| Insomnia Treatment with CBT| Insomnia Treatment Online with SlumberPro| Insomnia Treatment in Person |
Insomnia Treatment with Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Sleep Therapy Australia offers online insomnia treatment with SlumberPro, or treatment in person. We treat insomnia with Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).
CBT focuses on altering psychological factors (behaviour, thoughts and feelings) to treat certain sleep disorders.
CBT retrains aspects of individual psychology that influence or impact on sleep. Research and clinical case-study evidence shows that CBT is highly effective in treating certain sleep disorders (Perlis & Lichstein (editors), 2003). While Sleep Therapy Australia doesn't claim to cure insomnia, people searching for an insomnia cure have been pleased with the level of improvement from using CBT.
Patients can be referred by a medical or other health practitioner, but a referral is not essential. Medicare or private health cover rebates may be available for face-to-face treatment.
Insomnia Treatment Online with SlumberPro
SlumberPro is an online self-help program for the treatment of insomnia. Face-to-face treatment can take individual factors into account and may be more effective than self-help programs, however, self-help treatment is effective, and is more convenient for many people. For those people, we have developed SlumberPro.
The self-help program can take three to eight weeks, but you may experience some improvement within two or three weeks. SlumberPro helps you make changes to things that you do routinely, and teaches you new ways of thinking. For more detailed information about the online insomnia treatment program, go to SlumberPro.
If your sleep difficulties are suitable for treatment with CBT, it is reasonable to expect an improvement in the quantity and/ or quality of your sleep with CBT treatment. However, there are some people who find that their sleep does not improve as much as they would like. Research study results summarised by Perlis & Lichstein (2003) show that significant improvements were experienced by between 53% and 91% of people who participated in a range of CBT treatments, provided in a variety of different formats and conditions.
A study published in September 2004 found that cognitive behaviour therapy is more effective than sleeping pills in treating chronic sleep-onset insomnia (Jacobs, Pace-Schott, Stickgold & Otto, 2004).
Insomnia Treatment in Person
At the first appointment we assess the problems the person is experiencing and decide whether CBT will assist. If CBT is the right treatment, we discuss reasonable benefits and goals, plan a program and explain what is involved. We then arrange a second appointment. If CBT does not seem to be the best approach, we make recommendations for other assessment or treatment.
Treatment begins at the second appointment. The following sessions are usually at weekly intervals at the start, with longer intervals (usually two weeks) when the patient needs more time to put new strategies into practice.
Most patients report marked improvement in their sleep by the fourth or fifth appointment. Treatment continues until the outcome goals are reached, and the patient is then monitored at intervals for a number of months after treatment to make sure that improvements are maintained.
