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Hi Brent,
You ask some really great questions, and I wish there was an easy answer. What worked for me might not work for someone else, but I can share what my experience with sleep restriction was. I found that putting too much pressure on anything, whether it was the pressure to go to sleep or the pressure to stay awake, was not very helpful for me. The rigidity I was imposing on myself to try and “fix” the problem was just reinforcing the notion that I was broken and needed fixing and that sleep was within my control. I think the YouTube account Fearless Sleep explains this really well and I will link some of her videos below that address your specific questions!When to go to sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikqg9O31WKo
What to do at night when you can’t sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYqlS_i9JgQI would also find it helpful at times to listen to one of Martin’s podcast episodes during nights where I couldn’t sleep because it made me feel less alone. I could see how that might not be helpful for others who want to distract themselves all together from the world of Insomnia. Basically, there is no one size fits all approach. I don’t feel truly qualified to advise on whether sleep restriction is a good strategy for you or not, but I am always open to sharing my own personal experience!
I am still taking a very low dose of anxiety medication, as I found that it helped me overall (not just with sleep). I feel like it just takes the edge off of the panic and anxiety and helps me manage unhelpful intrusive thoughts. I completely agree with what Sandy wrote and think it’s important to note that everyone is different and I believe in using medication for its intended purpose when its needed. I hope to one day be medication free, but I’m not putting any pressure on it for now.
