Insomnia
What is Insomnia?
People with insomnia may have a hard time falling asleep, staying asleep, or may wake too early. Individuals may also experience the effects of poor sleep during the daytime, such as:
Fatigue: Feeling tired or having low energy.
Cognitive issues: Trouble with attention, concentration, and memory.
Emotional distress: Becoming easily irritated or anxious.
Health issues: Sleep deprivation can cause a rapid increase in heart rate and is linked to problems such as high blood pressure.
Causes of Insomnia
Insomnia may arise as a primary disorder, or it may be associated with various mental health problems including:
Traumatic life events
In some individuals, insomnia is related to physical health issues, medications, substance use (including caffeine), or changes in lifestyle or sleep habits.
When to Seek Help?
It’s important to consult a professional If your insomnia persists for more than a month or interferes with your daily functioning. At CBT Denver, we offer specialized support for insomnia and related mental health issues.
What is CBT for Insomnia (CBT-I)?
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is an evidence-based treatment for insomnia. Organizations like the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, and the National Institutes of Health endorse it, and recommend that all adult patients with chronic insomnia receive CBT-I as their first line of treatment.
CBT-I is a non-medication approach that focuses on the thoughts and behaviors that contribute to poor sleep. It is also a treatment that provides clients with proven strategies to help them prevent and overcome sleep problems.
What is Enhanced CBT-I?
Here at CBT Denver, we compliment CBT-I with other helpful techniques to address the stress, frustration, anxiety and depression that are often associated with insomnia. These approaches include:
Distress Tolerance
Relaxation Training
We work with clients to examine their individual values and goals and help them identify the challenges that get in the way of pursuing well-being.
How long does treatment last?
CBT-I usually requires between 4 to 12 weekly, 50-minute sessions to be effective. Some clients may require more sessions if facing complex issues, such as panic attacks, underlying anxiety disorders, depression, health issues or are experiencing a complicated life transition.
At times, we offer insomnia treatment as a group intervention as well.
How will I know if CBT-I is helping?
Most people participating in CBT-I usually notice improvement in their sleep quality after a few sessions resulting in increased alertness, concentration skills, and energy.
Our goal is to establish a reasonable sleep plan, which is different for everyone, and then progress towards that goal.
What to expect from CBT-I therapy
Regular Attendance: Consistency enhances treatment effectiveness.
Weekly Sleep Goals: Work with your therapist to set achievable targets.
Sleep Diary: Track sleep patterns to monitor progress, using a simple sleep diary.
Behavioral Strategies: Implement techniques to reshape thinking and behavior patterns to get better sleep.
CBT-I strategies may include
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Addressing your thoughts and beliefs about your sleep.
Worry and anxiety about your insomnia can lead to a spiral in which anxiety makes it harder to fall asleep, more anxiety ensues, making it harder to fall asleep…the pattern continues and reinforces itself.
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Lying in bed awake can become a habit that can lead to and maintain insomnia. This technique temporarily decreases the time you spend in bed to compact your sleep and to make you spend less time in bed tossing and turning.
With your clinician’s guidance, the time you spend in bed is gradually increased.
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This technique helps remove factors that condition the mind to resist sleep. For example, staying up watching movies on your computer in bed may condition you to stay awake rather than fall asleep.
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Sleep hygiene involves changing basic lifestyle habits that influence sleep.
These include keeping the bedroom quiet, cool and dark, limiting caffeine intake later in the day, winding down and relaxing or practicing mindfulness at night.
CBT-I at CBT Denver
At CBT Denver, we understand that each individual is unique. Not every treatment approach is a perfect fit for every person and every condition. That’s why we offer several different treatment approaches that allow us to bring our best, most personalized care to every client in our practice.
During your initial consultation session, we will listen to your challenges and goals and will offer information about evidence-based treatments that best fit you and your desired outcomes. Together we can develop the best treatment approach or approaches that work for you.
Contact us
Learn More About Insomnia Treatment at CBT Denver
If you’re interested in learning more about our approach to treating insomnia, including CBT-I, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re here to help you explore what might be best for your needs through an initial phone consultation and answer any questions you have.
