This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/magazine/8220088.stm
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Can the internet cure insomnia? | Can the internet cure insomnia? |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| One out of 10 Britons can't fall asleep at night. But do new online treatments for insomnia mean a cure is just a few clicks away? | One out of 10 Britons can't fall asleep at night. But do new online treatments for insomnia mean a cure is just a few clicks away? |
| Midnight's not so bad. Some quick number crunching and you figure you can still get six hours of shut-eye before facing the morning. | Midnight's not so bad. Some quick number crunching and you figure you can still get six hours of shut-eye before facing the morning. |
| Two in the morning is a little bleaker. You're down to four hours - and that's if sleep comes right away. | Two in the morning is a little bleaker. You're down to four hours - and that's if sleep comes right away. |
| The more personal the approach between the person who is the sufferer and the therapist, the better Jim Horne, Sleep Research Centre | The more personal the approach between the person who is the sufferer and the therapist, the better Jim Horne, Sleep Research Centre |
| At three, those glowing red numbers on the alarm clock seem to be screaming one thing: "You're not getting more than three hours tonight." | At three, those glowing red numbers on the alarm clock seem to be screaming one thing: "You're not getting more than three hours tonight." |
| By four, you're ready to give up, grab a laptop and while away the remaining hours with some mindless web surfing. But maybe it's not such a bad idea - that computer screen could just be the solution for insomniacs. | By four, you're ready to give up, grab a laptop and while away the remaining hours with some mindless web surfing. But maybe it's not such a bad idea - that computer screen could just be the solution for insomniacs. |
| Help with sleeplessness is available on the NHS, but places are limited and waiting lists long. But these are free, and the online courses are currently offered on a commercial basis from the United States. | Help with sleeplessness is available on the NHS, but places are limited and waiting lists long. But these are free, and the online courses are currently offered on a commercial basis from the United States. |
| Number watching | Number watching |
| It's a promise that reads rather like an e-mail spam subject: "End sleepless nights once and for all - at home." But over the past few years, researchers have been developing internet-based courses designed to do exactly that. | It's a promise that reads rather like an e-mail spam subject: "End sleepless nights once and for all - at home." But over the past few years, researchers have been developing internet-based courses designed to do exactly that. |
| Shouldn't you be asleep by now? | Shouldn't you be asleep by now? |
| Now some US studies claim that on-screen therapy may be just as effective as face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy. | Now some US studies claim that on-screen therapy may be just as effective as face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy. |
| Everyone who has had a few bad nights of sleep knows the folk remedies. Drink warm milk, take a hot bath, sip herbal tea, or count sheep. | Everyone who has had a few bad nights of sleep knows the folk remedies. Drink warm milk, take a hot bath, sip herbal tea, or count sheep. |
| No luck? It used to seem like the only option was to hope sleep would come, or to place yourself on a waiting list for a cognitive behavioural therapist, suffering through wakeful nights and groggy days in the meantime. | No luck? It used to seem like the only option was to hope sleep would come, or to place yourself on a waiting list for a cognitive behavioural therapist, suffering through wakeful nights and groggy days in the meantime. |
| "We're talking about the most common mental health problem in the UK, and probably the world," says Colin Espie, director of the University of Glasgow Sleep Centre. "But less than half of people with insomnia mention it to their doctors." | "We're talking about the most common mental health problem in the UK, and probably the world," says Colin Espie, director of the University of Glasgow Sleep Centre. "But less than half of people with insomnia mention it to their doctors." |
| Many feel insomnia is too trivial to mention to their GP, or they think it's something they can manage on their own, says Derk-Jan Dijk, Professor of Sleep and Physiology at the University of Surrey. | Many feel insomnia is too trivial to mention to their GP, or they think it's something they can manage on their own, says Derk-Jan Dijk, Professor of Sleep and Physiology at the University of Surrey. |
| How many sheep does it take to sleep? | How many sheep does it take to sleep? |
| "It's a cultural thing that sleep is not important," he says. "You may not want to admit that you didn't sleep very well during the night because you were worried about that meeting with your manager." | "It's a cultural thing that sleep is not important," he says. "You may not want to admit that you didn't sleep very well during the night because you were worried about that meeting with your manager." |
| And even if people are ready to talk about it, they may not have the resources to do so. Millions of people in the UK have chronic insomnia, but only several hundred psychologists are trained in this type of therapy. | And even if people are ready to talk about it, they may not have the resources to do so. Millions of people in the UK have chronic insomnia, but only several hundred psychologists are trained in this type of therapy. |
| Online treatments may have the potential to ease this pressure. It's a little more modern than, say, sheep counting, but researchers are focused on bringing insomnia treatment to the internet. It's about accessibility, says Dr Espie, who has examined the approach taken by online courses. | Online treatments may have the potential to ease this pressure. It's a little more modern than, say, sheep counting, but researchers are focused on bringing insomnia treatment to the internet. It's about accessibility, says Dr Espie, who has examined the approach taken by online courses. |
| To the masses | To the masses |
| With online automated courses, therapy that is typically only available on an individual or small group basis can be multiplied to reach many more, says Dr Richard Bedrosian, an American researcher who developed an online insomnia program. | With online automated courses, therapy that is typically only available on an individual or small group basis can be multiplied to reach many more, says Dr Richard Bedrosian, an American researcher who developed an online insomnia program. |
| TIPS FOR GETTING TO SLEEP Stay positive - if you worry about not sleeping, you won't sleepGood sleepers try to stay awake - don't dwell on falling asleepOne bad night isn't the end of good sleeping patterns - there's always tomorrow From Colin Espie, University of Glasgow Sleep Centre | TIPS FOR GETTING TO SLEEP Stay positive - if you worry about not sleeping, you won't sleepGood sleepers try to stay awake - don't dwell on falling asleepOne bad night isn't the end of good sleeping patterns - there's always tomorrow From Colin Espie, University of Glasgow Sleep Centre |
