Anxiety Can Cause Insomnia: Why You Lie Awake at Night
- Annelies Basten
- 19 hours ago
- 6 min read
Key Takeaways
Anxiety and insomnia are closely linked through the nervous system.
The nervous system may remain alert at night, even when the body feels tired.
Some people experience racing thoughts, while others lie awake without thoughts at all.
Both experiences reflect a nervous system that has not yet settled into sleep.
Sleep cannot be forced; it becomes accessible when the body feels safe enough to let go.
Restoring nervous system regulation supports the return of natural sleep.
Many people experiencing anxiety and insomnia expect sleep to arrive once they go to bed. The body is tired. The day has ended. The intention to sleep is there.
Yet something does not shift.
For some, the mind becomes active. Thoughts begin moving, replaying conversations, planning, analysing, or looping without pause.
For others, there are no obvious thoughts at all. The mind feels quiet, yet sleep does not come. The body lies still, eyes closed, waiting. Time passes, and the nervous system remains awake.
Both experiences are common in anxiety and insomnia. Both just as terrifying, as you lose trust and belief you will ever sleep again. And both point to the same underlying process.
Why Anxiety and Insomnia Are Closely Linked
Anxiety and insomnia are deeply connected through the nervous system.
The nervous system is designed to keep the body safe. When it senses threat or uncertainty, it increases alertness, sharpens awareness, and prepares the body to respond.
This state of alertness is useful during the day when action is required.
At night, however, it interferes with sleep.
Sleep requires the nervous system to release vigilance. It requires a shift from alertness into a state where the body feels safe enough to let go. When anxiety is present, this shift can become difficult.
The system continues monitoring, scanning, and remaining prepared, even when there is no immediate reason to do so.
Why the Mind Won’t Switch Off
When the nervous system remains alert, the mind often follows.
Thinking increases because the system is still active. The mind begins scanning for problems, replaying events, or anticipating what might happen next in order to keep you safe.
In this state, thoughts are not random. They are a reflection of an activated sympathetic nervous system, the fight or flight response, scanning and preparing for danger.
Trying to stop the thoughts directly can feel frustrating, because the source of the activity sits deeper in the body.
As the nervous system settles (into parasympathetic nervous system activation), the mind naturally becomes quieter.
Why You Can Lie Awake Without Thoughts
Not everyone experiences racing thoughts. Many people with anxiety and insomnia describe lying awake in complete stillness, with little or no mental activity, yet feeling unable to fall asleep.
This can be confusing.
If the mind is quiet, why does sleep not come? In these moments, the nervous system may still be holding a subtle level of alertness, a low level of stress that you have normalised and are not aware of anymore. The body can not yet fully shift into the state required for sleep. For you, there is a sense of waiting, of being awake without a clear reason. This experience is just as much a reflection of nervous system dysregulation as racing thoughts are. Sleep does not depend only on the absence of thinking. It depends on the presence of safety within the body, and the absence of prolonged stress.
Why Sleep Cannot Be Forced
One of the most common responses to insomnia is to try harder to sleep.
Earlier bedtimes. Numbing medications. Greater effort to relax. Yet sleep is not something that can be controlled directly.
Sleep emerges when the nervous system reaches a state where vigilance is no longer required. It is a natural process that unfolds when the body feels safe enough to let go.
When the system remains even slightly alert, sleep may stay out of reach. This is why effort alone often does not resolve anxiety and insomnia.
Often, trying harder only evokes more fear, more anxiety and you may get stuck in the insomnia anxiety loop. Thoughts may arise keeping you in a state of anxiety: "I am not sleeping, why am I not sleeping?" "I will not be able to perform at work tomorrow" "Will I ever sleep again?" You might recognise this.
The Role of the Nervous System in Sleep
Understanding nervous system regulation provides a different way of approaching sleep.
Rather than focusing only on techniques or habits, the focus shifts toward the conditions that allow the nervous system to settle.
