Daylight at midnight

When we consider our well-being one of the things that we need to consider is good sleep behaviours. I know that over the last couple of weeks I have not been sleeping particularly well. I am sure that like me when you don’t sleep well you spend time trying to work out why you might have problems. Have I been consuming alcohol, sometimes but certainly not to excess, have I been using screens late at night, am I stressed? All of these factors will have an impact on how we sleep.

I have been stressed. The issues with Airbnb have been awful. However finally they are all resolved. One group decided that they would find other accommodation themselves. They had not initially responded to my messages, I had found them something else which I thought would have better met their needs. They turned it down along with two further options that I had offered. It was with great trepidation that I approached the other group last night and made two alternative offers to them. Their response was incredible, they thanked me for sorting it for them, they would take x and not to worry on my part. Just wonderful. I could actually feel myself relax as I was texting back and forth yesterday evening.

I do try not to use screens late at night. I always put my phone into do not disturb mode. I did once wonder about what would happen if there was a problem with one of my children. I realised that knowing it at 4am was unlikely to make a difference, there would be little that I could do. If they really needed me they would ring the landline, that isn’t silenced. So screen issues are probably not causing sleep issues.

The weather can cause a significant impact on our ability to sleep and therein possibly lies a cause. Ten days ago we had extremely high temperatures which were then followed by storms. Now the weather doesn’t seem to know what it wants to do. We swing between sunshine and showers and gusts of wind. We are also physically disconnected with the time-zone in which we live. One of my sons’ keeps explaining to me that we are a long way west of where we should be for the time zone that we are in. So last night I went outside just after 11pm and took some photos. It was dusk but far from being dark. I am certain that the disconnect cannot be helping.

Well-being and sleep are interconnected. I am trying to go with the flow. Sleep when I can, use meditation and know that if I worry about not sleeping it will get worse. As with many things it will pass. In the meantime I will focus on Positive Emotions and enjoy pink skies at midnight. All of this will help me to flourish and help my wellbeing. How do you cope when you have sleep problems that appear to be outside of your control?

Until tomorrow…