Welcome to the Insomnia Coach Podcast. My name is Martin Reed. I believe that by changing how we respond to insomnia and all the difficult thoughts and feelings that come with it, we can move away from struggling with insomnia and toward living the life we want to live. In this podcast, I share insomnia success stories featuring people who ended their struggle with insomnia. New episodes are released monthly.
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How Rupsa ended her insomnia struggle by being more open to experiencing insomnia and all the thoughts and feelings that come with it (#69)
47:42
47:42
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47:42Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) Rupsa never had issues with sleep until a big change in her professional life led her to move to a new city. As sleep became difficult, she experienced a lot of anxiety. Her heart would race. She started to develop a fear of going to bed at night. She’d spend four or five hours awake in bed, hoping to fall…
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How Tim broke the cycle of sleep anxiety and insomnia by relinquishing control, embracing self-kindness, and building skill in acceptance (#68)
58:39
58:39
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58:39Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) Tim’s insomnia began during a stressful time in his life. At first, it was just a few bad nights but the more he worried about it, the worse it got. The harder he tried to fix his sleep, the more he struggled. Things started to change when Tim learned a new way to deal with insomnia. He realized that tryin…
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How Sophie recovered from postpartum insomnia by moving away from trying to control her sleep so she could regain control over her life (#67)
58:09
58:09
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58:09Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) Although Sophie never considered herself to be a good sleeper, things got really difficult after the birth of her son. As a new mom, she knew there would be some short-term sleep disruption — but when she was no longer able to compensate for lost sleep after her parents left and her partner returned to wor…
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How Danny overcame the insomnia struggle by abandoning sleep rituals, embracing acceptance, and moving toward the life he wanted to live (#66)
1:12:05
1:12:05
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1:12:05Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) In 2019 Danny was going through a stressful period in his life while also being on a big health and fitness kick. When his sleep started to become a problem, Danny became very concerned and his doctor offered medication. When Danny started to make some lifestyle changes to reduce stress, reduce the intensi…
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How Esther starved insomnia of its power and influence in the presence of generalized anxiety disorder (#65)
56:24
56:24
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56:24Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) When Esther tried moving away from a medication she was taking for generalized anxiety disorder, she found herself struggling with sleep. She would often wake with a jolt and experience panic and anxiety. Even when new medications helped with other issues, sleep continued to be a challenge and created a lo…
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How Irina went from feeling enraged at the idea of accepting insomnia to embracing it and ending her struggle with sleep (#64)
1:26:17
1:26:17
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1:26:17Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) Irina’s struggle with insomnia began when she experienced a night of no sleep. This created fear and confusion and Irina worried that something serious was going on — that something might be broken in her brain. The more she tried to make sleep happen, the more pressure she put on herself to make sleep hap…
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How Dulce gained freedom from insomnia by giving up her attempts to control sleep and reducing her resistance to the difficult thoughts and feelings that came with it (#63)
1:03:31
1:03:31
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1:03:31Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) Dulce’s insomnia began when she left Mexico to study abroad in Canada. The stress of midterms and the change of climate led to sleep disruption. However, even after returning home, sleep continued to create a struggle and insomnia became a part of her life. Even when she felt sleepy, Dulce struggled to res…
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How Neseret ended her dependence on medication and transformed her life through education, committed action, and self-compassion (#62)
1:04:14
1:04:14
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1:04:14Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) Neseret’s experience with insomnia began when she tried tapering off an antidepressant she had been taking for 13 years. Every time she tried to get off the medication she found herself unable to sleep. Although a move from shift work to regular daytime hours and being more active during the day helped to …
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How Bryan recovered from insomnia by putting less effort into sleep and more effort into living his life (#61)
1:00:22
1:00:22
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1:00:22Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) When Bryan got sick he experienced an entire night of no sleep for the first time in his life. He didn’t sleep the next night, either. When his sleep didn’t get back on track, Bryan started to believe that he had lost the ability to sleep and that belief generated a lot of anxiety. As sleep consumed more a…
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How Emily transformed her sleep by accepting insomnia and committing to meaningful daily actions (#60)