Through my work with anxiety and insomnia, I describe these conditions as the Six Foundations of Regulation:
Safety
Attachment
Authenticity
Connection
Agency
Rhythm
These foundations shape how the nervous system responds to stress, how it settles, and how easily it can move into sleep. When one or more of these foundations are under strain, the system may remain alert even when the body is tired. In our sessions we explore these foundations related to your life, and figure out why your nervous system is not settling, why it remains on high alert. Sometimes, this is an easy shift, sometimes it takes a bit longer and we have to dig slightly deeper. It is important to remember, your body still knows how to sleep; you can trust your body and nervous system to show you what you need to know.
Restoring Sleep Through Nervous System Regulation
When the nervous system begins to experience safety again, even in small ways, it gradually learns that constant vigilance is no longer required. This shift does not happen through force or medication. It happens through slowly restoring the conditions that support regulation.
As this process unfolds, many people notice that:
The body begins to settle more easily.
The transition into sleep becomes smoother.
Waking during the night becomes less frequent.
A sense of calm returns to the nervous system.
Life feels lighter, easier, more grounded.
A Different Way to Understand Anxiety and Insomnia
Anxiety and insomnia are often signals from a nervous system that has learned to remain alert. Whether this shows up as racing thoughts or simply lying awake in stillness, the underlying process is the same.
The system is still holding a level of vigilance.
As the nervous system begins to regulate, the need for that vigilance gradually decreases.
Sleep becomes easier to access. The body begins to trust rest again. Nights become quieter. Understanding this relationship between anxiety, insomnia, and the nervous system offers a pathway toward restoring natural sleep.
If you would like support with anxiety and insomnia, you can learn more about Deep Release Therapy (DRT) through Project Pure or explore upcoming talks on nervous system regulation and sleep.
What You Can Do Right Now
To help manage your insomnia related anxiety, there are several things you can do yourself, at home.
Get to know your nervous system
The first step is understanding your own nervous system. Learn what activates you and what helps you feel calm and grounded. Every nervous system is unique, and many people who struggle with anxiety and insomnia have a finely tuned nervous system. They often experience life more deeply, feel more intensely, and care profoundly about the people and world around them.
You may find yourself more sensitive to noise, bright lights, strong smells, busy environments, crowds, or stimulation in general. If this resonates with you, you are not alone. Research suggests that approximately 15–20% of the population are highly sensitive. I like to think of these individuals as the guardians of our species — the first to sense potential danger, but also the first to become overwhelmed when life becomes too much.
Begin paying attention to your own patterns. Notice what leaves you feeling depleted and what restores you. Allow yourself moments of rest and stillness when your body asks for them. Learning to work with your nervous system, rather than against it, can be life-changing.
2. Slow down during the day
What you do during the day has a direct impact on how you experience the night.
Many people focus solely on fixing their sleep, while overlooking the fact that their nervous system has been running at full speed from the moment they wake up. Build small moments of calm into your day. Take regular breaks, step outside for a walk at lunchtime, pause between tasks, and give yourself permission to slow down.
Take your time. Prioritise yourself. Prioritise self-care.
Spend a few minutes sitting quietly, breathing through your nose, and noticing the sensations within your body. Learning to listen to your body's signals throughout the day helps prevent stress from accumulating and carrying into the night.
3. Create rhythm and routine
Your nervous system thrives on rhythm.
Establish daily routines that support regulation and create a sense of predictability. This might include a morning meditation, watching the sunrise, taking a beach walk, enjoying a quiet cup of tea, or spending time in nature before looking at your phone.
In the evening, create a calming wind-down routine that signals to your body that it is safe to rest. Aim to go to bed and wake up at roughly the same time each day.
Routines create rhythm. Rhythm creates predictability. Predictability creates a sense of safety. And when the nervous system feels safe, sleep becomes much more likely to follow.
About the Author
Annelies Basten, MPsych, is a psycho-somatic therapist and founder of Project Pure. Her work focuses on nervous system regulation and the restoration of healthy sleep.
Drawing from psychology, trauma-informed therapy, meditation, and her own lived experience of recovering from chronic insomnia, she supports people experiencing anxiety and sleep difficulties through a therapeutic approach called Deep Release Therapy (DRT).
Annelies works with clients in Christchurch and wider New Zealand (in-person
or online), helping them restore the foundations of regulation so the nervous system can settle and natural sleep can return.
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