I think most insomnia is anxiety based

@@gibememoni Yes very true

I would even say it is a form of anxiety. And even that what you learn about sleep applies very much to anxiety and life in general...

I will Scarlett. Hang in there, just thinking “I have to continue to let go” IS letting go... hope you can do something nice for yourself this weekend even with the exhaustion

hey did you manage to overcome your fear of unconsciousness?

did you? i am currently having this struggle.@@phoebe-py6hc

Michelle!! Thank you! I am so thankful for your support throughout my process!

So glad to read this 😊 and yes, this is the way!

Also I think you encouraging us to look at the root of our anxiety is so key… I was afraid of losing control, possibly dying or going crazy from lack of sleep. Listening to and addressing each of these was paramount. Great insight!

Riley! Thanks for the encouragement and I had a feeling someone tuning in would recognize this. And yes thanks Marina for sharing 🙏

💯%

So glad you found you’re way here and - thanks much for the support!

Al Ben has your fear subsided? I'm going through this now

@@katiekummer26 Hello! A little bit. I’ve noticed that it has been reduced to daytime sleeping, or when the sun is up. At night I don’t really have the issue that much anymore. It’s really bizarre.

Hi! Thanks for sharing and you know, this is a longer comment soo feel free tosend a question for open class from the link on the website! There’s a playlist on fatal insomnia in the description too!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now. It's anxiety, trust me. Mine started 3 weeks ago but I've also been on sleeping pills for a long time. Please don't go down that route.

@@melissahoughton4482 Thank you for your reply. This is something I've never dealt with to this length. It's terrible but it's good to know I'm not alone.

It absolutely will! In fact it already has 😊 thanks for guesting and have a really good weekend!!

Hi Marina, thanks for this great video! Since I suffer from sleep anxiety, I would liketo ask u some questiobs and could need ur help.

@@manfredkohnen7479 Hi Manfred, I'm glad you could relate to it and know you are not alone in this. You can message me on instagram marinnaarina if you want. If you don't have instagram you can send me an email mdefeij@hotmail.com. Take care!

@@marinnaamar thanks a lot. Will contact u via Instagram

Hii Marina I have the same problem as u can I contact u on instagram ?

Yes! I agree, this has unlocked something, I’ve noticed... it’s on my to do list!

@@thesleepcoachschool8192 What is your advice for someone this is afraid to sleep?

Hi Jarl, this is basically what every single video here is about! Education helps, self-kindness helps, hearing other people’s stories help. Ultimately, seeing that it is very natural to fear loss of control, but that loss of control/sleep cannot harm you, I think that’s a big one.

@@thesleepcoachschool8192 If you make a video to expand on this, that would be great.

Hi Jarl! Yes it’s on my list... you can also send a reminder/question to open class!

Hi Grace, I know there’s one more that’s dedicated to this topic, this said, so much here is about meeting fear, and somniphobia is one of many ways fear shows up for us

Oh and another video that applies is on mantras, when the intent with those are to become calm or sleep they can become an effort

