Sure, thanks for asking.

By using nightly sleep logs, I was able to determine how much I was actually sleeping, which initially surprised me. I thought I was much worse.

Like many insomniacs, I focused mostly on the negativity of my time lying awake in bed, and disregarded or dismissed the time I was actually sleeping. Like many people, I fell victim to sleep state misperception. Very common.

I suspect for many of us our sleep reality is actually far better than we think it is, but the persistent negativity is what in part feeds and perpetuates insomnia.

Some people progress rapidly with sleep restriction. I was not one of those. My progress was slow, but reasonably steady.

Over a period of about a month I made reasonably good progress, approaching but not at the 85% sleep efficiency of a "normal" sleeper. Meaning about 15% of my time in bed was awake.

But there'd be intermittent setbacks. Some nights better than others. Still is. This is normal. No one sleeps perfect,

Just letting go the worry over a less than perfect night is part of the solution to insomnia. Perfect can be the enemy of good, and for an insomniac, good sleep is worthy goal.

My sleep continued to slowly but steadily improved over a period of literally years. I eventually became what I would consider a "normal" sleeper, but it did take me years. I think most everyone is capable of doing this, and possibly much faster.

It was easy for me to not get discouraged over my slow progress because I was making progress. And the alternative, well, what alternative is there? More insomnia?

It's important to understand, however, that I was not only using sleep restriction.

Possibly more important for me was simultaneously working on identifying and addressing negative sleep thoughts. I was initially unaware of how I was hammering myself with them. Not much different than many of us who post here.

Those negative thoughts largely fuel insomnia. That's where it gets its energy. Take away insomnia's fuel and sleeping better becomes much easier. And honestly, when it comes to negative sleep thoughts, insomnia is a do-it-yourself project.

This is why I consistently emphasize the importance of taking a comprehensive CBT approach. CBT is a collection of common sense methods that work. When used together these methods reinforce and mutually support one another, and this is what makes CBT such a powerful solution that helps most people who try it.

Jorge you seem like a very positive and determined person, and I think that kind of attitude will take you far in resolving this. Would just encourage you to not focus mostly on sleep restriction, but make an equally determined effort to use all the CBT tools.

And finally, you don't have to kill yourself for CBT to work. This isn't some sort of teeth-gritting fist-clenching all-out frontal assault. The best results I think come when you adapt CBT to your own specific situation, and do it in a way that you can reasonably sustain.

Thank you SOOOO much for sharing!!

I have to admit: I haven't been the best with the cognitive portion of it.
But one thing you mentioned on another thread really does help me with that aspect of it.... and that's, "if you have a bad night sleeping rest assured.... because the next night you'll probably sleep much better because you've just increased your sleep drive."

I never really paid attention to that fact before, but what you said was so true. As I looked back I could think of nights where I got little to no sleep and then the following night I would usually sleep pretty good. Not great, but good.

That thought - the fact of a sleep drive really helps me cut down some of the anxiety that still surfaces during the day.

So thanks again for that!!

When you were at your worst, how little were you sleeping?

One more question....
How did you do the cognitive portion of it?

Just try your best to replace negative thoughts with positive ones?
Thanks

I'm sure there's many variations on cognitive restructuring. The method I use involves a step-by-step training process to first become aware of negative sleep thoughts.

For some of us that may be easier said than done, because many of us these negative thoughts are semi-automatic, and may largely reside below the level of ordinary conscious awareness. So it's important to peel away the overlying layers, get through all the noise of everyday living, and you'll have better results.

Fortunately, there a number of tools and techniques to employ that make this process more user-friendly.

After identifying and examining the recurring negative sleep thoughts, you very likely will discover these thoughts are distorted, inaccurate, and overly pessimistic. So you intentionally restructure them to be better, more accurate, and more realistic.

The idea is that we all at some level choose what to think, and this is one way to take back control. While not necessarily denying these thoughts, you methodically replace them with better, more positive sleep thoughts that you control.

In other words, you begin to think about the idea of sleep in a better, more realistic way, and in a way that you control to specifically help support better sleep.

It's easy to underestimate how much impact doing this has. I personally think cognitive restructuring is even more potent to counter insomnia than sleep restriction. It's not that sleep restriction is unimportant, it is in fact a key part of the process. But sleep restriction alone may not do the job.

These negative sleep thoughts fuel insomnia to a large extent. As I've said before, take away insomnia's negative fuel, and sleep becomes much easier. It becomes more enabled.

With CBT, it's not either/or. You use both these methods, simultaneously, in a structured way. Plus several others.

Rather than take a piecemeal approach with CBT, I suggest you use a comprehensive sleep improvement program that incorporates all the CBT methods. Whether you work with a counselor, sleep doctor, or find the info from a book or online, I think you will get the best results from taking a a comprehensive approach.