Insomnia FAQ — Tracy the Sleep Coach

Question 1

What causes chronic insomnia anyway?

Accepted Answer

Chronic insomnia almost always starts with a trigger — a bereavement, a new baby, a stressful period at work — that disrupts sleep in the short term. This is completely normal and adaptive. The problem arises when the brain's threat-detection system keeps running long after the trigger has passed, treating the prospect of not sleeping as if it were a genuine danger. A combination of biological vul

Question 2

What is sleep drive?

Accepted Answer

Sleep drive is the biological pressure that builds up during every waking hour, pushing you toward sleep. Think of it like a balloon that starts empty when you wake up and fills steadily as the day goes on — the fuller it is, the more easily and deeply you'll sleep. Physical activity, mental engagement, and simply being awake all contribute to filling the balloon. For people with insomnia, sleep d

Question 3

What is the 'arousal system' and why is it relevant to my insomnia?

Accepted Answer

The arousal system is your brain's built-in threat-detection and survival mechanism — the same system that would keep you alert if you were being chased by a bear. It is designed to override sleep when there is perceived danger, because sleeping when under threat is a terrible evolutionary strategy. In insomnia, this system becomes hyperactivated in the context of sleep itself: the brain has learn

Question 4

Will I ever sleep normally again?

Accepted Answer

Yes. I know this can feel impossible to believe when you're in the depths of chronic insomnia — but I say it from experience both personal and professional. I had two bouts of insomnia totalling over ten years, and I now sleep 8.5–9.5 hours a night regularly, through perimenopause, through life's upheavals, without medication and without complicated rituals. So do the thousands of people who have

Question 5

What is sleep hygiene exactly?

Accepted Answer

Sleep hygiene refers to a set of behavioural and environmental practices that support healthy sleep. It includes things like maintaining a consistent sleep and wake schedule, keeping the bedroom dark and cool, avoiding caffeine in the afternoon and evening, limiting alcohol, and reducing screen use before bed. These practices are genuinely helpful for maintaining good sleep in people who don't hav

Question 6

What does my 'sleep score' mean and should I worry about it?

Accepted Answer

Your sleep score is an algorithm, not a medical assessment. Consumer wearables use wrist movement and heart rate variability to estimate sleep stages, but these estimates are broadly directional at best and often substantially inaccurate — particularly for sleep stage classification. If you are sleeping well and find your tracker motivating, that's fine. But if you have insomnia and are checking y

Question 7

Does everyone really need exactly 8 hours of sleep?

Accepted Answer

No — and this myth causes a surprising amount of suffering. Sleep need is genetically determined and highly individual, ranging from around six hours to ten hours in healthy adults. The eight-hour figure is a population average, not a prescription. If you're waking up without an alarm feeling reasonably refreshed, functioning well through the day, and not constantly fighting fatigue, you are getti

Question 8

Is it safe to take sleeping pills long-term?

Accepted Answer

This is a question for your GP or prescriber, and I'd always encourage that conversation. From an evidence perspective, what we know is that long-term use of sleep medications — particularly benzodiazepines and Z-drugs — is associated with tolerance (needing more for the same effect), dependency, and rebound insomnia when stopping. They also carry side effect profiles that become more significant

Question 9

Does melatonin actually work for insomnia?

Accepted Answer

The research on melatonin for insomnia is fairly clear: in controlled trials, it produces on average around 20 extra minutes of sleep — not a clinically meaningful improvement for most people with significant insomnia. Melatonin is not a sleeping pill; it is a hormone that regulates the *timing* of sleep (your circadian clock), not the depth or continuity of it. Where it genuinely excels is in jet

Question 10

Are there any supplements that genuinely help with insomnia?

Accepted Answer

This is an honest question that deserves an honest answer. The short version: no supplement has evidence anywhere close to the level of CBT-I, but some have mild supporting evidence in specific populations. Magnesium may be modestly helpful for people with genuine magnesium deficiency. Melatonin is useful for circadian timing (jet lag) but not for insomnia proper. L-theanine has some evidence for

Question 11

What is CBT-I?

Accepted Answer

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is a structured, evidence-based programme that directly addresses the mechanisms that cause and maintain chronic insomnia. It combines behavioural strategies (sleep restriction, stimulus control, consistent wake times) with cognitive techniques (identifying and challenging the unhelpful beliefs about sleep that fuel anxiety) to rebuild a healthy s

Question 12

What is sleep restriction therapy?

Accepted Answer

Sleep restriction therapy is one of the core behavioural components of CBT-I. It involves temporarily limiting the amount of time you spend in bed to more closely match the amount of time you're actually sleeping — compressing the sleep window to build sleep drive and deepen sleep consolidation. For example, if you're spending ten hours in bed but only sleeping five, you might initially be guided

Question 13

Is insomnia a symptom of perimenopause?

Accepted Answer

Yes — sleep disruption is one of the most commonly reported symptoms of perimenopause, affecting up to 60% of women during this transition. The mechanisms are multiple: night sweats and hot flushes can fragment sleep directly; fluctuating oestrogen and progesterone affect sleep architecture; changing serotonin levels influence mood and sleep quality; and the life stress that often coincides with m

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