1:09:14
1:09:14
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1:09:14Listen to the podcast episode (audio only) Emily’s insomnia struggle began around four months after the birth of her baby. Even though her daughter was sleeping well, Emily was finding it really difficult to fall asleep. She started to get nervous and anxious as her level of exhaustion intensified. When the medication prescribed by her doctor didn’…
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How Kirstin rediscovered her natural ability to sleep after feeling completely dependent on sleeping pills (#59)
1:10:01
1:10:01
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1:10:01Kirstin felt that she had lost her natural ability to sleep. She thought she was broken. She just couldn't sleep without sleeping pills. Every time she tried, she could not sleep.After finding the Insomnia Coach podcast and realizing she wasn't alone, Kirstin changed her approach to sleep. She stopped trying so hard. She stopped doing more. In fact…
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How Summer let go of trying to control her sleep, her thoughts, and her feelings — and regained control over her life (#58)
1:08:41
1:08:41
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1:08:41Summer's struggle with sleep was taking over her life. No matter what she did to try to fix her sleep, nothing seemed to work. The more she tried to control sleep, the more difficult it became. When Summer stopped trying to make sleep happen and started to allow sleep-related thoughts and feelings to be present without judgement, things started to …
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How Nina overcame insomnia by embracing wakefulness and dropping the struggle (#57)
1:03:48
1:03:48
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1:03:48When Nina fell pregnant she could no longer use the medication she relied upon to get her through occasional periods of insomnia. Her sleep got worse and insomnia seemed to take over her life. Nothing seemed to work and Nina felt stuck.After discovering the Insomnia Coach podcast, Nina realized she wasn't alone. She felt hope. When she enrolled as …
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How Kreuza dealt with insomnia and somniphobia by practicing more acceptance and less resistance (#56)
1:07:06
1:07:06
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1:07:06Kreuza found cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) helpful. However, when sleep problems returned as somniphobia — a fear of sleep itself — the same techniques no longer seemed to work.Kreuza found that creating rules around sleep and trying to change her thoughts and feelings wasn't proving to be helpful. So, she tried a new approach: …
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How Rachel got out of the insomnia struggle by being more flexible, more accepting, and more present (#55)
53:58
53:58
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53:58Rachel's battle with insomnia began in grad school. Sleep aids and strict routines failed to improve her sleep. Real change came when she moved away from trying to create the perfect conditions for sleep and stopped trying to get rid of certain thoughts and feelings.Rachel's new approach involved being more flexible. She abandoned sleep-related rul…
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How Jessica broke free from insomnia by letting go and accepting it without judgement (#54)
1:02:16
1:02:16
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1:02:16Jessica's struggle with insomnia began on a family trip, and it worsened each time she traveled until it stuck around, even at home. No matter what she tried, her nights were filled with anxiety and struggle.Jessica found that her resistance to insomnia and the difficult thoughts and feelings that often come with it were making things even more dif…
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How Eric got his life back from insomnia by focusing on what he could control (#53)
1:06:19
1:06:19
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1:06:19Eric's battle with insomnia started after a middle-of-the-night panic attack turned sleep into a nightly struggle. In a desperate search for solutions, he made changes that didn't improve his sleep and only ended up pulling him further away from the life he wanted to live. Eric started to isolate himself and considered difficult nights to be a pers…
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How Gerry used mindfulness and self-kindness to move away from an endless struggle with insomnia (#52)
59:30
59:30
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59:30Gerry's decades-long struggle with insomnia felt like a never-ending battle. The more he tried to force sleep, the worse his insomnia became.His turning point came when he shifted his approach, embracing mindfulness and self-kindness instead of engaging in an ongoing battle. By focusing on the present moment and practicing self-compassion, Gerry fo…
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How Anne-Claire moved away from the insomnia struggle by practicing new habits and being more willing to experience insomnia (#51)
1:07:00
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1:07:00Anne-Claire experienced sleep issues when she overextended herself running her business. After reducing her workload her sleep didn't get any better. Supplements and medication didn't seem to help. This led her to explore a new approach.Anne-Claire implemented new habits that would help create better conditions for sleep and help starve insomnia of…
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How Jessy separated herself from her thoughts, moved away from medication, and transformed her relationship with sleep (#50)
1:07:37
1:07:37
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1:07:37Jessy experienced sleep disruption due to the stress of COVID and the breakup of her community. Initially, she found it difficult to fall asleep. Then she started waking during the night and found it hard to get back to sleep.As her sleep got progressively worse, Jessy started to feel scared and worried that she was losing control of her life. She …
