There you are, lying in bed, done with the day and seeking some much needed rest. Try as you might however, that sleep never seems to arrive. You begin to worry, as the minutes tick by, and your mind begins to wander. Before you know it, hours have passed and the situation hasn't changed, all thanks to your old pal, anxiety. Suffering from a dollop of insomnia and a good helping of anxious leanings, I've experienced many an episode of advanced tossing and turning. It comes in many flavors and is spurred by multiple factors; despite this, there are one or two tricks to get on top of your less-than silent night.

First things first, as a sort of disclaimer, it should be noted that people rarely stress out and breed anxiety through voluntary means. Anxiety is as much a medical condition as it is a psychological one. No one wants to worry over this and that, it just happens. There are always naysayers, but as you tussle about exhausted and emotionally enflamed, it is important not to levy the blame upon yourself, more so than any flak you may receive from others. And though you may clear your name, the question does still grate at the back of your mind, what are you anxious about? The answers may vary greatly from person to person. At the same time, there are some common issues we might all encounter over the course of the evening.

The foremost is perhaps the very endangerment of our slumber itself. We all have things we need to do the day after, plans and tasks of differentiating values. That can get bungled up very quickly, and magnify our jumpiness and our greater desire for unconsciousness. Which, again, only serves to worsen our state of disquiet. Indeed, worrying over how and when we nod off seldom solves the issue at hand. Furthermore, when left alone with our thoughts after a long day, other pockets of information are likely to misfire and stir up our subconscious. Arguing with a friend, an upcoming exam, the fate of the tropical ecosystem: if a topic has caused emotional strife before, it is fairly likely to reemerge when you least require it. The spectrum of issues spans from the most mundane to the heaviest of affairs, and any one will only push back the clock on your long-sought-after rest.

With all of this in mind, a clear solution may not be immediately visible. And, as with the forms of this anxiety-ridden insomnia, an agreeable answer may take shape differently for each individual. All the same, I've developed a few tricks that have served me in the past, and might do well to assist others. Often times, one of the easiest problem-solvers is resigning oneself to their fate. To clarify, I do not mean to imply handing yourself over to despair. Rather, openly accepting an open-ended time of restful departure relieves pressure from your weary mind, allowing for a more peaceful transaction in the long haul. Self-care activities are another easy DIY fix, so long as it doesn't prove to labor intensive. Reading a book, watching movie, or even the employment of some easy listening can do wonders to allay a building mound of concern. If neither routes seem to produce results, one can always claim natural sleep aids as a last resort. The road to an uneventful night is treacherous and riddled with unseen pitfalls, but it is not unattainable. Daunting though it may seem, the dusk will fall one way or another. With any luck, it may come more swiftly than you would have expected.