ACT for insomnia & sleep difficulties
Strategies to address cognitive & behavioural factors inhibiting sleep
One key difficulty that gets in the way of our sleep is the pressure to go to sleep. Many experience an associated fear of what might happen should they not sleep well. So how do we help people with a healthy desire to protect their sleep and well-being yet who continue to have sleep difficulties?
Besides the cognitive binds we find ourselves in, we’re faced with a myriad of confusing messages. What should and shouldn’t we do if we have insomnia? The fear of sleeplessness and the increased pressure to sleep can contribute to us engaging in behaviours which do, in fact, get in the way of improving our sleep patterns.
Many clients refer to a ‘racing mind’ they experience when trying to fall asleep, and which becomes more prominent when they wake up during the night or the early hours of the morning. This racing mind is difficult to shift with traditional cognitive strategies.
About this workshop
In this workshop, you will learn the main techniques and strategies to help your clients
- fall asleep faster
- reduce awakenings during the night
- improve the quality of their sleep.
Dr Maja Schaedel is a clinical psychologist who specialises in sleep difficulties. She works in an NHS Sleep Disorder service and in private practice. Her training helps people understand the mechanisms which perpetuate sleep difficulties. She teachers her clients a whole bunch of new strategies which actually work at improving sleep.
Who would benefit from this workshop?
Meant for practitioners who have little to no previous experience training in ACT, we recommend this workshop for mental health professionals including psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, nurse practitioners and mental health counsellors.
In this workshop, you’ll learn:
- what goes wrong with sleep with reference to the two main drivers impacting on sleep – sleep homeostasis and circadian rhythm
- how insomnia can ‘take root’ and become a chronic problem
- how insomnia relates to the ACT hexaflex model
- how to help clients understand how behaviour around engagement with thoughts can get in the way of sleep
- how to help clients to tackle the ‘racing mind’ with ACT strategies such as thought defusion
- how to help clients address the issues around feeling pressure to sleep
- how this feeds into insomnia with focus on perspective taking & present moment work
- how to help clients identify what’s getting in the way of behaviour change and gently explore any ‘payoffs’ (reinforcing consequences)
- how to modify the CBT for Insomnia (CBT-I) behavioural techniques to become ACT-concordant
- how to help clients know whether to get out of bed or to stay in bed if they can’t sleep
- how to help clients identify their Values and plan moves towards behaviour change
- how to use present moment work and mindfulness strategies to break out of the perpetuating vicious cycles involving engagement with thoughts, hyperarousal & insomnia.
Group booking discounts
Contextual Consulting offer discounts for groups of people from the same organisation e.g. an NHS Trust that does not have a contract arrangement with us.
Please email us here to arrange a group discount or find out more about our CPD contracts here.
APA psychologists: This program is sponsored by Contextual Consulting and is approved for 6 CE credits for psychologists.
Nationally certified counselors: This workshop is available for 6 credit hours. Contextual Consulting Ltd. has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7578.
To find out more, including attendance requirements and how to access your certificate, go to our continuing education information page.