Restlessness and the Search for Stillness: How to Find Inner Calm

Restlessness has become the silent epidemic of modern life. It hides beneath our constant busyness, nighttime agitation, and the uneasy feeling that we must always be doing something.

Psychiatrist Carl Jung once called it “the primary neurosis of our time.”

Today, with global anxiety levels rising (Baxter et al., 2013), his observation feels prophetic.

Below, we’ll explore how restlessness originates in the psyche, the body, and the energy system—and how to resolve it through evidence‑based frameworks and integrative self‑development practices.

Let’s dive in …

What is Restlessness?

Restlessness is a state of inner agitation that prevents mental and physical stillness.

Psychologically, it reflects an unresolved conflict between conscious goals and unconscious needs.

Biologically, it manifests through hormonal and nervous‑system imbalance; energetically, it signals scattered life force.

Common signs include constant movement, obsessive distraction, irritability, and difficulty sleeping.

In the digital era, blue‑light exposure, nonstop alerts, and perpetual stimulation exacerbate this imbalance, confusing the circadian rhythm and exhaust­ing the pineal gland—the body’s melatonin regulator.

Why Modern Life Fuels Restlessness

If Jung diagnosed restlessness as “the primary neurosis of our time,” the twenty‑first century has perfected the condition.

Our environment continually agitates the nervous system while severing us from the natural rhythms that restore equilibrium.

• Blue‑light screens stretch daylight into midnight.
• Digital notifications fracture attention into microbursts.
• Electromagnetic fields (EMF) disrupt subtle bioelectrical regulation
• Endless consumption and social comparison program the psyche to expect constant stimulation.

Each of these factors disorients the body’s inner clock—the circadian rhythm regulated by the pineal gland—and keeps adrenaline and cortisol circulating long after the sun has set. The body interprets this as unending daylight: we stay alert when we should be descending into rest.

Moreover, this technological overstimulation mirrors psychological overload. The collective obsession with productivity and “hustle” suppresses stillness, shame‑labels idleness, and transforms presence into guilt.

Essentially, the problem isn’t lack of willpower—it’s an environment structured to prevent stillness. Learning to regulate attention and environmental input is the first act of psychological freedom.

Restlessness, in this sense, is both a biochemical and a cultural feedback loop: the more stimulation we absorb, the more stimulation we crave. To interrupt the cycle, we must consciously reintroduce silence, darkness, and intervals of non‑doing into daily life.

Restlessness as Disconnection from the Unconscious

Beneath the physiological factors lies psychological disunity.

From a Jungian view, turmoil signals disconnection from dreams, symbols, and the deeper Self. At night, when distractions fade, that disconnect surfaces as unease or anxiety.

As Jungian analyst Marie‑Louise von Franz explained in The Way of the Dream (1994), bottled‑up psychic energy breeds generalized fear—“an all‑pervading anxiety that something dark might happen at any minute.” That stored charge seeks release through motion, talk, or dopamine‑driven digital cycles.

Maslow: Unmet Potential Creates Chronic Agitation

Psychologist Abraham Maslow found that when individuals neglect self‑actualization—the drive to realize innate capabilities—they experience chronic frustration and inner tension. He termed this avoidance the Jonah Complex, warning:

“If you deliberately plan to be less than you are capable of being, you’ll be deeply unhappy.”

Restlessness, then, is the psyche’s alarm bell, urging alignment with unrealized potential.

Common Symptoms of Restlessness

Feeling restless isn’t confined to sleepless nights. It can quietly shape your entire emotional landscape—showing up in the body, the mind, and even daily habits. Understanding these symptoms helps you recognize when agitation isn’t just stress, but a deeper misalignment within your system.

Restlessness often presents through a mix of physical sensations, behavioral patterns, and emotional cues:

• Tossing and turning at night or waking repeatedly with a racing mind
• Compulsive activity—the urge to keep scrolling, eating, or working to fill silence
• Edginess and irritability, easily triggered by minor obstacles
• Obsession with novelty—a constant hunger for stimulation or new inputs
• Physical tension or numbness, especially in the neck, jaw, shoulders, and back
• Emotional volatility or quick mood shifts followed by fatigue

Modern technology magnifies these tendencies. The rapid feedback loops of social media and on‑demand entertainment overstimulate dopamine circuits in much the same way repetitive gambling or sugar intake does—training the brain to seek more stimulation while losing tolerance for peace or quiet.

This neurological conditioning fosters a cycle of tension‑seeking relief‑tension, leaving little room for deep rest or contemplative awareness.

In short, many of our “modern habits” are actually coping mechanisms for unmanaged restlessness: behaviors that temporarily soothe the body but disconnect the psyche even further from equilibrium.

