Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
It’s actually quite common for sleep to get worse for the first couple of weeks during a CBT-I program as you learn (and adjust) to new techniques and try to change what can be deeply-rooted habits and behaviors. The key is to stick with it, and keep in communication with your CBT-I practitioner or sleep coach!
—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 your sleep? Do you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep? How many hours of sleep do you get on a typical 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.
If you are nervous or worried about any aspect, you should talk to your CBT-I practitioner. They should have a toolbox of techniques that can use to help you recognize that stimulus control is nothing to be nervous about and is far better than the alternative of staying in bed, tossing and turning, and perpetuating your insomnia problem. Stick with it, and you will get results!
—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, Lissi. First, let me make it clear that waking during the night is completely normal and this happens even to the best sleepers. That’s because we tend to wake as we emerge from one sleep cycle and begin another — so we may naturally awaken a number of times during the night.
The difference between those without a sleep problem and those who struggle is often down to the fact that the person without a sleep issue will not pay any attention to these awakenings. They will remain relaxed and fall (almost immediately) back to sleep. As a result, they usually don’t even remember waking.
For those of us with a sleep issue, as soon as we wake we begin to worry about the fact we woke. As soon as we worry, or feel any form of anxiety, we make sleep more difficult — and this is when the nighttime awakenings can become a problem.
‘Working hard’ on sleep is not constructive because put simply, we cannot control sleep! We cannot lie down in bed at night and force ourselves to fall asleep within a certain amount of time. We cannot force ourselves to sleep for a certain number of hours. All we can do is give ourselves the best opportunity for sleep and then see what happens. As soon as we try to control sleep, or put pressure on ourselves to sleep, we make sleep more difficult.
I’ve got a quick question for you — if you didn’t have to stick to a routine (such as getting up for college) and you could go to bed and get out of bed whenever you wanted, do you think you’d have any sleep issues? For example, if you could go to bed at 2 am every day and get out of bed whenever you wanted, do you think you’d still have an issue with 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 to the forum, C. I’m sorry to hear about your struggles with sleep.
The good news is since you have been experiencing these issues for a just a few weeks, these problems are usually more easily addressed if you take action sooner rather than later.
Do you tend to find it hard to fall asleep or stay asleep? What do you think is stopping you from falling asleep or staying 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.
A sleep specialist will be able to tell you if CBT-I would be an appropriate treatment option. CBT-I is recommended as the first-line treatment for insomnia by organizations such as the National Institutes of Health, the American College of Physicians, and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. However, because you are living with epilepsy you will want to get the OK from a doctor since some of the techniques (such as sleep restriction) are sometimes contraindicated for individuals at risk of seizure.
—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.
Sorry to hear about your struggles, Mia. When you wake at 3am, do you know why you wake at night? What do you think is preventing you from falling back to sleep after waking 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.
Have you tried getting out of bed when unable to sleep? The first thing I’d suggest is making sure you have an appropriate sleep schedule. Then, try to get out of bed when unable to 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.
After the hypnic jerk, do you suddenly feel wide awake or are you still sleepy and then begin to doze off again relatively quickly?
—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, Mina. At the very least, now you’ve found this forum you can be reassured that you are not alone!
Can you tell us a bit more about your sleep? What is a typical night like?
—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.
Waking at 4-6am may be your body’s natural arising time. What time do you typically go to bed at night and how long does it take you to fall asleep? How do you feel when you wake in the morning, and how is your daytime performance?
—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, Sailguy. You mentioned that your insomnia tends to come and go. Any idea what breaks the cycle and leads to periods of good sleep? Any idea what triggers a fresh bout of insomnia?
I’m sorry to hear that your doctor is only offering ongoing sleep medication — particularly since sleeping pills are not recommended as a long-term treatment option for chronic insomnia.
I completely understand your worry about CBT-I — however, it will not stop you from sleeping entirely! That’s because we never lose our ability to sleep. We can certainly make it harder for ourselves to sleep (mainly by worrying about sleep and trying to control sleep) — but we cannot stop ourselves from sleeping entirely.
With that being said, it’s important to be realistic about CBT-I. The techniques can be challenging, and it can take a few weeks to see results. Sleep may get worse before it gets better. However, what I can say is this — would a few weeks of worse sleep in return for better sleep over the long-term be preferable to your current situation? If so, you may want to discuss CBT-I with your doctor.
—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.
Many people experience ‘weekday’ insomnia for the exact reasons you describe! The good news is, this problem can usually be addressed using CBT-I techniques. Did you discuss CBT-I with your physician?
CBT-I techniques have been proven to be more effective than sleeping pills and are recommended as the first-line treatment for insomnia by organizations such as the National Institutes of Health, the American College of Physicians, and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
CBT-I is particularly effective at reducing the anxiety surrounding sleep, and reversing the vicious cycle of less sleep and ever-more anxiety, and turning it around to become a positive cycle of ever-reducing anxiety and improving 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 Roseg27. I’m sorry to hear about the issues you’re currently having with your sleep. It sounds as though you have created a strong association between sleep and worry/anxiety. As a result, when you get into bed you probably find that you become more alert (rather than more relaxed) and when you wake during the night you feel wide awake rather than drowsy and ready to fall back to sleep. Does this sound about right?
Have you talked to your doctor about your sleep? Since you have only been experiencing these issues for a month or so, it’s best to address these problems sooner rather than later. That’s because, the longer you live with these sleep problems, the more entrenched they will become.
—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. Generally speaking, your experience is not uncommon. Most cases of insomnia start out with an identifiable one-off cause. In your case, it was likely a combination of partying, an inconsistent sleep schedule, and a poor sleep environment. This is normal, and to be expected.
However, what can then happen is once we experience poor sleep we start to think a lot about sleep — we pay more attention to our sleep than we ever did before. We may even do things to try to improve our sleep (such as going to bed earlier or staying in bed later). We may also change our lifestyle to accommodate our newly disturbed sleep patterns (such as canceling plans with friends or calling in sick to work).
Unfortunately, all of these thoughts and behaviors make the problem worse. As sleep becomes worse, we worry about sleep more. As we worry about sleep more, our sleep gets worse. This soon becomes a vicious cycle that I am sure you recognize (one symptom is feeling sleepy until we get into bed and then we suddenly feel wide awake and alert).
Did you discuss CBT for insomnia with your doctor? From what you’ve shared, you sound as though you’d be a good candidate.
—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.
