How do I Cure My Insomnia?

Insomnia is more than an unpleasant night's sleep. It can affect your waking life in important ways. Decrease in motivation and concentration. Affecting work performance and even safe driving. Sleeping less often makes people irritable, less effective, and less resilient to stress. Chronic insomnia, if left untreated, can also lead to long-term health conditions, including high blood pressure, heart disease, and mood disorders like depression and anxiety.

Most tend to resort to sleeping pills or other medications. They might be able to put you to sleep in the short run, but they don't help treat the origins of insomnia. Over time, their effectiveness dwindles, and side effects such as daytime fatigue, dependence, indigestion, forgetfulness, or tension develop. Some drugs actually worsen sleep by disrupting the usual patterns of sleep.

What is prescribed for insomnia?

If you seek a solution that actually works, research points to psychological therapies over medication. In the UK, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) advises against medication for insomnia for more than four weeks. They recommend specialist therapy instead to further change the way you think and react to sleeping.

The most widely suggested method is cognitive behavior therapy for insomnia (CBTi). In contrast to standard CBT, CBTi specifically targets sleep habits, bedtime rituals, and sleep-preventing thoughts. It looks at behaviors and beliefs that interfere with sleep, teaches practical skills to make sleep more effective, and conditions the mind to quiet nighttime concerns and overthinking. It's safe, effective, and supported by over 30 years of science.

Online versions of CBTi have been equally effective as in-clinic treatment. They are capable of curing even the most chronic insomnia cases, with long-term gains with no side effects versus medication. Evidence also shows that CBTi is clinically more effective than drug therapy. For instance, CBTi can induce changes in nighttime waking and decrease overall sleep disruption in spite of years of insomnia.

NICE recommendations for managing insomnia are:

• Any underlying causes of sleep disturbance, e.g., illness, stress, or pain, should be identified.
• Avoid driving while sleepy during the daytime.
• Referral to psychological treatment, e.g., IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies), for cognitive or behavioural therapy.
• Maintaining sleep hygiene and consistent exercise alongside therapy.
• Prevention of long-term pharmacological management.

What this really does is that CBTi, with a change of lifestyle, provides a systematic and certain way of breaking the vicious cycle of insomnia. It trains the body and mind to habituate to good sleep habits, yielding long-term results that are impossible with medication alone.

What can I do to help myself?

Even before getting therapy, there are certain easy things that you can do in your daily life to improve sleep. These techniques don't radically depend on medication and can be adopted along with any official therapy that you undergo:

• Be consistent in sleep: Sleep and wake up at the same time every day, even on weekends. Consistency reinforces your body's inherent circadian rhythm.
• Establish a sleep routine: Reading, gentle stretching, or listening to relaxing music may signal your body that it is time for sleep. These signals, repeated over a period of time, get your brain conditioned to connect certain activities with sleeping.
• Bed setting: Ensure that it is dark, cold, and quiet. Block light with curtains or eye covers and reduce noise using earplugs or white noise machines. A comfortable mattress and bed linens also go a long way in guaranteeing uninterrupted sleep.
• Avoid stimulants and heavy foods close to bedtime: Caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, and fatty foods are some substances that can impair sleep quality. Alcohol, for example, causes drowsiness initially but disrupts quality sleep in the dead of the night.
• Keep an eye on screen time: Smartphones, computers, and televisions produce blue light, which makes your mind resistant to sleep. Replace with listening to soothing music or reading a book.
• Steer clear of daytime sleep: Extended daytime sleep can interfere with your nighttime sleep pattern, particularly when it lasts longer than 20-30 minutes.
• Proactively deal with worries: Put down worries or thoughts regarding problem-solving before going to bed to avoid keeping you awake. This exercise can easily decrease wild thoughts and nighttime anxiety.

If all these methods have been attempted and sleep is still out of reach, professional help may be necessary. Online tests can advise you on the optimal treatment for your insomnia and point you in the direction of a solution that suits you best. Addressing insomnia sooner rather than later can stop it from becoming an ongoing, long-term condition.

What should not be used for insomnia?

Not everything used for sleep aids or therapies is effective. Some treatments have limited evidence behind them, have side effects, or are only effective in specific circumstances. The following are generally not recommended for insomnia:

• Antidepressants (but if you also experience depression)
• Chloral Hydrate
• Clomethiazole
• Barbiturates
• Herbal remedies like Valerian extract
• Complementary treatments such as acupuncture, hypnotherapy, and reflexology

These alternatives might be tempting, but their effectiveness is often unknown, and they carry a risk of side effects. Sticking with structured behavioural treatment and lifestyle change is the safest, most proven way to better sleep. Trying multiple unproven treatments at once can sometimes worsen sleep anxiety, making insomnia harder to treat.

Summary

Insomnia affects more than just your nights; it affects every part of your day. Whereas medication can bring about temporary respite, it does not solve the issue and has the potential to create side effects or dependence. Cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBTi), promoted by UK and US healthcare organizations, represents a long-term, evidence-based approach.

Combined with self-help techniques and consistent sleep routines like a relaxing bedroom and relaxation skills, CBTi has the potential to enhance the quality of sleep significantly. Conversely, antidepressants, barbiturates, herbal drugs, and alternative medication are not used first because they have little evidence base and pose dangers.

The key here is: successful treatment of insomnia requires an understanding of the cause, changing habits, and following a methodical, evidence-based program versus applying Band-Aids.