[Daz27041]

Hi everyone,

Well, I have been working through the CBT Self Help 'Sleep Better Without Drugs' program now for about 6 weeks and my sleeping has improved out of sight!! I now sleep every night usually all the way through! If I wake up, it's for a very short time and I am straight back to sleep. I am so happy it's unbelievable. I feel normal again. My whole outlook has changed as has my attitude towards sleeping. The book claims an 80% success rate and I am in that bracket. It really is so simple to follow. There are nine basic rules to follow, plus a good smattering of advice, testimonies, tips and reassurances from the psychologist who wrote the book. I found the program in a second hand bookstore for $5. The best $5 I ever spent compared to what I have wasted money on treating to find the right 'cure'. It came with 3 cassette tapes which is basically the author being interviewed and recounting everything that's in the back. The third cassette is a relaxation tape which I used for the the first few nights. No need to use it now. I'll post the 9 rules shortly in this thread for those who wish to give it a try.

[jayinsf]

Thanks.. I'd like to see them. Did the book come with cassettes or CDs? I'd be curious to hear them too.

[Daz27041]

The book came with cassette tapes. They really just are a rehash of what is written. Its in a question and answer format. The tapes arent essential. Its the sleep hygiene / good habits that do the trick i believe. I will post the 9 golden rules asap in this thread.

[Daz27041]

OK. These are the 9 rules to go by. There is a lot more information in the booklet, but this is the 9 rules.

1. LIE DOWN TO GO TO SLEEP ONLY WHEN YOU ARE ACTUALLY SLEEPY. This may mean staying up 1 or 2 hours later than your usual bedtime. Do not go to bed until atleast 10 or 11pm.

2. DO NOT USE YOUR BED FOR ANYTHING EXCEPT SLEEPING. Do not read, watch tv, listen to the radio or eat in bed.

3. IF YOU DO NOT FALL ASLEEP IN 30 MINUTES AFTER TURNING OUT THE LIGHT get up and go to another room and do something that is not too arousing. Stay up until you feel the next wave of sleepiness coming on. The goal is to associate bed with falling asleep quickly.

4. IF YOU RETURN TO BED AND STILL CANNOT SLEEP, repeat rule 3. Do this as often as necessary until you fall asleep in about 30 minutes.

5. IF YOU WAKE UP DURING THE NIGHT AND CANNOT GO BACK TO SLEEP follow rules 3 and 4.

6. GET UP AT THE SAME TIME EVERY MORNING seven days a week regardless of how long you have slept. This will help your body to develop a consistent sleep rhythym.

7. DO NOT NAP DURING THE DAY.

8. DO SOME FORM OF PHYSICAL RELAXATION DURING THE DAY meditate, yoga, stretch etc

9. LEARN TO REDUCE THINKING AND WORRYING IN BED – see next part.

HOW TO REDUCE THINKING AND WORRYING IN BED

1. Most thinking and worrying that we do in bed needs to be done – it just does not need to be done in bed. Devote some time during the day to your thinking and worrying and not within 60mins of going to bed. Say to yourself “Stop. I thought about this today. I'll think about it again tomorrow. Now is the time for sleep.”

2. If you are wanting to fall asleep, or if you have woken up during the night and want to go back to sleep quickly, try not to let the first thought come in. Say to yourself “Don't even start.”

3. More sleep is lost through worrying about 'not sleeping' than through any other cause. Say to yourself “What is the worst thing that could happen if I don't sleep tonight? I'll be very tired tomorrow. This will be very unpleasant, but I won't die from this.In fact, I'll probably make it through the day, just as I have always made it through the day in the past. Worrying about it now will only make it worse. I'll just lie here and as long as it's peaceful rest, that will be nearly as good as restorative as sleep anyway.

Best of luck to you all. Darrin.

[jayinsf]

Cool..thanks!

[Martin Reed]

Thanks for sharing, Darrin. I'd be interested in hearing from other members who try these tips or give the entire program a try.

—

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.

