Insomnia
Many people may have experienced sleep disturbance in different periods of the life due to various factors. You might have tried to catch up with sleep the following days to make up for the minimal sleep you had in previous days or weeks. To temporarily boost energy, you might drink caffeine or energy drinks, but the same struggle reoccurs at night. Below are some typical symptoms and effects of insomnia:
Difficulty falling asleep, taking anywhere from 1 to several hours to fall asleep.
Difficulty staying asleep. Intermittent or frequent sleep interruptions throughout the night.
Waking up too early or hours before your wake up time, then struggle to fall back asleep or you get a little bit more sleep before your wake up time, but feel groggy throughout the day.
Non-restorative sleep. Not feeling rested no matter how many hours you lay in bed.
Zoning out throughout the day and noticeable change in your performance and motivation to complete your tasks.
Feeling increasingly irritable, frustrated, depressed, and/or anxious. Others may notice your mood swings.
On-going preoccupation about sleep issues.
Restlessness and brain fog
Is taking sleep medication to only remedy? Not necessarily. There is an evidence-based non-medication treatment called cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) that is shown to help people with sleep disturbance and insomnia to regulate their sleep. Most providers today encourage their patients to try interventions as sleep medication is not meant to be taken long term. Some people may benefit from medication and CBT-I, and acquiring the skills to regulate sleep can help them eventually discontinue medication.
If you feel that you are struggling with sleep and want to know what could help you have restful nights, feel free to reach out for a phone consultation before scheduling an intake appt for therapy.