Sleep hygiene is not an effective treatment for chronic insomnia. Unfortunately, it is often the first recommendation given to people with insomnia. So, when someone implements good sleep hygiene and their sleep (predictably) doesn't improve, they might start to worry that their insomnia is unfixable or is somehow unique. Related video: Your chronic insomnia probably isn't as unique as you think (so it can be treated with CBT-I):
Practicing good sleep hygiene can be a good preventative measure for people without chronic insomnia — however, just as brushing our teeth and flossing can help prevent cavities, once a cavity appears no amount of dental hygiene is going to fix that cavity. A new treatment is needed.
When it comes to chronic insomnia, the new treatment that is needed when sleep hygiene fails is cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I). You can learn more about CBT-I here:
You can also assess your sleep hygiene using this tool:
Credit to Michael Schwartz of Sleep on Cue for the dental hygiene analogy! You can find Michael here:
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My name is Martin Reed and I am the founder of Insomnia Coach®. I offer sleep coaching services that give people with insomnia all the skills and support they need to enjoy better sleep for the rest of their lives. I also offer a free two-week sleep training course for people with insomnia at
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