[Maryam]

Hello. I have been consistently doing CBT-I. I feel that my body has now gotten into a habit of waking up even earlier than the slotted window time, so I’m sleeping very little every night and despite being very sleepy when I wake up very early, I still can’t fall asleep. Also the anxiety that I have in the evening interferes with my sleep initiation no matter how sleepy I feel. I can’t control the anxiety no matter what and this has been the main barrier to my sleep. (My window is 11-5, it takes a long time to fall asleep if I do get to fall asleep because of anxiety and I’m up around 4)
It’s very frustrating because I have done everything that has been suggested and still feel the same.

[cwalters24]

How long have you been doing it?

[Gabriele Buonomo]

Hi Maryam, are you being followed by someone? How long have you been doing CBT-I? Some of us need more time to improve, so don’t get discouraged and calm down, slowly and with the help of a good sleep doctor you will win. I was very anxious like you but over time the anxiety will decrease and sleep will improve. Be consistent and be followed by someone who can apply CBT-I well.

[NWSleepy]

Hi Maryam:
Are you able to get out of bed at 5 am every morning? Are you staying up until you are too tired to stay awake? The sleep window doesn’t work if you are not tired when you go to bed.

If you cannot do Martin’s course, I recommend you keep reading this forum, listening to his podcast, and use the Veterans Administration free app called — CBT-i Coach. These things have helped me immensely. Good luck!

[Martin Reed]

If you are finding that it takes a long time to fall asleep at the start of the night, it can be helpful to think of the start of your sleep window only as your earliest possible bedtime. So, if your sleep window begins and you don’t feel sleepy enough for sleep you might want to try delaying going to bed until you do feel sleepy, while maintaining that consistent final out of bed time in the morning.

Taking time to unwind before the start of your sleep window — doing things you find relaxing and enjoyable — can also distract the mind and help to reduce anxiety as bedtime approaches. You might also find it helpful not to check the clock during the night since this usually only leads to arousal and makes falling back to sleep more difficult.

I hope this helps!

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