Sleep Unplugged with Dr. Chris Winter

#154 - Sleep and the Threat of Danger: I Won’t Do You No Harm

Chris Winter, MD

One of the biggest obstacles in insomnia treatment is the perceived threat of physical harm related to the sleep difficulty. It's a major cog in the insomnia-fear-arousal cycle. In this episode we will:

  • Utilize two case studies to illustrate the disruption that fear of harm causes with insomnia recovery
  •  Discuss insomnia is a disorder of distress, not danger
  • Talk about the lack of any evidence that acute sleep loss causes medical harm
  • Challenge the catastrophizing that characterizes insomnia
  • Contrast behavioral and cognitive therapies over medical therapies

Produced by: Maeve Winter

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