Beating Insomnia

you need when you’re trying to recover from depression. If you do go on a z-drug, zopiclone is probably the best option, being the least addictive and sufficiently long-acting to get you past the characteristic early morning waking pattern of depressive illness, though a few people take the ultra-short-acting zaleplon not last thing at night but wh

The problem with these methods, I suspect, is that they may induce short-term relaxation, but they are unlikely to deal with the long-term over-arousal which probably underpins your insomnia. Worth a go, though.

This is the physical illness which happens to the best people, those who try too hard and give too much. Learning how to pull back a bit, to pace yourself, to find

‘Why am I anxious, what am I thinking? Is that thought realistic or probable? No. Is there a more realistic thought or more probable outcome? Yes. Do I accept that alternative thought? Yes. Does that make me feel better? Yes.’ That process takes 10 to 20 seconds, because it’s second nature now as I’ve done it thousands of times.

This may be because there is only a small effect in most people, or because the results are good but only in a few. Being a scientist, I’m bound by methods which have a solid evidence base, either from research or from wide clinical experience.

Stick at it. I CBT myself every day (by which I mean challenging unhelpful thoughts which come into my mind), several times on most working days, as there’s plenty of opportunity to get anxious in my job.

find that for many people with apparently unexplainable sleep problems, the answer is revealed by an in-depth exploration of their psychodynamics – that is, discovering those past experiences which are resonating with their current experiences (see Chapter 3). If it is so for you, it may be necessary for you to be referred

sleeping well? If so, you may want to re-examine them. What do you want more, the givens which you have imposed on yourself, such as wealth, success and being labelled the perfect parent, or to be healthy, enjoy things more and sleep better? The choice is yours.

Do you routinely CBT yourself on a daily basis? It took me over two years of practising for half an hour every single day, come rain or shine, to get as good as I am now at relaxation, but it was worth it. Now it takes me ten seconds to switch on a relaxed state