Getting good quality sleep is an essential component of our physical health, our mental health and our wellbeing as a whole. For some of us, not getting enough sleep can become a serious issue with detrimental effects to our quality of life.
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CBT is an effective way to help clients understand and better manage the thoughts and behaviours that cause sleep problems, or make getting to sleep difficult. With the use of cognitive behavioral therapy techniques, the client can learn how to replace these troublesome thoughts with new thoughts, skills and behaviors to help them achieve a restful and revitalising nights sleep.
Understanding Insomnia and Sleep Patterns
While the recommended amount of sleep varies, experts say that most healthy adults should get 7 to 9 hours of quality sleep per night, including 2 hours of REM sleep.
Insomnia is a condition that isn’t fully understood by experts yet. Most cases of insomnia are related to poor sleeping habits, depression, anxiety, lack of exercise, chronic illness or certain medication, but there are currently no concrete answers to why it happens. Find more on therapy approaches to treating depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation here.
What is understood is that it involves many factors. Here are some of the most common factors that could cause insomnia to be experienced by individuals:
Genetic predisposition:
Experts believe that insomnia or sleep conditions are conditions that can run in families. Specifically, researchers estimate that heritability accounts for 31% to 58% of your likelihood of experiencing insomnia. Your genes affect other aspects of sleep, too, such as how much sleep you need.
Functions of the brain:
Studies indicate that brain chemistry differences can be detected in individuals with insomnia. Differing functions of the brain can also be found in individuals battling addiction, find more on the benefits of CBT for managing and overcoming addiction here.
Medical or mental health conditions:
Physical health conditions, whether minor or chronic, have been said to affect a person’s ability to sleep or stay asleep. Mental health issues such as anxiety and depression can also affect their sleep patterns. Find more information on how CBT can help manage chronic conditions here.
Life circumstances or changes:
Life events or circumstances, especially stressful ones such as the loss of a loved one or the ending of a relationship may affect a person’s ability to sleep.
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Habits and routine:
Poor sleeping habits, such as irregular sleeping schedules or high caffeine consumption in the afternoon and hours leading up to sleep time are also suggested to contribute to insomnia.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Insomnia
Cognitive behavioural therapy can be a powerful tool in managing and overcoming insomnia as it seeks to address the factors that contribute to, or cause its persistence and why it occurs in the first place.
CBT guides clients as they go through sleep-related issues. It also teaches clients to identify the beliefs that could affect their ability to sleep and hopefully control or change the negative thought patterns that may keep them awake.
Our range of CBT worksheets have been specifically designed to assist experts in the field of mental health, designed to make sessions regarding sleep disturbances more informative and engaging. These worksheets include information, strategies, exercises and activities to teach clients the skills of sleep consolidation and control. These worksheets also teach how to practice mindfulness and relaxation thought challenging, and also aid in monitoring not just the quantity but also the quality of the sleep.
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Goals of CBT Therapy in Treating Insomnia
CBT aims to help clients develop good sleeping habits and avoid behaviors that prevent them from achieving good quality sleep. Find a comprehensive list of CBT based questions you can ask clients in session here:
As specialists in the field, our job is to help our clients restructure their thoughts, feelings, and behaviour and support them in developing habits that assist them in sleeping better. While CBT involves stimulus control, it also includes training on how they can sleep better. Here are some examples:
Changes in daily routine:
One of the most effective ways for clients to sleep better is to change their daily routine by setting a consistent sleep and wake-up time.
Creating a bedtime routine:
Implementing consistent habits before bedtime each night can help the brain learn the patterns of when to start “shutting down” and going into rest mode.
Lifestyle changes:
Vices such as smoking, drinking too much alcohol, and caffeine could also affect sleep. Changing certain lifestyle habits like getting regular physical activity can be helpful for clients.
Practising relaxation techniques:
CBT encourages relaxation techniques to calm the body and mind. Meditation and muscle relaxation are just two techniques that have proven to be effective.
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CBT Worksheets for Therapists and Counselors
If you're a therapist or counselor seeking resources to share with your clients in session or as homework and continued learning, our therapy worksheets are designed to simplify this process. Providing you with structured and professional tools to streamline your sessions and deliver the quality care needed for positive and lasting change. Check out some new additions to our store, via the links below:
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