Insomnia

Insomnia

Insomnia is a sleep disorder that affects 5-10% of the American population. People with insomnia typically have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep despite having ample opportunity to sleep. An example would be the person who has been lying in bed for 90 minutes in a comfortable, safe environment, but still cannot sleep. Insomnia is not to be confused with sleep deprivation, a condition in which a person has the ability to fall asleep but lacks the opportunity to fall asleep. Examples would include the exhausted parents of a newborn who keeps them awake or having noisy neighbors who disturb your sleep. Sleep hygiene tips may help with sleep deprivation but alone are usually not enough to manage insomnia.

If you believe that you are suffering from insomnia and would like help, contact me by clicking here.

Why is Sleep Important?

While we are sleeping, our bodies repair and regenerate tissues, consolidate memories, and regulate the production of hormones that affect growth, metabolism, and mood. Getting adequate amounts of quality sleep helps us to regulate our emotions, concentrate, solve problems, and can even reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

On the other hand, lack of quality sleep can lead to:

• Changes in mood

• Increased risk taking

• Memory loss

• Increased risk of accidents

• Increased risk of suicide

• Increased risk of SUD relapse

• Decreased ability to recognize danger

• Slowed response times

• Hallucinations

• Social discomfort

• Difficulty communicating

• Impaired task performance

Also consider that people don’t always realize how badly lack of quality sleep is affecting them. Think about the number of times you have heard someone say something like, “I don’t need much sleep. I only need 4 hours.”

CBT-I

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia, also known as CBT-I, is an evidenced based method of treating insomnia. It uses sleep diaries and techniques like stimulus control and sleep restriction to help people get more sleep. The amount of sleep a person needs can change over the course of their lifetime. The goal of CBT-I is to teach people how to match their sleep drive (desire to sleep) to their circadian rhythm (your body’s sleep/wake cycle). This process helps people identify the amount of sleep that is appropriate for their bodies at the current time in their lives.