[Cjones]

Hi. I’m 36 years old and have been struggling with insomnia for the last 4 months. It all started after a few major stressors in my life but then continue to get worse. I started to experience a lot of anxiety from not sleeping and eventually developed severe sleep anxiety. I feel I have come along way as I no long fear sleep but am still not sleeping.. I maybe get 4 hours a night and that’s only with taking a sleeping pill. I have trouble falling and staying asleep. I have implemented all the sleep hygiene suggestion but still have not seen a significant improvement. I go to bed and wake up at the same time and get out of bed if I am not sleeping. I am struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I feel hopeless alone and fear I will never be able to sleep naturally again.

[Scott]

Stressful life events usually cause some sleep disruption but when our thoughts and behaviors about our sleep change, it oftentimes perpetuates the issue. Sleep hygiene tactics are good to follow but usually aren’t beneficial by themselves since, again, they don’t address the root cause of your sleep issue – thoughts and behaviors. It sounds like you may be following some of the CBT-I techniques, correct? When you have middle of the night awakenings, what is going through your mind, if anything? How do you try to manage those thoughts when they arrive?

Scott J

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If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Mastery program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

[Cjones]

Thank you for the response. I am following some of the CBT-I techniques. I have been trying to replace a lot of my negative thoughts with positive ones. I often go to bed not trying to sleep and have tried to accept my wakefulness but as the night progress and I still haven’t fallen asleep I start to worry. when I wake up in the middle of the night its hard to know what’s going through my mind. I often don’t get upset about waking up and try to tell myself this is normal. I feel I am usually able to go back to sleep but it usually is a very light sleep- (like I feel I am awake.) I continually try to welcome my thoughts and not push them away. I just felt I would be making some better progress at this point. And I was wondering if Martins course would really benefit me. I also feel so guilty taking sleeping aids that don’t really even work

[Scott]

Starting a new regimen can be difficult sometimes and I relate it to starting a new exercise routine – you usually don’t see immediate results and you’re not sure that what you’re doing is beneficial, but if you remain committed and consistent to the process, you’ll definitely be successful. Having completed Martin’s free email program and hearing all the success stories (on this forum and his podcast), I highly recommend his email program and/or working with him directly. Keep in mind that when we try to control our thoughts instead of welcoming them and letting them pass, it can increase our arousal and highlight the sleep we’re experiencing. Have you considered saying, “oh, there’s that thought about my sleep again” and then re-engaging in the activity you were in when it arrived or letting it pass after saying that instead of trying to change it to a positive thought? Our attempt at changing the thought is a control strategy and is usually unhelpful.

Scott J

—

If you are ready to stop struggling with insomnia you can enroll in the online insomnia coaching course right now! If you would prefer ongoing phone or video coaching calls as part of a powerful three month program that will help you reclaim your life from insomnia, consider applying for the Insomnia Mastery program.

The content of this post is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice given to you by your physician or any other licensed healthcare provider. Insomnia Coach LLC offers coaching services only and does not provide therapy, counseling, medical advice, or medical treatment. All content is provided “as is” and without warranties, either express or implied.

[Cjones]

Thank you Scott.
your comment about letting thoughts pass instead of trying to change it to a positive thought really got my attention… I didn’t think of changing the negative thoughts in to positives as a control strategy but that does make sense and I think this smile thought will really help me in the end. I am working on identifying the sleep though and saying “oh, there’s that thought about my sleep again” and then really trying to re-engaging in the activity im in. as you mention these thing take time and I am likely being impatient with myself.
I really appreciate your responses.

[Author]

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