Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia is considered the most effective, evidenced-based treatment for insomnia (link to citation). It is a structured and straightforward treatment. CBT-I is a combination of the following elements: Sleep Restriction Therapy, Stimulus Control Therapy, Sleep Hygiene, and Cognitive Therapy.

People often come to me for CBT-I after years of trialing different medications and strategies that don’t work in the long-term. The good news is that CBT-I is very effective and has decades of research to back up its efficacy (link to citation). Many people I’ve worked with start seeing results after the 3rd week and many people will need less than 4 to resolve insomnia (if following the protocols).

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR), insomnia disorder involves:

• Difficulty falling asleep (sleep onset insomnia), and/or

• Difficulty staying asleep (sleep maintenance insomnia), and/or

• Waking too early and being unable to return to sleep

You can take an insomnia assessment here but please note this is does provide a diagnosis https://www.healthquality.va.gov/guidelines/CD/insomnia/CST-03-Insomnia-Disorder-Screening-Guide-Final-508.pdf

References:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10002474/

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/insomnia/in-depth/insomnia-treatment/art-20046677

What to expect with Brief CBT-I:

Screening: 20 min and free. I’ll ask you to fill out an insomnia screener and ask about any medical or mental health conditions that would make CBT-I an inappropriate fit.

1st session (60 minutes): Intake, go over initial sleep diaries, discuss beliefs around sleep and go over the basics of CBT-I.

2nd and 3rd session (45 min each): review sleep diaries, discuss any issues that have come up with CBT-I treatment methods, trouble shoot any other issues

4th and futures sessions (45 min): go over progress, discuss any concerns for maintaining changes, discuss maintenance and when to come back for treatment.