How to Overcome Restlessness

After understanding what fuels restlessness, the next step is integration—restoring coherence between body, mind, and environment.

The key insight: restlessness is not the enemy; it’s feedback.

It lets you know where energy or emotion has been suppressed, scattered, or misdirected.

By addressing it consciously at night, you can begin to restore calm throughout the entire day.

True rest isn’t produced by sedation or distraction—it emerges when your mental, emotional, and biological rhythms are synchronized again.

The following section begins with specific methods for nighttime restlessness, since evening agitation is when hidden imbalance becomes most visible, and then expands to the psychological and energetic practices that bring lasting stillness.

Overcoming Restlessness at Night

Nighttime restlessness is one of the body’s clearest signals that your natural circadian rhythm and nervous‑system balance have been disrupted.

To calm the mind and prepare the body for sleep, begin with these evidence‑supported physical adjustments:

1 Support Your Pineal Gland and Circadian Clock

The pineal gland governs your internal timing system by releasing melatonin. Constant exposure to fluorescent lighting, blue screens, and fluoridated water can inhibit its function.

Try minimizing these risk factors: use filtered water, avoid bright screens two hours before sleep, and spend a few minutes in natural low light or candlelight before bed.

2 Reduce Blue‑Light Exposure

Studies from Harvard Medical School show that artificial blue light suppresses melatonin twice as long as green light.

Wearing amber or red‑lens glasses in the evening and dimming all overhead LEDs can reset this hormonal rhythm in just a few days.

3 Minimize Electromagnetic Exposure (EMF)

Wi‑Fi routers, Bluetooth devices, and chargers emit low‑intensity radiation that interferes with the nervous system’s subtle electrical fields.

Turn off transmitters overnight, keep phones on airplane mode, and, if possible, ground your bed with an earthing sheet to restore ionic balance and discharge static buildup.

4 Relax the Body to Quiet the Mind

Mental tension often mirrors physical stiffness. If your body remains tight, your nervous system continues broadcasting an internal “danger” signal—even when you’re safe.

Releasing muscular tension before sleep is one of the simplest ways to transition out of restlessness and into deep rest.

Focus especially on stress‑prone regions—the jaw, neck, shoulders, and hips—where unconscious stress responses accumulate. Slow stretching, fascia release, and gentle somatic movement tell the body that the day’s vigilance can end.

A brief stretching sequence can serve as an embodied bridge between waking activity and rest. The demonstration below illustrates a balanced five‑minute routine designed to ease the body into stillness:

When following along, keep the emphasis on breath‑synchronized movement rather than intensity.

Stretching is less about pushing muscle length and more about signaling safety to the nervous system through rhythm and control.

Finish the final pose with several slow diaphragmatic breaths; notice how awareness broadens and the impulse to move subsides.

5 Steady the Mind Through Breath and Awareness

Write down lingering thoughts or to‑dos, then practice the 4‑7‑8 breathing technique: inhale 4 counts, hold 7, exhale 8.

This pattern activates the parasympathetic “relaxation” response and slows heart rate.

6 Stabilize Internal Energy (Qigong)

Ancient qigong postures like Zhan Zhuang (standing meditation) help unify scattered energy.

Standing still with relaxed knees and open palms allows the body’s magnetic and electrical flow to rebalance naturally.

Learn What Chi Energy Is and How to Cultivate It

7 Release Stored Trauma

Restless agitation often conceals unresolved stress that the body has never fully discharged. Decades of somatic research—most notably by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk and Dr. David Berceli—show that chronic tension patterns, born from past overwhelm or emotional suppression, manifest as muscular tightening, shallow breathing, and nighttime insomnia.

To break this loop, introduce gentle somatic methods that allow the body to tremor and release safely.

Approaches such as Trauma Release Exercises (TRE) and Bioenergetic Analysis reproduce the body’s natural neurogenic shaking reflex, helping the nervous system complete a cycle of regulation that stress once interrupted.

For an accessible visual introduction, watch this concise demonstration by TRE founder Dr. David Berceli, illustrating how subtle tremors restore balance and relief:

Video courtesy of Dr. David Berceli / TRE for All

Notice how the practice emphasizes slow, voluntary shaking rather than forced movement.

This physiologically resets the psoas and surrounding muscle groups that tighten during threat, sending feedback through the vagus nerve to shift the body from a defensive to a restorative state.

If you incorporate TRE before sleep, remain conscious of comfort and grounding—short sessions of five to ten minutes are typically sufficient. Over time, this practice can dramatically reduce both physical restlessness and the subtle anxiety that fuels insomnia.

Bessel van der Kolk’s The Body Keeps the Score (2014) remains the cornerstone text on how trauma manifests somatically.

Even modest consistency with these steps can retrain the nervous system to recognize darkness as safety once again—transforming restlessness into stillness.