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How Maria faced the fear of insomnia by allowing it to exist and discovered that all its power came from how she responded to it (#49)
1:03:00
1:03:00
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1:03:00After experiencing anxiety and panic attacks and not sleeping for 72 hours, Maria thought she had lost the ability to sleep. Medication wasn't working. She withdrew from life. She couldn't focus on anything other than sleep.Feeling completely stuck, Maria changed her approach. Instead of trying to fight or avoid insomnia, she allowed it to show up …
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How Leah freed herself from the insomnia struggle by abandoning her efforts to control sleep (#48)
1:05:37
1:05:37
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1:05:37Leah experienced insomnia from her teenage years. As an adult it would often come and go, until it came and didn't go! This made it difficult for Leah to live the life she wanted to live. To do the things that mattered to her. Sleeping pills didn't help, and she felt stuck. So, Leah decided to change her approach. She realized that canceling plans …
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How Amanda reclaimed her life from insomnia and abandoned all the rules and rituals that were making things more difficult (#47)
1:12:43
1:12:43
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1:12:43Amanda's insomnia was triggered by a number of stressors — having a baby, relocating, getting a new job, and dealing with a toxic parent. She tried several sleep aids and implemented a number of sleep rules and rituals but found no real relief until she explored a different approach.She started to acknowledge and accept her thoughts and feelings in…
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How Eddie got through the ups and downs of insomnia by implementing a plan that stopped it from controlling his life (#46)
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1:05:00
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1:05:00For more than a decade, Eddie struggled with sleep. He had good nights and bad nights, and just when he thought his sleep was back on track, it would slip away again. The harder it became to sleep, the more he struggled, and the less he did the things he loved.Eddie's transformation started when he stopped trying to force sleep and began developing…
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How Jeannette got back on track after an insomnia relapse and how ongoing practice helped her move away from ongoing struggle (#45)
1:04:40
1:04:40
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1:04:40Jeannette's sleep improved after working with me but one night she couldn't fall back to sleep and her old fears returned. She felt like something was wrong with her as this continued, night after night. This led Jeannette back into her old safety behaviors, even though she knew they weren't helpful. In this episode, Jeannette shares how she moved …
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How Eric changed the way he responded to insomnia, stopped battling with his mind, and improved his sleep for the long term (#44)
51:02
51:02
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51:02Eric, like many people with chronic insomnia, discovered that trying to fall asleep only made it harder. Although he had no trouble falling asleep, he woke up frequently at night and struggled to drift off again due to racing thoughts and anxiety. Eric was fixated on sleeping and despite trying everything, he couldn't seem to relax or improve.After…
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How Vicky changed her approach to insomnia when sleeping pills stopped working after 20 years (#43)
59:06
59:06
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59:06Vicky used to manage her insomnia by taking sleeping pills for 20 years, until one night when they stopped working. This left her feeling alone and anxious, and she started to experience panic attacks when waking up in the middle of the night. To tackle this, Vicky adopted a new approach to insomnia that involved letting go of the struggle. She rea…
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How Jim stopped chasing after sleep and put over 10 years of insomnia behind him (#42)
54:59
54:59
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54:59Jim dealt with insomnia for a decade, initially thinking it was due to heavy drinking, poor diet, late work hours, and high stress. However, his insomnia persisted even after resolving these issues, leading to years of sleep disruption, fear, frustration, and anxiety.In this episode, Jim discusses the changes he made to overcome his insomnia. Ultim…
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How Nick stopped his mind (and sleep) from controlling his life by letting go of the struggle with his mind (and sleep) (#41)
1:09:02
1:09:02
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1:09:02Nick started experiencing insomnia in 2000 when he relocated and began a new job. His life was consumed with stress, anxiety, and uncertainty, and he found that trying to avoid or fight his thoughts only made them stronger. Nick felt helpless and didn't know how to improve his sleep or manage his difficult thoughts and emotions.In this episode, Nic…
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How Adam released himself from the prison cell he had built to protect him from insomnia (#40)
1:04:27
1:04:27
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1:04:27Adam's struggle with insomnia began the night before an important work presentation. A difficult night led to him calling in sick and planted a seed in his mind that difficult nights would interfere with important plans.To feel better in the short-term, Adam used safety behaviors like canceling plans or avoiding activities to protect his sleep. How…
