099 - Sleepless Nights
I’ve not really been suffering from insomnia, however, I have, of late been waking up at around 5AM and finding myself unable to fall back asleep, especially if any aspect of current events happens to impinge upon my thoughts.
I imagine I’m far from the only person experiencing such things these days.
I have, however, found something that works - deliberately infecting myself with an earworm.
I’ve found if I start repeating a tune over and over in my mind, not only does it prevent the more distressing turns of thought, it also serves somewhat as a mantra making falling back asleep easier.
Usually the earworm is one of my own tunes. Perhaps it’ll be this one next.
This resonates strongly for me. I am pestered by earworms when I am particularly stressed, defaulting to five different melodies that cycle. So, I have to "program" myself to listen to other compositions/pieces while I take my dogs on their daily walk. Sometimes, it is a specific symphony, or movement of a symphony that I challenge myself to "hear" from the start to finish. When I get to a memory gap, this sometimes leads to creative meanderings as I try to solve what I cannot hear. When it lands on something meaningful, such as a new musical idea, this then lowers the anxiety levels.