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Sleep anxiety therapy and counselling

Sleep anxiety - at Pinnacle Wellbeing we can teach you how to reduce your sleep anxiety, find the root cause, its symptoms & triggers & improve your sleep.

Sleep anxiety explained

Everyone has a bad night’s sleep or struggles to get to sleep occasionally but when going to sleep becomes something to be afraid of, or something which causes you high levels of anxiety, then it's time to get help. In its simplest form, sleep anxiety is a feeling of fear or stress about falling asleep or staying asleep. Sleep problems and mental health disorders such as anxiety are often linked. One can often make the other worse; it can feel like a never-ending cycle. But anxiety and sleep problems are both treatable. This is where we can help. We will work with you to identify the causes behind your sleep anxiety using a combination of treatments and therapies such as CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy), hypnotherapy, and talking therapies such as psychotherapy and counselling.[LINK]

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Sleep anxiety in more detail

Problems with sleep can affect anyone – from children to adults alike. It can affect every aspect of your life, from worklife to homelife. In more extreme cases, some can suffer from a distinct phobia called somniphobia. People who experience this type of phobia feel something bad will happen to them whilst they are sleeping, or that they shouldn’t sleep because they need to stay alert and watchful. Some people experience nocturnal panic attacks. This is the same as a panic attack you might experience when awake but nocturnal panic attacks only happen at night, and often wake you from sleep.

What sleep anxiety symptoms are there?

Sleep anxiety and anxiety are often intertwined, both affect your mind and your body. Some of the most common symptoms are: ● Lack of confidence ● Difficulty concentration ● Feeling a sense of dread or fearing the worst ● Feeling panicky or on edge, having a panic attack ● Insomnia ● Irritability ● Feeling detached or withdrawn ● Restlessness ● Heart palpitations, shortness of breath

Our approach to sleep anxiety counselling

We believe that therapy is an effective way to treat sleep anxiety. The use of therapy helps to target both the symptoms and the root cause of your sleep anxiety. Once the root cause has been agreed, we can help you deal with your sleep anxiety; its symptoms and triggers. It is at this point we can build a tailor-made programme for you, depending on the symptoms identified. We know that ‘one size doesn’t fit all’ and that each of our clients is different and has their own set of unique needs and circumstances. Typically, we will use a combination of therapies to treat sleep anxiety; these include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), hypnotherapy alongside talking therapies such as counselling and psychotherapy.

Client success stories

How hypnotherapy for sleep anxiety can help

We actually experience hypnosis all the time naturally. Daydreaming is a form of hypnosis, for example. Similarly, when we arrive at a destination in our car without being aware of how we got there. That’s a form of hypnosis too. We drift in and out of the state all the time. By using hypnotherapy we harness that state to create a form of deep relaxation that enables us to access parts of the brain that are blocked by conscious thought. By altering your state of consciousness, through the use of hypnosis and positive suggestion, we can help you to change aspects of yourself – for example your behaviour or your feelings.

How CBT for sleep anxiety can help

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is about looking at the relationship between your thoughts and feelings, and how they make you ‘default’ to certain behaviours. It is a particularly effective treatment for sleep anxiety as well as anxiety, stress and depression. CBT is used as a way to rewire the software of your brain, rehearsing troubling situations in your mind in order to create alternative ways of thinking when that situation arises again. In effect, you’re creating new mental circuitry by challenging and changing old responses that feel hardwired in, but aren’t.
“Our relationship with sleep is often representative of our relationship with everyday events and how we manage the emotions linked to these. Our therapies provide an holistic approach to your sleep issues that not only address the sleep itself, but also the accumulative emotional and physiological effects of daytime events which can undermine the quality of your sleep” Richard Reid - CEO, Therapist & Coaching Psychologist

What can you expect from your sleep anxiety sessions?

We work with you to understand your specific needs and tailor the sessions to suit you. We always take a person-centred approach to work with you to reach your goal. Our sessions usually last from 30 minutes to an hour; and we usually recommend a course of around 6 to 12 sessions.

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If you’re still unsure whether you need us or not then simply send us any questions you may have via the enquiry form on the right.

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