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How Juergen improved his sleep by becoming more willing to experience wakefulness and difficult thoughts, feelings, and emotions (#39)
1:01:09
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1:01:09As Juergen grew older, his sleep patterns started to change, which is a normal part of aging. However, at the time he didn't realize this. As he began to pay more attention to his sleep, the COVID pandemic hit, increasing his work stress, and shutting down all the places he enjoyed going to. Juergen started to feel as if insomnia and the difficult …
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How Kristina dealt with anxiety, worry, and stress as her insomnia shifted from difficulty staying asleep to difficulty falling asleep (#38)
1:06:44
1:06:44
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1:06:44Kristina had a demanding job that caused a lot of stress. One night, her husband woke her up after having a nightmare, triggering a release of anxiety that had been building up for some time. This made it difficult for her to fall back to sleep, which only caused more worry and anxiety in the following nights.At first, Kristina could fall asleep bu…
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How Deeandra reclaimed her life from insomnia and got her sleep back on track without medication (#37)
1:06:48
1:06:48
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1:06:48Deeandra used to sleep well until a stressful time in her life caused her to go without sleep for 48 hours, causing anxiety. She worried that she had lost the ability to sleep and tried different medications, but they didn't work well and had side effects. For three years, Deeandra tried different rituals and experiments to sleep better, putting he…
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How Wayne improved his sleep by thinking of sleep as a friend that doesn’t need to be controlled (#36)
1:01:47
1:01:47
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1:01:47Wayne's battle with insomnia began during his board exam preparations when he tried to adjust his sleep schedule to wake up earlier. Unfortunately, this caused difficulty in falling asleep and led to sleep-related anxiety, making his nights stressful. To combat this, Wayne tried implementing sleep hygiene rituals and experimenting with sleep supple…
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How Felicity transformed her relationship with sleep by practicing new sleep habits, being kinder to herself, and living life independently of sleep (#35)
1:10:38
1:10:38
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1:10:38Felicity had been grappling with sleep issues intermittently throughout her life. Normally, her sleep would recover after a few months of disruption, but then it didn't. In an attempt to regain control of her sleep, Felicity delved into extensive research on sleep, gave up coffee, experimented with medication and supplements, and even resorted to s…
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How Amy went from an intense fear of insomnia and feeling her situation was hopeless to averaging over seven hours of sleep each night (#34)
59:06
59:06
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59:06Amy felt trapped in a life of insomnia, as night after night of wakefulness pushed her into a dark place with no escape. She felt helpless and hopeless until she became friends with someone else who was struggling with insomnia. Amy learned about the behavioral changes that were helping her friend sleep better.At first, Amy was skeptical that these…
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How Jennifer moved past 18 years of insomnia by exploring her sleep-related beliefs and recognizing her own insomnia in the stories of others (#33)
50:15
50:15
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50:15Jennifer struggled with sleep for 18 years, starting when she weaned her firstborn from breastfeeding. After falling pregnant again, things got better, but when it was time to wean her second child, the cycle of poor sleep returned. As the mother of five children, Jennifer was anxious about sleep when she decided she was done having kids.Jennifer l…
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How Jovana put insomnia behind her by recognizing that her insomnia wasn’t unique and that sleep is a natural process that cannot be controlled (#32)
1:07:29
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1:07:29Jovana's insomnia began in 2019, leaving her anxious and stressed. As a new mom, her anxiety worsened and she dreaded going to bed. Discovering the Insomnia Coach YouTube channel and podcast made her feel less isolated and she realized her experience wasn't unique or unusual.Jovana stopped her extensive research and experimentation with supplements…
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How Cindy tackled the insomnia that appeared after her baby was born by accepting nighttime wakefulness and eliminating safety behaviors (#31)
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59:01
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59:01After her daughter's birth, Cindy developed postpartum depression and was given medication to help her sleep. The medication initially helped, but soon failed, causing anxiety and worsening sleep problems. She attempted to eliminate every possible factor contributing to her insomnia but to no avail. She came to the realization that her efforts to o…
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How Jake got his sleep back on track by changing his nighttime behaviors and his daytime behaviors (#30)
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1:07:29When COVID hit, Jake's sleep schedule was severely disrupted as he was forced to work from home. He found himself working beyond the usual nine-to-five, answering calls and texts at all hours of the day, and even taking his computer to bed. Work encroached into his weekends and before long, he lost any semblance of a sleep schedule. When he went on…