Hi! How do you know it’s been two hours? My point - everything is easier without pressure. When we don’t know the time, there’s naturally less control, so I think this timeless sleep window helps more than that right sleep restriction of traditional CBTi. Let’s take a look! The timeless sleep window is really there simply as a nudge towards less attachment. It is a way to sort of make yourself try less and let go of attempts at controlling sleep. There is often confusion about the main purpose. In traditional CBT there’s a lot of emphasis on making yourself stay awake for a long time so you feel sleepy. It is true that sleep drive is important, but anything you do to make yourself sleep becomes an effort! This includes making yourself stay up late! Remember, insomnia is not a problem of not being sleepy, it is a problem of trying too much to sleep. So the way to think of the sleep window is that it is simply a nudge in the direction of trying less. When you give yourself less time for sleep, and you no longer know the time at night, these again are important psychological steps towards trying less, being willing to have less control. What exact time you get up or what exact time you go to bed doesn’t really matter! What does matter is not focusing too much on the time. It’s also important to set it and forget it. Decide upon sometime and then don’t question it. This will free your mind to think about more pleasant things! In fact what also helps a lot is not knowing the time at night. Deciding what time to get up in the morning and then making a decision to stop checking the time at a certain time in the evening. Not knowing the time is a very powerful way of letting go of control! Finally, I think it’s important to be generous and to go a gentle path of no pressure. Is very tempting to say that you will have a very narrow sleep window so that you feel really sleepy and then you reach your goal faster. But that’s a way of pressure! Think about when people try to lose weight. The reason most people don’t do well is because they choose an extreme diet that they can’t stick to for more than a few weeks. It’s the same with sleep windows. Many people choose a really tight window and then they become frustrated and pressured because it’s not something they can do forever. If someone decides not to do a diet but rather change their lifestyle to something they can do forever, then there’s no pressure! Then they lose weight easily. If you choose a sleep window that’s for example 7 or 8 hours, that’s pretty close to what most people do anyway so you can do that indefinitely. That’s the way

@@thesleepcoachschool8192 Thank you so much,Daniel!!! I will try to practice it all) and wish a good luck all people,that are making the same journey:)

Anytime Svetlana! You’ll get where you want it be 👍

Im wondering the same thing

Hi VK and PA! You know, I think to answer this we have to talk about what insomnia is and what helps. We all have a safety system in our brains. This safety system works perfect when we are faced with a tangible, physical threat like a grizzly bear. We become frightened. We either fight or flight. We either scare it away or we hide. Either way the outcome is good. We survive! When it comes to insomnia, things are different. Because sleeplessness is not a tangible threat but it is a perceived threat. Being awake cannot actually hurt you, but it can feel very scary. And to the mind, it doesn’t really make any difference - a threat is a threat as far as It is concerned. So it always deploys the same strategy of fight or flight. The problem is, you cannot escape or fight a perceived threat. When you do, it doesn’t work. And then it seems like the threat is bigger than you initially thought. That makes your brain deploy even more fight or flight. Then the threat seems even larger and on and on it goes. In other words, the more you try to escape or avoid a perceived threat, the more it will trouble you. In other words, the more you try to escape wakefulness, the more wakefulness you will have. So using a weighted blanket to sleep more or escape being awake, that leads to insomnia! Using one just because you feel like it, that’s another story. That’s totally harmless 👍

@@thesleepcoachschool8192 That... actually makes a lot of sense. You’d basically be adding another layer to the issue, right? Thank you!

Glad it did! And yes, literally adding another layer like you said!

​@@thesleepcoachschool8192 This makes a lot of sense. My difficulty with falling asleep is linked with a fear of depression. I read that insomniacs are 10x more likely to get depression than normal sleepers. Could you maybe give some more insight on that? Like why I shouldn't worry about that.

Hang in there Abishek, I’d say the key insight to me is that it’s just like any other fear… when we try to make ourselves not scared, when we try to avoid, it gets amplified… when we deploy education, when we no longer think it’s odd, when we don’t try to escape but accept feelings… then things get easier

Can the course help me with sominophobia

@@lilshake139 I’d say as long as someone shares what aspect of sleep/not sleeping they’ve been scared about, the coaches can definitely contextualize all the teachings so they make sense.

Hi Mary, Sorry to hear but - we have a whole playlist called Momsomnia , take a look there I think it can help so much, hang int therrb

Have you gotten some sleep?I am facing the same phobia too. Currently 6months???Have you delt with your phobia?Scared for my baby too😥

I'm also going through somniphobia/severe sleep anxiety and am also 4 months pregnant. It started when I went through a period of not being able to fall asleep at all a few months ago. It is hell. I wish it would go away 😢

Hang in there Jenny, so sorry but glad you’re here. Hope you’ll find much here that will lead to peaceful sleep

@@jennybeanSMC how are you now ? . I am 5 months and same issue

Hi! Yes they’re all here, check the This is Natto playlist