does not exist yet. Or maybe it never will. You are afraid and wary of the phantom. And if a difficulty comes that we need to face, God will give both strength and wisdom. The main thing is not to lose yourself in the fight against windmills.
Bad sleep on a full moon
In the course of research, medical scientists have found that it is dangerous to sleep in the light, especially in the bright moonlight. This leads to absolute sleep disturbance and chronic insomnia during the full moon. In the human brain there is a special pineal gland, otherwise known as the pineal gland, which secretes certain hormones in the dark - serotonin and melatonin, and in daylight - norepinephrine and histamine.
The reason for insomnia lies in the fact that under the influence of bright moonlight, the level of the hormone melatonin decreases, and it is the main regulator of circadian rhythms in the human body.
Insomnia with neurosis
Insomnia with neurosis affects 40% of patients with VSD. Doctors associate sleep disorders with neuroses. There is also such a phenomenon as a reduction in sleep duration. Frequent awakenings, continuous mental activity, fatigue are striking symptoms of insomnia with neurosis.
However, insomnia may be due to psychological reasons:
- professional stress;
- regular conflicts in the family;
- psychological trauma; usually traumatic events cause sleep disturbance;
- loss of a loved one;
- emotional sphere in which there is increased anxiety.
The cause of insomnia is always individual and subjective. The manifestation of symptoms may vary. For example, paradoxical drowsiness, with this phenomenon a person experiences a strong desire to fall asleep, but as soon as he goes to bed, he immediately awakens.
Another form of insomnia is shallow, superficial sleep. Often dreams are accompanied by nightmares and disturbing thoughts. If a person is diagnosed with hysterical neurosis, then as additional symptoms he experiences anger towards others.
There is a third form of insomnia - neurotic phobia. It can form a vicious circle of anxious thoughts, followed by sleep disturbances. After many unsuccessful attempts to fall asleep, a person simply begins to fear insomnia. Consequently, the fear of not falling asleep turns into a phobia. This means that first you need to get rid of the phobia, and then - from insomnia.
The cause of “lunar insomnia”
If a person cannot fall asleep at night when the full Moon is shining in the sky, then most likely the instinct of a cave dweller has awakened inside him at the genetic level. Scientists believe that during the full moon, falling asleep is complicated due to the influence of the internal biological clock.
In addition to the solar influence on earthlings, the Earth's natural satellite has an even greater impact. People often hear complaints from others like, “I just can’t sleep on a full moon, the reasons for insomnia are on a large bright moon.”
No less important is the influence of the Earth’s natural satellite on the cellular component of the individual’s body, which is 75 percent filled with water. Under the influence of gravity of the natural disk of the Moon, the water in every cell of the human body, like the water in the seas and oceans, is subject to peculiar ebbs and flows.
The concept of sleepwalking
According to neurologists, somnambulism (the word is derived from “somn” - sleep, “ambulus” - wander) is not mysticism at all, but is a special state of a person subject to mechanical reflex activity. At this stage of automatism, certain areas of the brain work, and the main part of the medullary parts are immersed in sleep.
Often the cause of somnambulism (sleepwalking) is the accumulation of excess carbon dioxide in the patient’s blood - hypercapnia, which occurs as a result of temporary cessation of breathing during night sleep (apnea). One of the signs of respiratory problems during sleep is the patient's snoring. During its intensification, oxygen starvation occurs in the gray matter. Then a signal comes from the lungs to those parts of the brain where serotonin predominates, so that the motor cortex zones wake up. However, the areas of the mind responsible for consciousness remain inhibited and continue to sleep. Sleepwalkers in a state of half-asleep may accidentally injure themselves while performing automatic actions.
First of all, an imbalance of carbon dioxide and ozone in the blood is treated. To detect apnea, the patient is subjected to pulsometry at night. Then the patient is connected to a forced oxygenation device in the form of an oxygen mask to ventilate the lungs during sleep.
How to deal with insomnia with VSD
Vegetative-vascular dystonia is a common disease, especially among older women. Insomnia with VSD is a phenomenon that occurs everywhere. Therefore, anyone suffering from such an illness should know several ways to normalize sleep.
How to get healthy sleep back
Since VSD is, first of all, a disorder of the nervous system, poor sleep with this pathology is quite an expected phenomenon. Almost all patients suffer from insomnia. There are several options to solve the problem:
- With the help of medications. Before using medications, it is advisable to consult a specialist and use them only in extreme cases.
