Why Trying to Sleep Makes Insomnia Worse

If you’ve ever tried harder and harder to sleep — only to feel more awake — this episode explains why. You’ll learn how effort, clock-watching, and pressure activate your fight-or-flight system, why sleep is a passive process that can’t be forced, and how performance anxiety keeps your brain on high alert. This episode introduces a radically different approach: stop trying to sleep and start creating the conditions for safety instead.