Methods used by sophrologists are powerful when it comes to improving our sleep. In France and in Switzerland, where Antiglio grew up, health insurers reimburse sessions with sophrologists, and the practice is deployed in sleep clinics and hospitals across the continent.
It is effective, says Antiglio, because the end result is to “rewire the brain to approach sleep more positively and to enter a state of calm more easily”. Sophrology techniques can be used at nighttime while we’re struggling to sleep, but they can also be practised consistently throughout the day to bring calm, preventing racing thoughts from troubling us in the first place.
Although popular in Europe, Britain has been relatively slow on the uptake, prompting Antiglio to open a sophrology practice in Mayfair in 2018, having previously run a clinic in Switzerland for ten years. She has since moved her work online, creating BeSophro, a digital sophrology platform. “I was looking after CEOs and athletes, people who were very stressed,” she says. “Sleep was a huge issue for them, with racing thoughts keeping them up at night. In sophrology we look at what’s happening throughout a person’s whole day and week too, and by doing that I’ve helped thousands of people to sleep well at night.”
Here are eight techniques from Antiglio’s sophrology practice to aid sleep when intrusive thoughts are keeping you awake.
1. Scan your body
Part of the problem with racing thoughts is that we don’t realise they’re always there, lurking under the surface, until we go to bed. So, “take a moment before bedtime to pay attention to how you’re feeling in all the different parts of your body,” says Antiglio.
“Notice how quickly and deeply you’re breathing, whether there’s any tension in your body, in your eyes, chest or shoulders. Scan your body from head to toe, to take you out of your thoughts, and practice some conscious breaths to relieve the tension you might feel. After this your thoughts will demand less of your attention.”
2. Tense and relax
After a body scan, “inhale and tense all of your muscles and then release them, with a long exhale,” Antiglio says. “This will instantly help to regulate your nervous system and alleviate the fight or flight response that comes with feelings of anxiety.” You can practice this by lying down in bed, or standing throughout the day, to prevent stress from spiralling out of control.
3. Try the Tratac technique
This technique “can help you to instantly focus you attention within your body and let go of unnecessary thoughts,” says Antiglio. “Lift one arm out with your thumb extended so you can focus your gaze on it. Inhale, hold your breath and now bring your thumb slowly toward your forehead while following it with your eyes, until your thumb meets the gap between your eyebrows. Repeat this tracking of your thumb with your eyes several times.”
“This is an adapted meditation exercise combined with breathwork, so it can help focus your mind instantly and end the cycle of increasingly worrying thoughts,” Antiglio says.
4. Rotate your head
“Sitting or standing after your body scan, breathe out, then breathe in deeply, hold your breath and gently rotate your head from side to side until you need to breathe out,” says Antiglio. “Then sit and take a pause to listen to what you feel in your body. Generating sensations through this simple movement and learning to pause and listen to them can interrupt racing thoughts, and help you let go of any tension you’re holding in your head and neck.”
5. Pump your fists
After a body scan, or while you’re practising a head rotation, try pumping your hands: “With your arms alongside your body, clench your fists, inhale, hold your breath and simply raise and lower your shoulders in a fast pumping motion until you need to exhale. Relax and pay attention to the sensation.”
“This exercise can help promote oxygenation and regulate your nervous system after a long day, or when you’ve had intense emotions, for example related to frustration or anger,” says Antiglio.
6. Picture a protective bubble
If you’re lying in bed under a cloud of worries, do a relaxing body scan and take a few long slow breaths, and then: “Picture a protective bubble that surrounds your body and that filters out all the worries and negative stories running through your head, and keeps them out while you’re feeling your body fully relaxed in the bed,” says Antiglio. “Paired with awareness, picturing a space that’s just one of relaxation and calm helps you to let things go, and also reminds you that you’re in charge of which thoughts are allowed to stay in your head.”
7. Visualise success
When worries about a big event in the future are keeping you up at night, “visualise the best possible outcome of that situation, and exactly what would happen if things were to go right,” says Antiglio. “This is best practised regularly, along with vividly recalling all of the positive sensations and emotions you feel when you experience incredible success. Your brain can’t distinguish between what’s really happening and what it’s seeing when you picture the event, so then when the big moment comes, you’ll be able to relax as your brain will feel that any potential problems have already been addressed.”
8. Set an intention
When the coming day feels overwhelming in a general sense, “take a moment to set a simple intention for what you want to get done or how you want to show up today,” says Antiglio. “Decide how you want to feel and what you want to achieve, along with the relaxation, visualisation or movement techniques you’ve learnt, to connect your mind and your body together to feel more capable of meeting the challenges of daily life.”
