CBT  for Insomnia

According to  East End Psychological Services, P.C.:

“Insomnia refers to difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or constantly waking up early. People with insomnia feel dissatisfied with their sleep and usually experience fatigue, low energy, difficulty concentrating, mood disturbances, and decreased performance in work or at school.

The National Institutes of Health estimates that roughly 30 percent of the general population complains of sleep disruption, and approximately 10 percent have associated symptoms of daytime functional impairment. In January 2014, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported that insufficient sleep is a “public health epidemic.”

“Sleep is essential for our physical and emotional well-being,” says Dr. Joseph Volpe, Clinical Psychologist and Executive Director.  “Children require healthy sleep to function at school and in their daily lives with friends and family.  Adults need their sleep as they attend to responsibilities at home, work, and their relationships.”

The Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy for insomnia (CBT) program is adapted from the work of Dr. Gregg Jacobs who developed his approach to insomnia at Harvard Medical School and the University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Centre.

The program begins with an evaluation that includes clinical interview, sleep hygiene worksheets, medical history questionnaires, and brief psychological measures. The treatment uses stimulus control techniques, sleep restriction methods, cognitive restructuring, mindfulness meditation, relaxation using hypnotherapy and educational materials describing effective sleep habits.

CBT is one of the only empirically-validated treatment options for insomnia.  CBT improves sleep in a majority of treated patients and reduces the need for sleeping pills and over-the-counter remedies. Moreover, there are typically no adverse side effects associated with CBT as a non-medical intervention.”

SOURCE East End Psychological Services, P.C.