| "We're trying to provide the service to as many people as we can," he says. "You can offer these things to millions of people almost as easily as you can offer them to dozens of people." | "We're trying to provide the service to as many people as we can," he says. "You can offer these things to millions of people almost as easily as you can offer them to dozens of people." |
| Yet whether it's dozens or millions, how, exactly, do these courses attempt to tackle insomnia? | Yet whether it's dozens or millions, how, exactly, do these courses attempt to tackle insomnia? |
| These typically take several weeks, include downloadable lessons and, ultimately, mimic the doctor/patient relationship. | These typically take several weeks, include downloadable lessons and, ultimately, mimic the doctor/patient relationship. |
| "I basically took the treatment programme that we delivered in a face-to-face format and turned it into an online format," says Gregg Jacobs, an insomnia specialist at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and founder of an online therapy programme. | |
| Dr Jacobs' five-lesson, five-week course starts by teaching patients about insomnia and then offers goals for each week ahead. Patients learn to keep to a sleep schedule, reduce negative thoughts about sleep and practise relaxation techniques for day and for night. | Dr Jacobs' five-lesson, five-week course starts by teaching patients about insomnia and then offers goals for each week ahead. Patients learn to keep to a sleep schedule, reduce negative thoughts about sleep and practise relaxation techniques for day and for night. |
| "It's a very safe, very anonymous way of treating their insomnia," he says of the $25 course. | "It's a very safe, very anonymous way of treating their insomnia," he says of the $25 course. |
| This is not a good night's sleep | This is not a good night's sleep |
| In week one, for instance, participants learn to give the minute-by-minute clock watching a rest. | In week one, for instance, participants learn to give the minute-by-minute clock watching a rest. |
| Week two is spent establishing a regular rising time - a tough task for insomniacs who try to binge on sleep over the weekends to make up for those sleepless weeknights. | Week two is spent establishing a regular rising time - a tough task for insomniacs who try to binge on sleep over the weekends to make up for those sleepless weeknights. |
| But a bit of commitment - remembering to only lie down when drowsy, to use the bed for sleep only so no reading or TV watching, and to never spend more than 20 or 30 minutes awake in bed - can eventually regulate sleep. Dr Jacobs says about 75% of his patients report significant improvement. | But a bit of commitment - remembering to only lie down when drowsy, to use the bed for sleep only so no reading or TV watching, and to never spend more than 20 or 30 minutes awake in bed - can eventually regulate sleep. Dr Jacobs says about 75% of his patients report significant improvement. |
| With success rates similar to face-to-face interventions, will online treatments become a widespread and viable option? | With success rates similar to face-to-face interventions, will online treatments become a widespread and viable option? |
| "In many ways, they have advantages over face-to-face care, certainly in the ability to reach larger audiences and reduce travel time," says Lee Ritterband, a psychologist at the University of Virginia Health System, who developed a nine-week online course for a university study. His findings were published in July's issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, a medical journal. | |
| The advantages are reflected in the numbers, says Dr Ritterband. About three-quarters of the participants - who all had moderate to severe insomnia at the start - finished the course without diagnosable insomnia. | The advantages are reflected in the numbers, says Dr Ritterband. About three-quarters of the participants - who all had moderate to severe insomnia at the start - finished the course without diagnosable insomnia. |
| Patients also saw improvements in how long it took to fall asleep, how long they stayed asleep, and how many times they woke through the night. | Patients also saw improvements in how long it took to fall asleep, how long they stayed asleep, and how many times they woke through the night. |
| TREATING INSOMNIA Don't nap - the bed shouldn't be for anything but sleep and sexDon't stay in bed longer than 20 minutes. If you're not asleep, get up and do something else until you feel tiredCreate a pre-sleep routine, like taking a bath or watching TV From University of Virginia | TREATING INSOMNIA Don't nap - the bed shouldn't be for anything but sleep and sexDon't stay in bed longer than 20 minutes. If you're not asleep, get up and do something else until you feel tiredCreate a pre-sleep routine, like taking a bath or watching TV From University of Virginia |
| A similar study at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, also had similar findings, published earlier this year in the medical journal Sleep. Some 80% of participants noticed an improvement in their insomnia. | A similar study at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, also had similar findings, published earlier this year in the medical journal Sleep. Some 80% of participants noticed an improvement in their insomnia. |
| Some experts aren't yet convinced, though. While Dr Espie, of the University of Glasgow Sleep Centre, says automated systems can help make insomnia treatment widely available, others think effective treatment requires the human touch. | Some experts aren't yet convinced, though. While Dr Espie, of the University of Glasgow Sleep Centre, says automated systems can help make insomnia treatment widely available, others think effective treatment requires the human touch. |
| "I'm a bit sceptical. I think many people with insomnia really would like to have more human contact than they would over the internet," says Jim Horne, director of the Sleep Research Centre at Loughborough University. "The more personal the approach between the person who is the sufferer and the therapist, the better." | "I'm a bit sceptical. I think many people with insomnia really would like to have more human contact than they would over the internet," says Jim Horne, director of the Sleep Research Centre at Loughborough University. "The more personal the approach between the person who is the sufferer and the therapist, the better." |
| Send us your comments using the form below. | Send us your comments using the form below. |
| The BBC may edit your comments and not all emails will be published. Your comments may be published on any BBC media worldwide. Terms & Conditions | The BBC may edit your comments and not all emails will be published. Your comments may be published on any BBC media worldwide. Terms & Conditions |