It’s been a few years that I’ve been on this journey, trying to recover from my insomnia and I finally feel like I’m a normal sleeper again. Honestly, I sleep great 99% of the time – something that I wasn’t sure would ever happen! Here’s what I feel like helped me:
1. CBT – I started with this program and I do feel like it helped me get back into a regular sleeping routine at night. It began to retrain my body to rest/sleep at regular hours.
2. The Sleep Book – After CBT, I was still really struggling with sleep anxiety and Dr. Guy Meadows’ book helped me a ton with this. I also downloaded his app and practiced, practiced, practiced his techniques. It took some time (weeks, months) to retrain my brain and body again, and I frequently had to go back to practicing/reading them again.
3. Set It and Forget It – book by Daniel Erichsen. This was the final piece for me. Even after reading and practicing the techniques in The Sleep Book, I found myself still obsessing over sleep. I wasn’t nearly as anxious about it anymore, but it was still all I thought about. Reading this book allowed me to start focusing on the great and wonderful things in my life instead of focusing on my sleep.
I realize this isn’t a perfect formula for everyone, but I hope that these strategies may help someone! I wanted to pass along a little hope that things can get better, but they do take a lot of practice and work to get there – not a quick fix!