Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia & Sleep Anxiety
Insomnia Symptoms
The symptoms of insomnia are different for everyone. They may include a few of the ones listed below, or several:
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Difficulty falling asleep at night
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Inability to stay asleep
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Multiple awakenings throughout the night
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Waking up too early & unable to fall back asleep
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Not feeling well-rested after a night's sleep
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Daytime tiredness or sleepiness
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Change in mood (increased irritability, depression or anxiety)
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Lack of energy or motivation
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Difficulty paying attention, focusing on tasks, or memory difficulty
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Increased errors or accidents
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Poor performance at work or school
- Inability to sleep during "normal" sleep times
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Ongoing worry and frustration about sleep and increased anxiety as bedtime approaches
Understanding Insomnia
Having trouble falling asleep—or staying asleep—no matter what you try? You’re not alone. The more you struggle to sleep, the harder it can be to relax, leaving you exhausted and frustrated. But the good news is, insomnia doesn’t have to control your nights. With Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I), I help people break free from sleepless nights and anxious thoughts about sleep. Online therapy makes it easy to get the support you need, so you can start sleeping better and feeling like yourself again.
Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized by difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or sleeping soundly despite having the opportunity to do so. It can be acute insomnia, lasting for a short period or chronic insomnia, lasting three months or more. Insomnia can vary in severity and affect people differently based on their individual circumstances. This sleep disorder can happen to anyone, regardless of age, gender or background and often disrupts daily life, mood and overall well-being.
What is Insomnia?
Insomnia can be categorized into several types based on duration, severity and underlying causes. Knowing the type of insomnia you have can help you and your healthcare provider develop a treatment plan.
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Acute Insomnia: This type of insomnia is short-term and can last from a few days to a few weeks. It’s often triggered by stress, travel or changes in your sleep environment. Acute insomnia can be disruptive but usually resolves on its own once the underlying cause is fixed.
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Chronic Insomnia: Chronic insomnia is a long-term condition that lasts for months or years. It can be caused by stress, anxiety, depression and poor sleep habits. Chronic insomnia requires a comprehensive treatment approach to manage.
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Comorbid Insomnia: This type of insomnia occurs with other medical or mental health conditions like chronic pain, sleep apnea, anxiety or depression. Treating the underlying condition is key to improving sleep in people with comorbid insomnia.
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Onset Insomnia: Onset insomnia is difficulty falling asleep at the beginning of the night. It can be triggered by specific events or life stressors. Fixing the root cause can help with onset insomnia.
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Maintenance Insomnia: Maintenance insomnia is difficulty staying asleep throughout the night. People with this type of insomnia wake up frequently or have trouble falling back asleep. Identifying and addressing the reasons for these sleep disturbances is key to better sleep.
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Late Insomnia: Waking up too early, unable to fall back asleep. This early morning awakening insomnia is waking up well before a person wants to in the morning.
Types of Insomnia
Causes & Triggers of Insomnia
Insomnia can arise from a combination of various factors including lifestyle habits, medical conditions and psychological influences. Some common causes and triggers are:
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Poor Sleep Habits: Irregular sleep schedules, too much caffeine and nicotine and exposure to screens before bedtime can disrupt the natural sleep cycle and make it hard to fall asleep.
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Stress and Anxiety: High levels of stress and anxiety can prevent relaxation and make it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep.
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Medical Conditions: Chronic pain, sleep apnea and restless legs syndrome are medical conditions that can significantly impact sleep.
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Medications: Certain medications can affect sleep patterns.
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Environmental Factors: Noise, light and uncomfortable temperatures in the sleep environment can hinder the ability to fall asleep and stay asleep.
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Genetic Predisposition: A family history of insomnia may increase the likelihood of having sleep problems
Understanding these causes and triggers is key to finding strategies to improve sleep habits and overall sleep quality.
Signs You May Need Insomnia Treatment
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You have anxiety about sleep that starts hours before bedtime.
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You are experiencing difficulty falling asleep, even when you feel exhausted.
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You wake up frequently during the night and are unable to fall back asleep.
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You often wake up too early and feel the pressure to fall back sleep before your alarm.
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You have become reliant on sleep medications you want to stop taking them.
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Your have tried previous therapy or treatments that did not resolve your insomnia.
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You continue to struggle with sleep despite having no diagnosed medical issues.
Why Choose Therapy for Insomnia?
Sleep therapy, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is a non-pharmacological approach to treat insomnia. This method is very effective in helping individuals identify and change negative sleep habits and thought patterns. By focusing on behavioral changes and cognitive restructuring sleep therapy can:
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Improve Sleep Quality and Duration: CBT-I helps individuals develop healthier sleep habits, get better sleep quality and longer sleep duration.
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Reduce Insomnia Symptoms: By addressing the underlying causes of insomnia CBT-I can significantly reduce symptoms and improve overall wellbeing.
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Enhance Relaxation and Stress Management: Techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation and deep breathing are part of CBT-I and help individuals manage stress and anxiety that affects sleep.
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Promote Long-Term Sleep Health: Unlike sleep aids which may only provide temporary relief, CBT-I offers sustainable solutions for long-term sleep health.
When the struggle with sleep started you probably changed your behavior to get more sleep. Many attempts to help sleep actually makes insomnia worse. These include trying to “catch up on sleep” or “make up for lost sleep”, spending more time in bed or sleeping anytime/anywhere you can just to feel better! Thoughts and feelings about sleep and being in your bed also changes as insomnia progresses. Sleep becomes a very stressful and difficult experience rather than a relaxing and natural occurrence.
We will work together using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) a clinically recommended treatment program to change your thoughts, feelings and behavior related to sleep. Essentially it means re-teaching your body how to sleep on its own so you can build sleep confidence. When these techniques are used as many as 70%-80% of patients with primary insomnia experience improvement*. Benefits include less time to fall asleep, more time spent asleep and waking up less during sleep.