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How Celia improved her sleep by abandoning all attempts to control her sleep and accepting and acknowledging anxious thoughts rather than trying to fight or avoid them (#29)
1:08:57
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1:08:57Celia struggled with her sleep from a young age and relied on medication to manage her frequent insomnia. With the birth of her son and the COVID pandemic, her sleep crutches failed, causing her to become more obsessed with sleep. She researched evidence-based techniques to tackle her sleep disruption, but they were challenging to implement.Despite…
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How Chad improved his sleep by undoing all the changes he had made in response to his insomnia (#28)
57:03
57:03
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57:03Chad went through a period of sleeplessness due to work-related stress, but eventually, his sleep began to recover. However, one night of complete insomnia caused him to spiral into anxiety and more sleeplessness. As a result, he became fixated on sleeping well and made several changes such as going to bed earlier and withdrawing from activities he…
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How Pat got rid of her insomnia by embracing a philosophy of “fake it until you make it” and accepting anxious thoughts (#27)
1:04:27
1:04:27
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1:04:27Pat, like everyone else, had some difficult nights occasionally, but she always got back on track with her sleep. However, during the summer, her neighbors began throwing loud parties that disturbed her sleep.As a result, Pat began to fear falling asleep and became fixated on her sleep quality, cancelling plans and rearranging her life around it. H…
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How Hannah got her sleep back to normal after COVID by caring less about sleep while creating better conditions for sleep (#26)
1:17:53
1:17:53
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1:17:53During the COVID pandemic, Hannah experienced sleep disruption like many others. As lockdowns extended, it became increasingly difficult for her to fall and stay asleep. After trying different medications with unpleasant side effects, she turned to a website for insomnia tips and advice. However, she soon realized that she needed personalized suppo…
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How Susie stopped sleep from controlling her life, regained trust in her natural ability to sleep, and learned to love her bedroom (#25)
48:41
48:41
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48:41Susie struggled with insomnia for a long time, but it wasn't until her sleeping pills stopped working while on vacation that she realized she had to take action. In this episode, Susie shares how she overcame her anxiety around sleep and transformed her relationship with it.Through her efforts to address the thoughts and behaviors that perpetuated …
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How Michelle got to the root cause of her insomnia and improved her sleep after 15 years of unhelpful experiments, research, and sleep efforts (#24)
57:08
57:08
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57:08Michelle spent 15 years researching sleep and trying different things to overcome her insomnia. However, the more she tried to control her sleep, the more it controlled her. Eventually, she realized that the sleep-related thoughts and behaviors she developed were only making the problem worse.In this episode, Michelle shares the techniques that hel…
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How Jennifer got through setbacks and relapses while implementing techniques that transformed her sleep after 25 years of insomnia (#23)
1:00:43
1:00:43
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1:00:43Jennifer struggled with insomnia and felt discouraged after working with a sleep coach for four weeks with no improvement in her sleep. However, she did not give up and persevered with implementing techniques to build sleep drive, strengthen her body clock, and lower her arousal. Although she still found it challenging to fall back to sleep when wa…
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How Jessica transformed her relationship with sleep by challenging her sleep-related thoughts and changing her sleep-related behaviors (#22)
49:13
49:13
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49:13Jessica faced challenges with sleep after moving back to her hometown with her family. She tried different techniques and supplements to improve her sleep but found herself becoming increasingly obsessed with it when nothing worked. This was especially concerning as she was a stay-at-home mom with two small children. Jessica started to lose hope un…
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How health-conscious Anafer shed her identity as an insomniac and now focuses on her career, relationships, and personal happiness rather than sleep (#21)
53:43
53:43
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53:43Anafer struggled with insomnia her entire life, believing that she was born with it. Despite her health-conscious lifestyle, her sleep problems persisted, leading her to years of research and experiments. Unfortunately, these efforts proved futile.Determined to address her sleep issues before starting her career in dietetics, Anafer came across my …
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A conversation about sleeping pills with Dr. Wallace B. Mendelson (#20)
59:39
59:39
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59:39Dr. Mendelson is a highly respected figure in the field of sleep research and medicine, with expertise in psychiatry and sleep medicine. He is renowned for his extensive research into sleeping pills and their properties, as well as the impact of medication on sleep.During this episode, Dr. Mendelson provides insight into the history of sleeping pil…
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