Can’t Sleep? Start Talking
There’s an effective, drug-free solution to chronic insomnia — and it’s all about changing your outlook on sleep. (Photo: Getty Images)
It’s 2am and you’re still tossing and turning. So out of total desperation and sheer exhaustion, you head to the medicine cabinet to pop a couple of sleeping pills — which may help you doze off yet can leave behind a handful of side effects, like headache, muscle aches and daytime sleepiness.
Now here’s the good news: An evidence review published in the latest edition of the Annals of Internal Medicine states that there is a more effective, drug-free solution to chronic insomnia — cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), a.k.a talk therapy.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, nearly 50 percent of Americans report insomnia occasionally, with 22 percent stating they deal with insomnia every (or almost every) night. And while clinical chronic insomnia has been linked to a number of other health conditions, such as depression and type 2 diabetes, the study authors have discovered that CBT (a form of psychotherapy that is used in order to change dysfunctional thinking or behavioral patterns) can target the main culprit in being awake throughout the night — anxiety.
After examining 20 published studies that tested the effectiveness of CBT as a possible treatment for adults with chronic insomnia who were not diagnosed with other medical causes, they’ve concluded that this method encouraged patients to fall asleep about 20 minutes sooner, along with reducing the length of awake time after falling asleep by almost 30 minutes and improving sleep efficiency by nearly 10 percent.
Related: The Breathing Trick That Puts You To Sleep in Seconds
The sleep-based techniques for CBT involves five different components, which include changing one’s attitude about shut-eye, strengthening the bed/sleep relationship, following time limits and restrictions in bed, recommendations for sleep hygiene and a better sleep environment, and practicing relaxation techniques.
A trained therapist can offer sessions on CBT and benefits can usually be seen in about 12 weeks, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. However, study author Dr. David Cunnington, Sleep Physician and Director at the Melbourne Sleep Disorders Center in Australia, offered Yahoo Health these five techniques that may help put an end to the sleepless nights:
Avoid spending too long in bed. “Often if people are having trouble with sleep, they go to bed earlier or lie in later to create more opportunity for sleep,” he says. “However, this just results in more time awake in bed.”
Get up at the same time every day. “Keeping a regular arising time helps synchronize the body-clock and also helps sleep become more predictable,” he explains. “It also reduces the internal negotiation that can occur during the night if the arising time is dependent on what sleep has been like on any given night.”
Don’t go to bed unless you’re sleepy. “Many times people go to sleep at a particular time by habit or because of a desire to get a certain amount of sleep,” he states. But this approach can backfire because you’re expecting sleep to come before it “should” arrive, which will only add to your anxiety.
Get out of bed only if… you’re awake during the middle of the night for more than 15 minutes. “It’s okay to do something else until you feel sleep,” says Cunnington. “Lying in bed for long periods awake can increase a sense of frustration around sleep.”
Leave your worries at the bedroom door. “Make sure you close out your day by ensuring you have some time to wind down before bedtime,” he states. Translation: Shut off the computer. “Doing work related activities right up until getting into bed can make it hard to get to sleep or result in you waking during the night.”
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