[littlewiltse]

I’ve had severe insomnia for 1.5 years. I’ve tried CBTI and ACT but haven’t been successful. I think I’m part because I’m still taking sleeping medications. I’d like to hear how others used CBTI and ACT to get off sleeping meds and get their life and sleep back.

[delv-x]

I’ve been working on it for about the same amount of time and have had ups and downs. Sleep medication will help aid to a degree and if it helps, continue. If you’d like to stop, consult your doctor for an exit strategy. Usually the best way is to set a date to start and then start with half the dose. Chances are things will be the same or better. Regardless, stay at that dose for a week or two or whatever then either stop or go to quarter and repeat. Hope this helps.

I was off medication for 7 months and I know I can sleep without them!

[Deb]

You may want to get some help with implementing the therapies. CBT-I is hard to do alone without support. It can take weeks and sometimes it’s hard to keep going without encouragement and a helping hand. Martin here on this website is a terrific coach for CBT-I.

ACT is tricky. They may think you’re doing it correctly when in fact, you aren’t. It won’t work if you’re not doing it right. I got help with this. Once I got past my mental roadblocks and understood how to implement ACT correctly, it took less than two weeks to recover.

[LCF]

Deb, I can’t help you with using ACT to get off your sleep meds, but I do know how to get off sleep meds without CBT/ACT. I took 1 mg Ativan every night for over 16 years and came off it without too much trouble over three months. That might seem an excessive time, but I had virtually no withdrawal symptoms even after being so habituated to the medication.

You didn’t state what you’re taking, but the strategy is to go slowly and make cuts of 10% of your current dose every week or two, depending on how you feel. This strategy was first suggested by Dr. Ashton a while back, and a lot of people get off medications successfully this way.

I would not suggest a 50% cut of any medication you’ve been on for any length of time, particularly the benzodiazepines and z-drugs but also antidepressants, though to a lesser extent. That’s how you can end up with serious withdrawal symptoms. And I will add that most doctors, in my experience, do not know how to get their patients off medications properly. It’s not something they’re taught and they don’t understand because they’ve usually not had to go through it.

[Martin Reed]

Sleeping medications rarely influence the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) techniques unless you take medication contingently. Here’s a short video about this: Does cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) work if you are taking sleeping pills?

When you tried CBT-I, how long were you trying it for and why do you think it didn’t work? Were you following a sleep window? If so, when did your sleep window start and when did it end? How much sleep do you get on a typical night? Do you tend to struggle with falling asleep or staying asleep (or both)? Why do you think you find sleep difficult?

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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.

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