Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is the gold standard treatment for chronic insomnia and is considered world-wide as the first line treatment. Based on research, CBT-I is recommended as the first line treatment not sleeping tablets by the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the British Sleep Society, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, the American College of Physicians and many other professional bodies.

The European Sleep Research Society guidelines stress that CBT-I should be the first line treatment for insomnia, whereas pharmacological interventions can or should be offered if CBT-I is not sufficient or not available.

Insomnia is often treated with sleeping tablets. Unfortunately, many sleep medications are effective only in the short term. With time, more and more medication is required for them to be effective. Use of sleep medications for a long time tends to make insomnia worse. Sleep medications can be addictive. People can end up relying on them to sleep, plus they don’t deal with the root cause of insomnia. In addition, they may have many side effects.

CBT-I is an evidence-based, short, and structured approach to treating insomnia that provides long-lasting improvements in insomnia symptoms. Unlike the use of medication to treat sleep problems the benefits of CBT-I do not cease at the end of therapy. Instead, sleep continues to improve if the strategies learned continue to be used. The length of CBT-I varies depending on the individual needs of the person with insomnia, with an average duration of 4 to 6 sessions attended on a weekly or sometimes fortnightly basis.

Whilst the name CBT-I is similar to the more well-known CBT, it is significantly different and offers specialist strategies and techniques to help with insomnia. CBT-I is a specific treatment for insomnia. Interestingly, successful treatment of insomnia can also help improve symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Unfortunately, people with insomnia often don’t access the help they need using this therapy because they may have attended CBT before and feel they have already tried CBT-I. However, CBT-I is very different and, most importantly, a very effective treatment for insomnia because it has been developed for this specific issue. It is also important to clarify that CBT-I is not the same as simple sleep hygiene.  CBT-I is a multicomponent treatment for insomnia, involving cognitive and behavioural interventions, plus sleep education and relaxation strategies.

Call today on (087) 6670402 or email info@insomniatherapy.ie to book an appointment