January 9: When You Can't Sleep

It’s late. The house is quiet. Your mind is not.

David wrote this psalm while people were saying hard things about him. He had real worries. And still he could say: in peace I will both lay myself down and sleep, because You alone make me live in safety.

Notice what he doesn’t say. He doesn’t say his problems were solved before bedtime. He says his safety came from God, not from having everything handled.

For a lot of people, alcohol became the way to fall asleep. A few drinks to wind down. A nightcap to switch off the thoughts. Over time, it stopped being a choice and became the only way the lights went out. So when the drinking stops, the nights can get rough. You may lie awake for hours. You may have strange, vivid dreams. You may wake at three and not get back to sleep.

This is common, and for most people it gets better with time. It is not a sign that you need a drink. It is a sign your body is learning to rest without one. If sleep stays badly broken for weeks, or you feel panicky, shaky or sick at night, tell a doctor. That’s not weakness. That’s wisdom.

Meanwhile, a restless night is an honest place to practice Step One. Lying there, you can see clearly how much you leaned on alcohol just to get through the day and into the dark. That is one piece of the unmanageability. You don’t have to fix it tonight. You can just admit it and ask for help.

Some simple things help. Go to bed and get up at the same time. Put the phone across the room. Skip the late coffee. Keep a pen by the bed and write down the thoughts that keep circling, so your mind can let go of them until morning. And when you’re awake anyway, pray. Short prayers are fine. Even one word is fine.

One thing today

Pick a bedtime for tonight and set an alarm thirty minutes before it to start winding down. No screens after the alarm.

A prayer

Father, my mind won’t rest. I hand You the worries I can’t fix tonight. Keep me safe while I sleep, and help my body learn to rest without a drink.

The honest work of Step One includes the nights too.

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