Feeling anxious.. why does it get worse at night?

It's very common to feel more anxious at night once the sun goes down, a phenomenon that a 2022 study called the "after-midnight mind hypothesis," noting that the risk of suicidal behavior and drug use also rises after dark, and people's moods drop from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m.

Another study, published this year in the journal Psychiatry Research, found that the racing thoughts that many people with anxiety experience and may lead them to harm themselves are at their worst in the evening.

feeling anxious at night

The human body has a finely tuned biological clock that affects everything from when you feel hungry to when you feel sleepy.

These internal rhythms also affect the brain, says Rebecca Cox, an assistant professor of psychological and brain sciences at Washington University in St. Louis and co-author of a recent study on the timing of anxiety symptoms.

“There are certain biological signals that keep you awake and prevent you from sleeping throughout the day, but these signals are reduced at night,” Cox told TIME. “If you stay up late and these signals are reduced and you have ‘sleep pressure’, your brain’s cognitive function is affected. And that impact makes it harder for your brain to regulate emotions.”

She noted that these cognitive effects also help explain why some people harm themselves and use drugs late at night.

“If you feel like doing any kind of unhealthy or unsafe behavior, it's probably going to be hard for you to control that in the middle of the night,” she says.

“What makes things worse is that when we are awake at night, we are often isolated, and most of the people around us are asleep,” she continued. “If I am feeling anxious during the day, I might be able to talk to a friend or partner – but if I am the only one awake at night and feeling all these negative feelings, I am not going to easily find someone to help me deal with them.”

Your mind also has fewer distractions at night, adds Dr. Jeffrey Strawn, director of the Anxiety Disorders Research Program at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

During the day, you’re likely to be busy with work, errands, chores, family and social obligations. But at night, especially when you go to bed, your mind isn’t occupied with all of that, which creates the perfect environment for anxiety.

What to do about night anxiety?

Prevention is often the best medicine, says Lee Brown, director of the University of Pennsylvania Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety. She recommends setting aside 10 minutes of “worry time” during your day (well before bedtime), a practice she says is backed by research and helps prevent nighttime anxiety, which can have serious health and mental health consequences.

“Use that entire 10 minutes to review everything that's bothering you, and jot down notes or tasks that you're worried about if you find that helpful,” says Brown.

“If worries pop into your head outside of your scheduled worry time, tell yourself, ‘I’m putting these worries and thoughts off for my scheduled worry time,’ and then get back to what you’re doing,” she adds.

Research shows that people who keep a journal end up feeling less anxious overall.

(The Middle East)