Aviva Psychology Services
Therapy for Insomnia in Massachusetts
Guiding those who are struggling with insomnia to reset their relationship with sleep and to sleep better, longer.
When insomnia is your norm, your quality of life is deminished.
If you are struggling with difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, waking up too early, or finding it hard to get yourself out of bed in the morning, you’re not alone. If nothing you have done so far has helped to get your sleep back on track, you may be feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, and lost.
Insomnia can affect every part of your life:
- You may be dreading bedtime and the uncertainty about whether or not you’ll be able to sleep through the night
- You are tired but “wired” when it is time for bed
- You are exhausted, fatigued, and dragging all day
- You may be noticing that it is harder to regulate your mood and concentrate
- You have started to chase sleep and change plans to catch sleep when you can
- You may be wondering if it will ever get better
Insomnia, even if it has been your norm for years, is a treatable condition. At Aviva, we offer the gold standard evidence-based treatment for insomnia called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia or CBT-I. CBT-I is a data driven and highly effective therapeutic approach for repairing insomnia for good.
What is Insomnia?
Everyone experiences some nights of poor sleep in their lives. However, chronic insomnia is a pattern of disturbed sleep that is persistent and causes significant distress. Insomnia typically affects both the quality and duration of sleep leading to feelings of dissatisfaction and frustration with sleep.
Insomnia can make you believe that your sleep is “broken” or beyond repair. But insomnia is a treatable condition, which does not have to stay chronic.
Common signs of insomnia:
- Difficulty falling asleep
- Difficulty staying asleep or frequent prolonged awakenings at night
- Problems waking up earlier than you want and being unable to return to sleep
- Dissatisfaction with the duration and quality of sleep and feeling exhausted during the day
Insomnia can be intermittent or chronic and a diagnosis of insomnia is typically given for persistent difficulties with sleep occurring on 3 or more nights per week for at least 3 months.You can learn more about insomnia from the National Institute of Health here.
Evidence-based therapy for insomnia at Aviva
Within the insomnia clinic at Aviva Psychology Services, our team of doctoral-level psychologists is fully prepared to guide you through evidence-based, highly effective treatment for insomnia: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). CBT-I is based on what we know about sleep architecture and leverages this knowledge to rebuild your relationship with sleep and repair your sleep for good. You will be supported by your clinician to thoroughly assess your sleep concerns, begin tracking your sleep, and implement new active and effective skills to improve your sleep. CBT-I is a structured and time-limited treatment that focuses first on improving sleep quality and then increasing sleep quantity. Your journey with a CBT-I therapist will start with assessment and a brief course of therapy customized to your needs. Our CBT-I clinicians are available in person at our offices in Northampton or Downtown Boston or via telehealth.
Our perinatal therapy process
Reaching out can be hard when you’re already running on empty. We've made the process clear and simple:
Request an Appointment
Once you complete the
form, we will reach out. If we have a fitting opening, we schedule a complimentary 15-minute phone consultation to assess fit further together.
Assessment and Planning
The first 2–4 sessions assess your concerns, history, and goals. You and your therapist will discuss fit and establish a treatment plan together.
Ongoing Weekly Sessions
Sessions are held at the same time each week and typically last 55 minutes to work towards your treatment goals.
Start to look forward to bedtime and trust your sleep again
What if your relationship with sleep could be reset and you could fall asleep quickly, stay asleep better, and wake up feeling more refreshed and ready for the day? Imagine genuinely looking forward to your nighttime routine and bedtime instead of worrying about whether or not you will sleep and how you will be able to function tomorrow.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia at Aviva can help you make this a reality. Our expert team at Aviva will support you to assess your particular insomnia treatment needs. Typically, after initial assessment, CBT-I treatment is 4-8 sessions. If your sleep difficulties are complicated by the presence of another condition such as restless leg syndrome, sleep apnea, nightmares/trauma, tinnitus, or pain, you can still benefit significantly from CBT-I. Our specialists will work with you to adapt care to your individual needs to improve your sleep and quality of life.
Benefits of CBT-I therapy
Improve the quality and duration of your sleep
Learn how to change patterns that are keeping you stuck with insomnia and reset your relationship with sleep
Improve coping skills
Develop active coping skills that help you take action to relax at bedtime, re-train your body’s relationship with your bed, and effectively manage worries about your sleep
Prevent future disruption
Learn the tools you need to prevent minor disruptions in sleep from leading back to chronic insomnia so you are more resilient and less fearful about doing the things you want to do
You don’t need to continue to struggle alone
It might feel like you’ve tried everything to improve your sleep on your own and it is natural to feel overwhelmed and/or skeptical that any type of therapy could actually heal your insomnia. You’re not alone.
Our Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) providers at Aviva are here to help you understand how healthy sleep architecture works, how to leverage this knowledge into practical skills, and to support you to develop a system of behaviors that changes your relationship with sleep. CBT-I is a highly structured, brief treatment, and our clinicians here at Aviva are ready to support and motivate you to make changes that last.
FAQs about insomnia treatment
What treatment approaches do you use for treating insomnia?
We use the gold standard evidence-based treatment approach called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) to help you heal your insomnia for good.
How do I know if Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Insomnia (CBT-I) is right for me?
If you are struggling with insomnia and sleep problems are interfering with your daily life, CBT-I can help. A free consultation can help us determine if CBT-I at Aviva is the right fit for you.
How long does CBT-I treatment at Aviva take?
It depends on your specific needs. However, most people who see us for insomnia find they have made significant progress and are ready to stop treatment after as little as 4-8 sessions after intake. If you are experiencing other concerns affecting your sleep beyond insomnia, we’ll work together to create a plan that makes sense for you and your particular needs.
If I am taking sleep medications, using supplements, or have a CPAP for sleep apnea will CBT-I still work for me?
Absolutely. During our intake process, we will discuss your sleep history, medications/supplements, and concurrent sleep conditions and treatments. We will discuss your goals regarding sleep medication use and may work with you and your primary care or sleep medicine provider as needed to support you with changes that are in line with your goals. CBT-I can still be incredibly effective for individuals taking sleep medications or with concurrent sleep apnea or other sleep disorders.
Can I do therapy for insomnia online at Aviva?
Absolutely. We offer both in-person sessions in downtown Boston and Northampton, MA, and online therapy for clients across Massachusetts. Please note that you must reside and be physically located in Massachusetts at the time of all therapy sessions to receive care at Aviva.
What if you could sleep easier?
You don’t have to continue to suffer. CBT-I is a proven treatment to improve sleep quality and duration in as little as 4 weeks.
