Re: Overactive Mind
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Re: Overactive Mind

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Posted by F43 on March 12, 2009 at 04:57:16:

In Reply to: Re: Overactive Mind posted by Jackson on March 11, 2009 at 18:00:50:

I want to add my voice to this. I agree strongly with Jackson that this is too simplistic. I do not have an overactive mind at bedtime, and I've never related to this description of sleep-onset by people who experience it. My mind is empty and I'm relaxed at bedtime. My nervous system is just too chronically aroused to fall asleep.

To be honest, I'm offended by the frequent suggestion that CBT to turn off an overactive mind is all it takes to treat sleep-onset insomnia, because it's so simplistic. It's like suggesting that diabetics simply practice CBT to moderate their insulin and glucose levels. If you've been in a car accident or had a huge shock, is your mind overactive? Not likely. You can't relax or sleep because your adrenaline levels are far too high and you can't shut them down.

I saw my psychiatrist yesterday, a wise man, who said to me at the end our session, "It will be interesting to see what happens when you finish the PhD. Therapy is completely ineffective when the main stressor is still present, because you can't fundamentally relax." I agreed with him. I said that you can do all the CBT, all the cognitive re-framing you want, but when you're dealing with chronic feelings of conflict, stress, being overhwhelmed, having uncertainty, and having a lack of love in your life, the absence of any close intimate relationships, you can't FEEL relaxed. It's nothing cognitive; it's at a deeper level of psychological peace and security that isn't something you can access, except by making changes in your life. The stressors in my life have been there for many years; they are situational and long-term, not immediately resolveable. They will resolve, but only one by one, and gradually. I think many people who deal with insomnia forget that it's not just overthinking or distorted perceptions that cause insomnia; it's also the emotional impact of life changes and the internal strife they cause, particularly when you have been stuck for years in a difficult situation that you have little control over.

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