[PatO]

Thanks Darrin

As you know; this program is very difficult to fully incorporate into ones nightly routine. I personally undertook an experiment with CBT for approximately one month but I was not successful in restoring my normal sleep. I am no longer following most of the rules because I am staying in a small motor home. Kind of hard to go into another room when there's only one. LOL

[Daz27041]

Yes, i understand PatO. Well i hope you continue to try to find something that works for you. You never know, the next attempt just might bring success!! Best of luck to you. Cheers, Darrin.

[Daz27041]

G'day everyone, Just thought I'd update you all on my sleeping progress with the CBT self help book. Sleep has been going really well for the past 5 or so weeks. Last night was my first night of no sleep since I started this program. I think there might be a few reasons behind last nights no sleep. 1. I was away at a wedding in the country. 2. I had a bit to drink (as one would normally do at wedding!) 3. I received some bad news that my brother-in-laws' mother-in-law has been given 2 months to live with breast cancer and brain tumours and this news saddened me a great deal as my brother-in-laws wife came to the wedding and was very upset when she saw some of us and lastly, I had a disturbing dream about a very good friend of mine. My friend committed suicide in late July. I found him with another mate. Basically the dream was that my friend showed up unannounced and he was still alive and the 'suicide' was just a joke. Pretty weird dream huh?? Obviously it troubled me both in the dream because I woke from it and, I thought about it the next day. Needless to say the anxiety was well and truly back – the dry mouth, the frequent trips to the toilet, the horrible flushings of adrenaline in my guts for no reason, tossing and turning etc. I am disappointed this happened. I was SO tired on the bus coming back to the hotel too. Oh well, I guess you just have to expect setbacks from time to time and try not to let them get me down. If I have trouble going off to sleep tonight I will take 15mgs of Avanza. That normally works, though it lost it's magic when I took it nightly to fight the depression I was in initially, but the doctors told me to keep taking it to build up my reservoir of serotonin. I usually find it works well when I take it infrequently. I have also recently seen school friends on facebook posting about their regular sleep deprivation. I have contact with a very famous Australian singer/musician who only gets a few hours sleep a night because of sleep apnoea. He says the worst aspect of it is the anxiety of not being able to return to sleep after waking up. I know exactly how he feels. It's in the back of my mind now as I write this at 2.41pm in the afternoon. Funny thing, listening to the radio these days, all the modern songs have so many references to not sleeping it's absolutely unbelievable. Insomnia and sleep issues are on the rise with todays society. That's all from me for now. All the best to you ll.

[Martin Reed]

Thanks for the update, and I'm sorry to hear it's not all good news. Do keep us updated, and remember we are all here to support one another whenever you need it.

—

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.

[PatO]

Hello Darrin,

How is the CBT going. I am trying once again to incorporate CBT into my nightly routine. Recently I have been able to get 4 hours of sleep on some nights.

[Daz27041]

Hello PatO,

It has been going very well thanks. I haven't taken a sleeping in absolute ages now! So long so that I can't even remember! I now go to bed later (about 10.30-11pm) and usually I have no trouble going off. If I feel an 'all nighter' coming on (i.e, my breathing is different for some reason, increased heartbeat for no reason etc) I take 1/2 an anti anxiety pill and that seems to do the trick. I have had to do that twice in the past 7 nights, so thats not too bad. Each week is getting better. Ofcourse, when you are sleeping, thoughts of not sleeping are few and far between. So with my sleeping going well, the thoughts and anxiety of not sleeping have been very much minimised. I have gone to bed occasionally not sleepy at all, but surprisingly have gone off to sleep with no problems. My mate has a similar problem, but he's manifests itself in bad dreams which makes him wake up sweating and anxious and then ofcourse has trouble going back to sleep. We have both found that it tends to come in cycles and for no apparent reason whatsoever!! We have just learnt to accept it and play the hand we get given each night. That's about all you can do. I am glad that you have been able to get some sleep PatO. I think that if you keep at it, the CBT will kick in to the subconscious mind and things will change. Your brain will associate night time with sleep. Best of luck PatO and please keep in contact.

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