- Talk to a psychologist or try different relaxation techniques.
- Change your diet and try not to overload your nervous system before bed.
But, in any case, it is worth understanding the reasons why you are suffering from insomnia. Then the treatment will become much more effective.
The connection between insomnia and panic attacks
Panic attacks are a special condition when a person experiences anxiety, fear of death, and excessive sweating. This condition is constantly accompanied by a very rapid heartbeat. When PA occurs, a person, in principle, cannot fall asleep, since his entire nervous system is in an excited state.
Due to disturbances in the functioning of the autonomic nervous system, insomnia with VSD is often accompanied by panic attacks. This is understandable, since falling asleep when you are overcome by panic is really problematic.
Tormented by insomnia, look for the reason
Lack of sleep doesn't happen on its own. In any case, this process has reasons that may be hidden in constant stress, panic and anxiety.
Also, do not forget about the presence of somatic diseases that can affect sleep. For example, blood pressure and insomnia are directly related, since few people succeed in falling asleep with high blood pressure.
Also, asthma, arthritis and breathing problems can cause lack of sleep and shallow sleep, which will lead to constant fatigue.
Can a phobia cause
A phobia is a type of panic fear. Some people are afraid of heights, some of water, and there are even more exotic phobias. But a small number of people on the planet have hypnophobia - this is the fear of dying in their sleep. A person cannot sleep normally because he is constantly haunted by the fear of sudden death at night.
Another phobia that can cause poor sleep is nightmares that replay daytime fears. For example, you are afraid of spiders, but you dream about them as soon as you fall asleep. It is clear that you may not be able to fall asleep, and lack of sleep becomes a constant companion, affecting the health of the entire body as a whole.
With VSD, insomnia is characterized by the fact that it is very difficult to fall asleep, sometimes you have to toss and turn for 2-3 hours, the sleep is superficial and with frequent awakenings. As a result, in the morning a person feels broken and broken.
Treatment of insomnia
Before starting treatment with medications, experts advise trying various types of relaxing techniques. Here are just a few of them:
- Relaxation according to Jacobson. This is a special technique that includes a set of exercises to relax individual muscle groups.
- Relaxation using the Jacobson method. Consists of three phases: tension-relaxation, observation, relaxation of consciousness.
Each of these two methods helps to reduce anxiety levels and tidy up the nervous system. As a result, sleep becomes deeper and more peaceful, anxiety goes away and panic attacks at night recede. Relaxation according to the Jacobson method includes exercises for various muscle groups.
The Jacobson method of progressive muscle relaxation is great for everyday use. It is very important during the full complex to be in complete harmony with yourself and, when relaxing, to concentrate on the difference in sensations.
Medicines
No one, of course, has canceled drug treatments for insomnia. But, in any case, such drugs should not be prescribed to yourself without consulting a specialist. We'll look at each of the most popular drugs so you know roughly how beneficial or harmful they can be.
Why is Afobazole used for VSD?
VSD and insomnia always go hand in hand due to the characteristics of the nervous system in this pathology. If you answer the question whether Afobazol helps with insomnia in this case, then you can answer yes. Its main effect is to relieve irritation and unnecessary anxiety. The main positive aspect of this drug is the absence of dependence, which occurs with many sedative drugs.
How to take Phenibut for insomnia
Phenibut certainly helps with insomnia. It improves brain activity, and was developed by Soviet scientists. The drug is usually taken in a course of 2-3 weeks. A consultation with a doctor is required, who will be able to more accurately, depending on the condition, adjust the dosage and, possibly, extend the course of treatment.
The meaning of the lunar calendar in human life
There are different versions of why it is the lunar cycle of the calendar that leads to sleep disturbances and has such a strong impact on a person’s life. One version is related to the genetic memory of the human race. According to this hypothesis, ancient people could not sleep during the full moon, greatly fearing for their existence. At this time, the activity of wild predators increased, and the bright moonlight revealed the location of potential prey. Our ancient ancestors had to be on guard throughout the full moon.
According to tradition, the night of syzygy in esotericism is the time of werewolves, madmen and poets. This is the period in the lunar calendar when the witch goes out hunting at night. The magic of the full moon is associated with the most important events for all humanity: the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the departure of Buddha to Nirvana, the appearance of the Prophet Muhammad, the birth of Lord Chaitanya. Practical esotericism directly connects people's acute response to lunar phases with their sensitive biofield.
