Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is a treatment for insomnia recommended by the American College of Physicians. (2) It is a short, structured, and evidence-based approach with long-lasting results.
CBT-I can be conducted alongside other therapies and treatments. (3)

CBT-I is distinct from CBT. Although they both share the same origins (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), CBT-I has several targeted approaches to address insomnia directly that you wouldn’t find in CBT. This includes strategies that target the circadian rhythm, and classical conditioning.

CBT-I contains a combination of:

• Exposure-based approaches (Insomnia is sometimes conceptualized as a phobia of sleeplessness).

• Classical conditioning to address the conditioned arousal in the bed (Think- throwback to Psych 101 and Pavlovian/Classical Conditioning).

• Circadian rhythm supporting strategies that target client’s unique needs.

• Leveraging client’s sleep data gathered through the course of treatment as well as targeted assessments such as the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and Insomnia Severity Index.

Click here to check out the CBT-I Specialty Page for more details

(2) https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29753926/

(3) https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M15-2175

Sleep hygiene is like dental hygiene. It is important, but not enough to address a deeper issue. You can brush your teeth all day but you might just irritate your gums while the root issue is still brewing.
Similarly, you can keep piling on sleep hygiene but it won’t work and can lead to a cycle of hopelessness.
While it’s great for prevention in the very early stages, after a certain point, adding more sleep hygiene can make sleep worse.

If you’re curious to learn more, check out my free workshop “Practical Tips for Clients Who Can’t Sleep” The aim of this workshop is that it is actually useful in your clinical work.

Yes! I encourage clients to continue with their therapist if they have one. Because I stay laser focused on sleep, having outside support for other areas of life is very beneficial.

CBT-I is time limited (6-8 weeks) and works well as an adjunctive alongside many other modalities.

We all know how important sleep is in the healing process. Treating insomnia directly can allow for greater improvement in their work with you as they start sleeping well. (2) If we have a mutual client, I’m always happy to collaborate during the process and once CBT-I is complete, I’m happy to provide a termination summary of improvement as they return to working solely with you with renewed energy.

(2) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4961463/

Sometimes people think that the sleep problem has to be really severe to benefit from specialized sleep therapy.
The sleep difficulty doesn’t have to be extreme or even occur every night to benefit.

Generally, if there’s difficulty sleeping three nights per week or more for a few months or longer, that is enough, if it bothers the client.

No diagnosis is required and because behavioral approaches are the gold standard for insomnia, mental health therapists with training in sleep are qualified to diagnosed and treat insomnia.

While difficulty sleeping is subjective, generally we’re looking for at least one of the following to occur three nights per week or more (Does not have to be every night) 

• Taking 30 minutes or longer to fall asleep Or 

• 30 minutes awake or more in the night or 

• Waking up too early and not being able to return to sleep
  

I offer free peer consultations for fellow therapists if you have any questions, feel free to reach out Hello@BodyMindAllianceCC.com

You can provide the patient or client with my website or contact info, for them to contact me directly.
W. BodyMindAllianceCC.com

E. Schedule@BodyMindAllianceCC.com

P. 215-259-8016

If you’re curious about rates, insurance, or what a first session looks like, check out the “For Client’s” FAQ page here

To see a session by session breakdown of CBT-I, check out the CBT-I Page by clicking here.

You can also email me at Schedule@BodyMindAllianceCC.com or call me at 215-259-8016. If you’d like, I’m happy to schedule a brief peer consultation meeting.

Whether you’re curious to learn more about the process, you have a sleep-related question or you need a referral, I’m happy to connect.
I have a wide network of behavioral sleep medicine resources and providers. if I’m not able to help, I’ll get you connected with someone who can.

You can also submit a question via the secure contact form at the bottom of this page.

I look forward to hearing from you!