Writing Letters in the Middle of the Night

Something that often pops up within our community – is journaling, or writing down your thoughts. It sounds simple, however, yet may not be for everyone. Some people struggle with knowing where to start, even with journal prompts. Their heads, simply, work in a different way. I learned that journaling was a challenge for me and instead, writing letters helps with insomnia.

Journaling is difficult for me

Struggling with journaling is so relatable to me, as my mind is an unpredictable place and cannot possibly stick to 1 thing. Also, I get stuck on how journaling will look, etc., and that just becomes a task that keeps me from sleep.

So while journaling really helps me, I get bored very quickly and it becomes 1 more thing that my mind wants to avoid. So that ship sailed for me. Finding a new way to download my mind and slow it down proved challenging.

Until I worked it out.

Writing letters to loved ones

I found exactly what I was looking for, totally by chance by paging through some letters that were sent between my dad and me when I was younger. Writing letters. How had I not thought about this before? Rather than journaling, for me, writing letters helps with my insomnia.

I absolutely adore snail mail, writing letters to the ones I love and telling them about my life and things I think about, etc. The really great thing about this, for me, is that it keeps changing: our day-to-day life changes around us. There are new things on the news that I am thinking about and things that are on my mind that I share while writing letters.

Posting letters to others

Do I even send these letters? No, I don't.

I use them as a way to rinse my mind and clear what's happening. Often, I write to my dad who passed away in 2018. I find it a nice way to stay connected with myself.

Writing letters to myself does not help though. I need to write to someone, and he is currently my favorite.

Writing letters then letting go

There is no need to send these letters, you can burn them in the fireplace, or simply shred them if you do not want to keep them. I enjoy the feeling of letting them go.

Sometimes I choose to keep them, as I talk about favorite memories and things that really make me feel good. More often than not though they are led to the fire and released.

How writing letters helps my insomnia

There is no quick fix and my insomnia is really stubborn. So what I do, instead, is anything I can to assist my mind and body to cope as best as I can.

Helps manage anxiety

Writing helps me empty my mind, slowing down my anxious thoughts and making room in my mind to just be. One of my biggest insomnia triggers is anxiety, therefore writing letters makes a substantial difference to me.

Eliminates nightly screen time

I also write with a pen and paper, or notebook, Therefore, I have no screens late at night when I am up and can't sleep. This stops any further aggravation from blue screens, lights, and sensory input.

I find it so soothing to hear the sound of the pencils gliding across the paper, while I tell my dad, all the stories of life and the things he is not seeing.

Have you tried writing letters for insomnia? Please share a comment.