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The start time and end time of the sleep window usually matter less than its duration and the consistency of implementation. As we start to fill our sleep window with sleep, we can start to make the sleep window longer — perhaps in 15-minute increments. This can be done by starting the window 15 minutes earlier or ending it 15 minutes later.
Setting an alarm for the end of the sleep window can certainly give us one less thing to think/worry about during the night!
—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.
How are you getting on since you posted? Did you decide to try implementing any of the cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) techniques I often talk about?
—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.
Do you think you would still be unable to sleep after 9:00 PM if you didn’t get any sleep whatsoever for the previous 10 days?
—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 to the forum! Your insomnia sounds pretty typical — have you tried implementing cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) techniques to help create better conditions for 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.
Sometimes it can be helpful to recognize that waking during the night is a normal part of sleep. If we find it hard to fall back to sleep that’s usually because we aren’t sleepy enough for more sleep, our body clock might be disrupted (usually caused by an inconsistent out of bed time in the morning and/or daytime inactivity), and/or because we are putting pressure on ourselves to fall back to sleep, putting effort into falling back to sleep, or trying to fight or avoid difficult thoughts, feelings, and emotions — such as anxiety.
—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.
There are people who cannot be helped by cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) — because there’s no “one-size-fits-all” solution for chronic insomnia. However, they would be in the minority.
CBT-I is recognized as the most effective long-term treatment for chronic insomnia and that’s probably because it tackles the thought processes and behaviors that perpetuate sleep disruption. So, the vast majority of people who implement CBT-I techniques appropriately and consistently (and for long enough) do get results.
You mentioned that you have been going to bed earlier and earlier, which implies that you might not be implementing sleep restriction correctly.
I would also add that it’s not unusual for sleep to temporarily get worse when we start implementing CBT-I techniques. The goal is better sleep for the long-term and sometimes this involves accepting some short-term sleep disruption.
You might find it helpful to work one-on-one with a CBT-I therapist so you can troubleshoot your experience appropriately.
Finally, if you regularly find yourself falling asleep during the day or experiencing intense daytime sleepiness, it might be worth getting evaluated by a doctor since this could be a symptom of another sleep disorder (for example, sleep apnea).
—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.
Shift work is really hard on sleep — and is not really the focus of this forum, unfortunately. If you struggle with sleep and are a shift worker, I would suggest looking for someone who specializes in circadian rhythm sleep disorders (and who has experience helping shift workers).
—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.
I have seen sleep restriction prove to be helpful for people who experience nights of no sleep — and for people who might be experiencing some sleep state misperception (which isn’t unusual among people with chronic insomnia).
If you are concerned about nighttime wakefulness during your sleep window then I would suggest combining the technique with stimulus control by getting out of bed whenever being in bed doesn’t feel good and doing something more pleasant until conditions feel better for sleep.
You might find my podcast episode with Dave helpful — he experienced a lot of nights of zero sleep whatsoever: How David overcame three years of insomnia by addressing his obsession with sleep using CBT-I, acceptance, and mindfulness techniques (#8).
I hope this helps.
—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 does your sleep schedule look like? What time do you usually go to bed at night and what time do you usually get up to start your day in the mornings? Do these times usually vary?
—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.
Can you tell us a bit more about the cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) techniques you tried? Which specific techniques did you implement, and for how long?
—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.
I wonder if you might be experiencing hypnic jerks?
As you suggested, the heightened sensitivity to environmental sounds could be connected to heightened arousal. Are you being treated for PTSD with anything other than medication? You might want to ask your doctor whether they think you’d be a good candidate for cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I).
—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.
I can’t think of any biological reason why falling asleep at 10:00 PM would lead to all the symptoms you described, compared to falling asleep 30 minutes earlier. Do you tend to get the same amount of sleep if you go to bed later than 9:00 PM or 9:30 PM?
Does the time you get out of bed to start your day change, depending on when you go to bed or fall asleep at night? Does what you do each day vary depending on when you go to bed or fall asleep at night?
—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 is great to hear — good on you for getting started with making some changes that help to create (and maintain) good conditions for 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.
Hello Marie and welcome to the forum. You know, after reading your post I had to check your username because your experience sounded so familiar to me! I have worked with so many clients who can trace the start of their insomnia to working shifts, being on call, and/or having children.
This sleep disruption is normal and natural — and usually goes away when those sleep disruptors are no longer an issue/no longer relevant. However, it can linger even if we no longer work night shifts, even if we are no longer on call, and even if our kids are grown and more independent — and that’s usually because of a change in our relationship with sleep (and all the thoughts, feelings, and emotions our brain generates) and because we have implemented behaviors in an attempt to improve our sleep that, unfortunately, serve only to perpetuate sleep disruption.
Common perpetuating behaviors include spending more time in bed, going to bed earlier, staying in bed later, canceling plans or modifying our days in response to sleep, being more sedentary during the day, taking (or attempting to take) naps, engaging in more sleep-related research, experimenting with medication and supplements, etc.
It’s completely natural for you to feel some fear when considering sleep restriction — and yet, you are still considering it, even in the presence of fear!
Sleep restriction has a scary name, but all it really does is reduce the amount of time available for nighttime wakefulness. Really, it should be renamed “wake restriction”. When implementing sleep restriction, the amount of time allotted for sleep is always longer than your average nightly sleep duration — so, it never takes sleep away from you. Instead, it reduces the amount of time available for nighttime wakefulness, builds sleep drive, and strengthens the body clock.
Perhaps it might be worth implementing the technique as an experiment, just for a couple of weeks, to see how you get on 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.
Thanks for sharing — I don’t know of many people who successfully overcame chronic insomnia through meditation alone, but if that worked for you that’s great!
—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.
