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Going to war isn’t usually something that helps make sleep happen 😉
How did you practice accepting wakefulness? You might still experience worry when practicing acceptance (since worry is a natural and normal human feeling that shows up when it wants) — trying to “not worry” might set you up for some struggle!
—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.
You might want to try making the hour before your sleep window begins the last time you check the time and then allow yourself to go to bed whenever you feel sleepy enough for sleep — especially if the thought of going to bed is appealing rather than something that fills you with trepidation and fear!
This also creates the opportunity for more sleep to happen if conditions feel right for sleep to happen and if your body decides it wants to generate more sleep.
—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.
Welcome aboard! You definitely aren’t alone — many people who struggled with CBT-I have found the approach shared in this course (which is more aligned with ACT) to be very helpful! I wish you all the best with 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.
Ideally, you want to complete all the lessons of Week 1 (that includes the quiz and survey) before starting your practice for a week and then moving on in the course. The final questions relate to the course content — not your ongoing practice 🙂
—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.
This probably depends on your intent — are you reading in bed because you are ready for sleep to happen? If so, that’s the start of your sleep time. Are you reading in bed because you enjoy reading in bed and aren’t ready for sleep to happen? If so, that’s not the start of your sleep time 🙂
—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.
What might you be able to do to help make that wakefulness feel a little bit less miserable or a little bit more productive, @elvinalim?
—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.
If you enjoy lying down for 20-30 minutes and that’s not an action that is making things more difficult or pulling you away from the life you want to live, I don’t see how it can be a problem!
It sounds as though you’ve gained a helpful insight thanks to your husband — since you are snoring at times when you think you are awake, you could very well be getting more sleep than you think!
—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.
Thanks for the opportunity to clarify — the suggestion is to go to bed when you feel sleepy at any point once your sleep window has begun 🙂
—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.
You’re clearly moving away from the struggle, and it’s the struggle that gives insomnia the oxygen it needs to survive and it’s the struggle that makes insomnia even more difficult and gives it more power and influence over our lives.
Reading can be a great way to practice experiencing wakefulness with less struggle, if reading is something you enjoy. I would invite you to be mindful of your intent — reading cannot generate sleep; if we read in an attempt to make a certain amount or type of sleep happen we might risk setting ourselves up for a struggle 🙂
—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.
Perhaps your brain is firing up in preparation for the struggle it predicts might be about to happen, Chrissie? As a result, you can feel wired, energized, and ready for battle. Could that be a possible explanation, do you think?
—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.
You are clearly a proactive self-advocate, Amber — and what wonderful strengths they are!
When we find a sleep window helpful, it can be so easy to believe that the time we go to bed and the time we get out of bed are what make sleep happen — so when we make a change and experience difficult nights, we can blame the sleep window (our ourselves for making the “wrong” kind of change).
The truth is that the sleep window is merely one tool that can help us move away from chasing after sleep. It’s not going to magically create sleep or protect sleep and we will often need more tools to help us deal with any wakefulness that shows up during the sleep window if that wakefulness pulls us into a struggle.
It sounds as though you are doing a great job at building skill in experiencing wakefulness and anxiety with less struggle — you have the foundations in place to do well as you continue to work through the course (remember there’s no need to get out of bed when you are awake, unless you want to)!
As you pointed out, going one step further and acknowledging *why* the good things you noticed happened can be so helpful. It widens the focus of our attention even further and it might also help us recognize that our actions give us the opportunity to notice (and experience) more of the good stuff!
Thanks again for sharing 🙂
—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.
Thanks for getting back to me! A few more questions:
1. What time does your sleep window begin, what time does it end, and how did you choose those times?
2. Around what time do you find it hard to stay awake and where are you and what are you doing at that time?
3. It is often very difficult to get out of bed by the end of the sleep window — especially after a night of no sleep. What is good about staying in bed when the sleep window ends and how would staying in bed after your sleep window ends move you closer to your goals?
—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.
Hi @elvinalim! It’s totally natural and normal to experience difficult thoughts and feelings when you are awake at a time you want to be asleep — that’s evidence that you have a problem-solving brain that is doing its job of looking out for you (thanks, brain)!
What matters is how you respond — because if you are like most human beings, you probably respond by being hard on yourself and/or trying to fight those thoughts and feelings. And that response can create a struggle that makes things more difficult.
An alternative response involves building skill in acknowledging the presence of those natural thoughts and feelings, being kind to yourself, and allowing them to come and go as they choose. Not struggling with them. Being more of an observer of them, rather than an opponent of them.
This is a big topic and something we’ll be exploring in a lot more detail as you continue to work through the course!
—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.
Those “relapses” can be really difficult — and they are natural, they are normal, and they are evidence that you are a human being and not a robot. They can also be insightful learning experiences. They are never failures.
A few questions for you:
1. You shared that your sleep window ends at 6:30 AM — what time does it start (and how did you choose those start and end times)?
2. Are you feeling sleepy (finding it hard to stay awake) when you go to bed at night?
3. When you are in bed and not falling asleep, how do you respond?
—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.
Good on you for implementing a sleep window — that’s a change that is often challenging!
How did you choose your sleep window start time of around 10-10:30 PM and how did you choose your out of bed time of around 6:15-6:30 AM?
With those start and end times you are allotting around 8 hours for sleep, so if you tend to average closer to 5 hours of sleep you might be setting yourself up for 3 hours of wakefulness during the night. That’s not necessarily a problem, depending on your relationship with that wakefulness — it’s just something to bear in mind 🙂
When you feel really sleepy at around 9:00 PM, where are you and what are you doing? Have you tried going to bed at 9:00 PM? If so, what happens?
—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.
